A Guide to Creating a Minimalist Bohemian Living Room
The world of interior design is constantly evolving, with trends coming and going all the time.
However, one trend that seems to be sticking around is the minimalist bohemian living room. Also referred to as the boho living room, this trendy and eclectic design theme can be seen in households across the country.
If you’re struggling with how to decorate your home’s interior or simply want to freshen up your living room or lounge with a great new look, a minimalist bohemian living room may be the way to go.
In this blog, we’ll take a closer look at the style, and provide you with a handy guide to creating a minimalist bohemian living room that you can be proud of.
What is the difference between minimalist and bohemian?
While the minimalist bohemian living room trend is extremely popular, both minimalist and bohemian are also themes in their own right.
Minimalist elements are typically characterised by clean lines, subtle colour palettes and a lack of clutter that is extremely simplistic yet not bare. In order to achieve this, this kind of design will usually incorporate open floor plans, lots of light and functional furniture pieces that often incorporate storage space. This approach will also tend to focus on the shape and style of just a few necessary furniture pieces rather than a larger quantity of accessories.
Whereas a bohemian living room, also known as a boho living room, combines a variety of cultures and artistic designs that brings together a whole host of furniture and accessories. These styles can include anything including organic elements, nature, colour and intricate patterns across furniture, woven rugs and more. In some ways a boho living room is almost closer to maximalism, the opposite of a minimalist approach and one that revels in an excess of belongings.
While they may seem like contrasting styles, a minimalist bohemian living room offers the best of both worlds and is a great way to boose any interior.
What is a minimalist bohemian living room?
As mentioned above, minimalist and bohemian trends offer their own very distinctive styles. However, when brought together they also complement one another wonderfully well.
A hybrid design of the two unique styles, a minimalist bohemian living room offers a combination of textures, colours and pieces that exude a sense of personality and character while not overwhelming the eye or making the room become cluttered. In other words, it remains minimalist in style while the elements within it offer a sense of expression from the homeowner by mixing patterns materials and personable items.
A great choice for those who want to add character to a modern home, bringing bohemian and minimalist together is a great way to give your living space a contemporary appearance while remaining warm and giving it an enhanced flair.
How to create a minimalist bohemian living room?
There’s a lot more to creating a good minimalist bohemian living room than just chucking all of the elements together in one place.
Let’s take a look at the best ways in which you can create a minimalist bohemian living room.
Use natural tones and textures
One of the best features of a minimalist bohemian living room is an emphasis on nature, and using organic tones and textures in a room is a great way to achieve this. Natural textures can help add a sense of warmth and comfort to any room, and cushions and pillows are one of the easiest ways to do this. Selecting patterns on pillows and cushions that are different and unique is a wonderful way to incorporate this kind of aesthetic. Woven rugs are another good choice in this arena.
Opt for neutral colour palettes
Neutral colour palettes and tones are a staple of minimalist interior designs and you should consider this style for your room’s walls. Whites, creams and muted earthy tones are a good place to start. From here, you can then go for a bolder focal point to introduce the bohemian element of the room. This could be a bold wall decoration or perhaps an adventurously patterned sofa.
Consider layering
Overlap minimalist items with bohemian pieces to create a free-spirited look that blends different styles together in a unique way. For instance, a subtle minimalist rug can be enhanced with a bold patterned rug on top. Or, a clean-lined sofa can be made a focal point with eclectic scatter cushions that include vibrant patterns, or perhaps an animal print throw.
Incorporate plants
A feature that truly epitomises minimalist bohemian is houseplants. A great way to bring a sense of nature and additional warmth to a room, they’re also excellent at keeping rooms cool during the summer months. A very urban trend, as well as their aesthetic appeal plants can also help people relax, lower stress levels and have even been known to improve sleep if placed in bedrooms.
Things to avoid in a minimalist bohemian living room?
While it’s important to display your personality and unique style across your minimalist bohemian living room, there are some pitfalls you should strive to avoid to keep the aesthetic classy but not cramped. The last thing you want is to overwhelm the space and we’d recommend avoiding the following:
- Bulky furniture pieces: we’d always steer clear of large and bulky items of furniture. This is because they tend to be unsuitable for a minimalist design even if combined with bohemian elements. Instead, we’d recommend smaller, lightweight items that can are easier to move around as and when it suits you. You can incorporate bohemian accessories with these pieces to stay on theme.
- Avoid clutter: clutter is the enemy of a minimalist bohemian living room and should be avoided at all costs. While accessories and pieces of decor are welcome, anything that is unnecessary or doesn’t add any value to the space should be tidied away or removed entirely.
- Don’t pile patterns: while bohemian patterns are often a great way to accentuate minimalist features, you don’t want them to be too busy. Muted, subtle patterns are often the way to go if you want to lean more on the minimalist side, but if you’re keen on bold and bright patterned pieces be sure to stick to just one or two rather than several that can make your space look overwhelming.
