Your Home’s An Oasis: The Power Of Japanese-Inspired Prints (& More)
So here’s something we don’t usually cover… Why care about the interior design of your home? What’s the point of making changes to things like fabrics and decor? These are the things we do talk about here. But we don’t often pause to talk about why.
We’re passionate about interior design, fabrics, and decor because our homes and offices aren’t just structures serving a solely utilitarian function. They also play a huge role in our physical and mental health.
As surely as you know, eating certain things or wearing certain things impacts your body and mind in certain ways — some good, some not so much. The same holds for the interior design of the spaces in which you live and work. Of course, it does.
So bringing some attention to creating spaces focussed on how you actually want to feel in them as well as how you’ll use them is a particular kind of personal empowerment we’re mighty fond of. All of that to say — with great excitement — today we get to talk about the power of Japanese-inspired design and prints in the fabrics you use in your home. And the experience of your home that awaits when you do.
Quick Look: What’s So Great About Japanese Design Style In Your Home?
Peaceful, tranquil, uplifting, and expansive. Those are all feelings you’d like to feel in your home, right? Same. And as we’ll soon discover, there are few design styles more tailored to cultivating that experience than the Japanese interior design style.
There’s a central, foundational reason that Japanese-inspired interior design is such a popular choice for creating a tranquil and peaceful atmosphere in our homes. It’s a design style built by centering simplicity, clean lines, and the use of natural materials. The result is somehow both minimalist and still warm.
So let’s look a little deeper and discover ways to bring the look boldly — or just barely — into your favorite spaces. Because that’s the power of design and fabrics.
Your New Japanese-Inspired Interior Design Style Feels So Simple
When we talk about minimalism in the context of Japanese design we don’t mean an industrial, austere kind of minimalism. Think of a beautiful clear and sunny day. You could say that the sky is kind of minimalist but it’s certainly not stark or unfriendly. In many ways, that’s kind of the feeling we’re after here.
For the underlying color scheme, you’ll see a lot of neutral colors such as beige, gray, white, and black. These colors help to create a calm and serene atmosphere. And you’ll see less use of bright and bold colors or rather a discerning use of them.
A key priority is to avoid clutter and keep your home’s decor simple and flowing. And the furniture is all about clean lines and minimal ornamentation further adding to a visual sense of tranquility. But — fear not — none of this means your furniture lacks personality.
Perhaps your main sectional is low and sleek and adorned in simple, thistle beige cotton denim twill fabric or maybe a fog grey microsuede. You can bring in prints for the back cushions or throw pillows like an Asian-themed toile pattern in flax with burgundy highlights or maybe seaspray green instead. Notice how the colors stay muted and soft but still offer a bit of pattern and pop. This allows you to stay minimal but not feel like your furniture is missing something.
Your New Japanese-Inspired Interior Design Style Feels So Natural
Japanese-inspired design comes by its ability to offer peace and relief naturally — literally. The use of natural materials is a key design feature. Yes, this often means using materials such as wood, bamboo, and stone, offering a connection with nature and adding warmth to your home.
It also means leaning into light and, wherever possible, emphasizing the impact of windows or skylights to allow natural light to flood in. And all of that builds a feeling of a bright and open atmosphere that’s perfect for relaxing at the end of the day. Also, adding actual natural elements like plants, bonsai trees, and other bits of nature is encouraged. The space feels all the more alive. Because it is.
And in your fabrics, you can offer some of that natural beauty with the prints you choose. Let’s look to the bedroom. How about a headboard adorned in tropical floral print evoking Japanese garden vibes? Or a chaise lounge in a playful floral and crane pattern in warm teal and gold? Or even a duvet cover in an earthy autumn orange abstract foliage? Patterns and prints that echo the natural world elevate the vibe.
Your New Japanese-Inspired Interior Design Style Feels So Elegant
You feel it, right? When you walk into a space rich in Japanese-inspired design style there’s an elegance and use of space that positively exudes a sense of calmness. A lot of that can be achieved through decorative touches. Bringing in Japanese-inspired art pieces or even contemporary art. Just stick with simple images and clean lines.
And there’s a kind of flexibility in the furnishings that fits so many of the multi-use needs we often have in our homes. You see this in things like Shoji screens which can be as substantive as sliding doors or as simple as foldable screens — freeing you to change the way a space flows and the privacy it offers quickly and easily.
Back to our Japanese-inspired prints and fabrics. You can use fabric as tapestries or as a kind of sometimes-tapestry-plus-privacy-screen by adding curtains in something like a bold pink tropical pattern or a sapphire blue traditional print. Both are bold, yes. But both still honor the design vibe and bring elegance and energy.
And just because furniture is clean-lined doesn’t mean it needs to be uncomfortable. Throw pillows — in a variety of shapes and sizes — are right at home on any or all furniture and offer another place to add a decorative flourish. Like a stone blue floral and tropical bird print. Or perhaps an abstract small-scale floral print with deep violets and mossy greens. Or a vibrant botanical pattern with blue and rust highlights against a natural hue.
And Your New Japanese-Inspired Home Design Style Is Just So Peaceful
So what are the key takeaways to peacefully incorporating Japanese-inspired interior design in your home — without it getting lost in translation?
First off, remember it’s your home. If you love it, it’s perfect. The rules and tips are there to simplify the process not limit your vision. Second, remember you have friends in the fabric business and we love helping you get just the look your after. And, lastly, a quick pass through quick tips to get you started:
Stick to a more minimalist color palette and furnishings — you’re aiming for spaciousness, flow, and function. Incorporate natural materials — and lean on fabrics, artwork, and the use of light to add scope and personality. You got this. A little (or a lot of) Japanese-inspired design awaits and comes bearing a home that’s just a bit more peaceful, calm, and restorative. Now, who couldn’t use more of that?