Design Inspiration: Delving Into Travel Influenced Interiors
Travel is an exhilarating journey that broadens our horizons, ignites our sense of adventure, and immerses us in new cultures and landscapes. It's no wonder many individuals seek to capture the essence of their travel experiences in their homes.
This blog post will explore the captivating world of travel-influenced interiors and décor, shedding light on what it entails and how it can transform your living spaces into personal travel sanctuaries.
Going on holiday can be the ultimate luxury self-care activity that you can do for yourself. Looking forward to an upcoming holiday often gets us through the stress of our mundane everyday lives and allows us to truly treat ourselves to an unforgettable experience. However, what if you didn’t have to only have that feeling once a year? Why not bring the holiday into your home? Read ahead to discover how to bring travel into your home.
What are Travel Influenced Interiors?
A travel influenced interior is exactly what it sounds like. Design that is influenced by world travels or influenced by a specific country or region. Travel affects many things in life, and interiors are no exception. With inspiration from across the globe, many different styles have been introduced to homeware and furnishings.
Many people use their ideas gathered from countries they have visited, adding a personal touch to a home. One of the great things about travel influenced interiors is the freedom of choice, there are no set ‘rules’ of what you must do or not do, it is open to interpretation. However, further on in this article are some suggestions as to how to elevate the travel influence design into a home.
You don’t have to have the whole of your interior to be inspired by the same country or region. You could switch it up with every room, or you can include a collection of eclectic furniture and accessories that are influenced by different countries or regions; you don’t have to stick to a specific country in just one room.
There’s nothing wrong with taking inspiration from other cultures. Acknowledging and respecting the culture and region from which your design is inspired means you don’t have to worry about cultural appropriation.
Starting Point
A great place to start is with your own travels and experience. Perhaps you're particularly fond of a specific country and their designs and colour palettes, or have an attachment to a specific country through a happy memory. It might also be that you would like to use your heritage as a starting point, using an ancestor's originating country’s colour palette or materials.
At the end of the day, the starting point is one that is very personal. As already mentioned, it could be that you do various rooms in different styles. What might start out as one room, could turn into multiple or a combination of countries in one room, the possibilities are endless! Do you want to focus on a particular country or city, or do you wish to pick a more general theme? These decisions will help you choose the colours, patterns and textures best suited for the space. For example withGreece, think inky blues and crisp
whites mixed with linens and jute textures.
Drawing design inspiration from a particular country or culture rather than a more general theme can be something to consider if you want to give your interiors a truly transportive quality.
For some, this might mean replicating the feel of a favourite travel spot, or it could be more aspirational and reflect dream destinations.
Keeping It Simple
It can be easy for travel inspired interior designs to come across as inauthentic and cheesy. Try and make the design as authentic as possible by selecting pieces that genuinely look like they may have been found in the location that you’re inspired by, even if they weren’t.
For example, an artwork that features a famous landmark or monument of a country can be seen as cheesy and too literal. Instead, focus on bringing a colour palette or textural element from that country into the space for a more elevated approach. It’s advised not to overdo it either when it comes to incorporating travel influenced pieces into your home.
Not every item has to be derived from a specific country or region, or your space might end up looking more like a museum than a home. Find the right combination of functional, simple, and fun eclectic pieces to create a cohesive, balanced design.
Inject Some Personality
Try not to lose yourself in what you are trying to create. Even if there are some pieces in your home already that you really love but don’t quite fit the theme, that is more than ok.
You still want the home to be reflective of you and your style. Perhaps you want to include treasured pieces from a loved one or a piece from a country where you have a particular memory.
Another great way to add personality to your design is by including photos of your travels, specifically photos of you with your family or friends.
Grouping these together on a console or sideboard in photo frames adds a nice gallery feature, or you could use bigger frames and use these on a wall for a feature wall.
Showcasing what you’ve collected from your own adventures is a wonderful way to imbue your space with a travel theme.
If you don’t want to go all out and create a gateway to a particular country, you can still show off your love of travel by highlighting your favourite pieces from your collection and giving them pride of place on a meticulously styled shelf or coffee table.
Sticking to a colour palette is a great way to ensure that your design looks cohesive and professional. This can be inspired by your travel, or simply complement it.
For example, if you’re creating a coastal getaway, it’s best to stick to a nautical colour palette full of blues, whites, beiges, and soft yellows. Going for more of a mountain forest vibe? Stick to earthy colours like mossy greens, browns, terracotta, and light grey.
If your design is not inspired by one specific region, neutrals are key. A good neutral colour palette always looks purposeful and sophisticated. You can always bring in the colour via accessories instead of furniture or wall colours.
Having a neutral coloured space and furniture means you can switch up your accessories more often, either seasonally or through different countries and swap around in the rooms of the house
When you’re designing from travel influence, you are trying to set a tone. As previously mentioned, not everything has to be directly related to travel, but it should contribute to the overall tone of the destination, or at least not clash with it.
For example, if you’re designing around a desert, a raw edge wood coffee table doesn’t have anything to do with the desert specifically, but it definitely fits with the rustic
vibe.
Conclusion
Travel-influenced interiors and décor are an incredible way to bring the magic of your travel experiences into your everyday life. By embracing cultural diversity, incorporating colours and textures, showcasing travel souvenirs, incorporating nature-inspired elements, and adorning your walls with wanderlust-inducing art, you can create a home that reflects your passion for exploration and storytelling. Let your travels shape your interior design choices, and let the memories of your adventures weave their way into the fabric of your living spaces.
