Like most fields in design, interior design is always changing and dependent on the latest trends. Whether the goal is to renovate, decorate, or enhance architectural detailing, how you design your home’s interior would typically consider what’s hot and what’s not, as well as your own style and preferences.
Perhaps one of the most popular trends in interior design today is sustainability in applicable aspects. A green or sustainable interior design is definitely something to look into if you’re planning to remodel or redecorate your house. And when talking about sustainability in interior design, the part where you’d use sustainable wood will most likely be brought up.
How To Use Sustainable Wood In Your Interior Design
These modern times are significantly shaping how homeowners look at home building and design. Now more than ever, the need to choose eco-friendly yet beautiful materials is more particular, thanks to the concept of green building.
In this regard, sustainable wood is a perfect material if you want to follow a sustainable lifestyle. This type of wood comes from eco-friendly forests that are sustainably managed by forest stewards to ensure that the landscape is maintained in a way that won’t cause further damage to the wildlife, watersheds, ecosystems, and the trees themselves.
Using socially produced materials like sustainable and reclaimed wood is an initial yet important step in staying true to your commitment to green building and sustainability. If you’re looking for more ways to incorporate this type of wood into your interior design, these tips might be able to help you out:
Wood Flooring
One of the most comprehensive ways to use reclaimed wood for your home is by using it as material for your flooring. The prominent yet natural rarity in wood makes it an ideal choice for flooring material. There’s a beauty and character in wood that any homeowner can’t easily resist.
To make sure that the wood you’ll be using for the floor will be sustainable, go for reclaimed wood planks that are sourced from old buildings, barns, and rural structures. There are several options available that could all suit your interior style—whether rustic, modern, or vintage. Reclaimed oak, for example, can add history and character to your interior design because of its nail holes, knots, wormholes, checks, and cracks that are all a representation of the repurposing and reclaiming processes that it went through.
Wood Stairs
If you’re planning to add a new level to your house, or maybe a deck in the yard, you’ll most likely need to build stairs for it as well. Consider using sustainable wood for the stairs and even for the deck or patio that you’ll be adding.
Reclaimed wood planks are ideal for stair treads and handrails. If you already have wooden flooring, adding wood stairs would only be logical if you want it to match the interior style that you’re aiming for. You can have the stairs painted or coated with a varnish finish if you want it to look more polished. Others also prefer to leave it as it is because they find the classic and rustic look of the wood to be more charming and aesthetically pleasing.
Wood Furniture
Another good thing about wood is that it can be easily repurposed to a lot of things. What used to be a bed frame can be turned into several furniture pieces, should you decide to give your home a remodel. Coffee tables, rocking chairs, and wood mantels are just some of the furniture that you can make out of reclaimed wood or old pieces in your house.
Fireplace mantels, for example, can be made from sustainable wood, and it won’t even cost you a lot of money to build one. You can do it yourself or ask your trusted contractor to add one to your living room. A fireplace mantel could immediately add a rustic and unique touch to your interior design. Some popular material choices for building one are reclaimed faux wood, rough sawn, and hand hewn.
Wood Shelving
Should you need to add another distinct rustic accent piece to your home’s interior, you can also consider taking on a wood shelving project. The shelves would surely be a perfect way to showcase your beautiful and delicate vases, photo frames, and even your unique collections of just about anything. Wooden shelves are also a great choice for displaying books or as storage for anything in your home.
This accent piece also works equally well in offices. You can instantly add character to your workspace the moment your office supplies are stacked neatly on a reclaimed wood shelf.
Wood Tops And Surfaces
Since you seem to be going all out with sustainable wood for your interior design, why not consider installing wood tops and surfaces too? Think bar tops, tabletops, and countertops, not just in the kitchen but practically anywhere in the house.
If you’re planning to have a kitchen remodel, wood is one of the most viable materials that you may want to consider using for your DIY projects. As wood is quite easy to handle, you won’t even need to use a lot of tools to accomplish your DIY ventures.
You’ll also appreciate how wood can be easily customized so it can match the interior style that you want for your humble abode. They’re also quite easy to make or assemble, should you decide to order a ready-made one. Your dining room would surely look more ultra-modern yet refined with American hickory or American walnut for the tabletop. Even better is that reclaimed wood materials are also safe to use as you handle and prepare food in the kitchen.
In The Mood For Sustainable Wood
As you can see, sustainable wood is easy to use in your interior design. Whether at home or in the office, there are more than enough ways to stay committed to your sustainable lifestyle and practices. Now more than ever, thinking about the environment isn’t optional anymore. This is a moral responsibility that every person should think of.
You don’t even need to go out of your way to contribute to sustainability and eco-friendliness. The simplest of things like saving electricity and using sustainable materials for your home is already a big help in ensuring a greener and better future that all people will surely benefit from.
