There’s nothing quite like rustic charm. It cannot be faked, it has to be authentic (at least to a strong degree), and it’s best when reflecting the character of the local area. For example, in Northern England around areas such as Wetherby, you’ll see sandstone lined border walls due to the local quarries trafficking this kind of stone. It’s hard to mistake this characteristic, and as such many of the farmhouses nearby use it as a vital building material.
Moreover, a rustic home doesn’t have to be at odds with modern design or appliances. With a careful balance you can enjoy the best of both worlds - paying homage to the character of the past and enjoying the convenience of the present in equal measure.
That’s all well and good of course, but without getting into specific examples, this sounds like the most pretentious letter you’d read in Architectural Digest. So, we’d better get to it:
Use Rustic, Beautiful Cookers
Beautiful oil-burning ovens and cookers can operate around the clock and help contribute to the heating of your home. “Aga” is a popular brand of cookers that operate in this way, and thanks to their hot plates, warming ovens and several compartments, they also look fantastic and perfectly at home within a rustic home. Moreover, they’re not so vintage in style that they won’t match a relatively modern home aesthetic either, and so this is a great investment to make. Just remember they run on oil, which is why domestic oil tank installation is also worthwhile to prepare your home for such functionality.
Name Your Property
If you live in a suitable area (that isn’t designated by street codes and numbers), you may be able to name your own house. Submitting approval for this can incur a cost, and of course, investing in good signage to loudly and proudly designate your home under the new name can be helpful. A tasteful name, such as “The Mill” pertaining to the roots of the building, or another name that you feel is right for the place, can work well. Just make sure to keep it in line with the local area. For example, if you live on a road named “Lion Lane” with many cottages, calling your own cottage “Lion Cottage” could be considered dismissive of your neighbors. With a little thought, you’re sure to find the best name.
Theme Your Room With Vintage Possessions & Antiques
Many people think that a rustic home has to include many antiques and alternative decorations in order to be “authentic,” but the truth is that you can have fairly standard home decorations and still change the entire aeasthetic of the room with one vibrant, vintage artifact. That might include a beautiful oak table you use to furnish your kitchen space or a vintage movie lantern you can use to illuminate your study area. This way, you design the theme of a room around a focal piece, and can allow that to take the credit for rustic charm. This way, your design effort becomes fun and subtle, as opposed to trying to “prove” the character of your home.
With this advice, you’re sure to add rustic charm to your home in the best possible way.
'This is a collaborative post and the author's views do not necessarily reflect those of our blog. We may receive monetary compensation for our endorsement and or recommendations'.
Why not read:
