We briefly touched upon minimalism in our article, Your Guide to Home Aesthetics, but there’s more to be said about this popular home aesthetic. Even though the style is minimalist, our discussion on the topic is not. Defined by a calm vibe and neutral colours, the minimalist aesthetic continues to gain momentum. In this article, we’ll define minimalism in more detail and give you some tips on how you can work the aesthetic into your home.

The Minimalist Aesthetic Defined

As we mentioned, the minimalist aesthetic involves neutral colours to create a calming space. It also includes streamlining a space so it only contains what it needs to be functional, with a few simple design elements. The idea is that “less is more”, especially in terms of decor. Establishing a minimalist aesthetic starts with eliminating clutter. This creates a cleaner, more spacious feel, which is calming and visually appealing.

Minimalism in the Home

If you’re interested in bringing the minimalist aesthetic into your home, start by decluttering your house. You cannot achieve a minimalist space if your house is full of stuff. Another simple way to incorporate minimalist design is to paint your walls neutral tones. 

Now, let’s look at some more specific ways you can style your home according to the minimalism aesthetic. 

Neutral Colours

After you’ve removed all the clutter from your house, you’ll have more space to paint. Calm, neutral colours like gray, beige, white, and ivory are key to achieving the minimalist look. You could add a pattern or texture of the same colour to the wall for a minimalist accent. This neutral colour palette should be carried throughout the rest of your home, including the furniture, rugs, and decor.

Furniture

Bulky, brightly-coloured or patterned furniture does not fit the minimalist aesthetic. It’s overwhelming and distracting. Like your paint, minimalist furniture should be neutral in colour, and clean. Avoid patterns and multi-coloured pieces. Minimalist furniture tends to be sleek yet basic. 

A good place to start with minimalist furniture is by looking at Scandinavian-inspired pieces. Scandinavian-style furniture tends to be more on the minimalist side.

Plants

Plants and nature are often central to the minimalist aesthetic. Indoor plants are used as decorative accents and eye-catching features in a room. As well, minimalism is about allowing the natural elements and features in a space to attract attention and produce a sense of zen. Thus, you’ll see minimalist homes flooded with natural light from big windows that frame natural landscapes. The incorporation of nature in this way promotes a greater sense of the calm and tranquility that a minimalist home strives to foster.

Decor

Minimalist-style decor is very basic and often neutral, too, but it’ll naturally stand out more against the muted colours of a minimalist home. Following the idea that less is more, resist the urge to add a bunch of decor and clutter. Instead, choose simple accents that add a pop of freshness or interest to the space, without overpowering the room. 

Common decorative pieces in a minimalist house include plants, simple artwork, unique, modern-looking light fixtures, and neutral-toned rugs and pillows. When picking accents, select items with colours, textures, and shapes that complement the base of the space.

Simple Steps to Implement Minimalism in Your Home

Regardless if you want to rework your entire living space to fit the minimalist aesthetic, or you’re just looking to incorporate some elements of minimalism into your home, here’s a brief guide on how to do it.

1. Declutter

An easy way to incorporate the minimalist aesthetic into your home is to declutter. You could make a little extra money by selling things you no longer need or use, or donate them. If you have a lot of things you don’t want to get rid of, invest in some minimalist-style storage solutions, like basic, neutrally-coloured bookshelves.

Not only will you be on your way to a minimalist design, you’ll feel stress melt away when you have fewer things to worry about or clean around.

2. Choose a Neutral Colour Palette

You know by now that neutral colours are a key component of the minimalism aesthetic. Decide on a neutral colour palette as a base for your home. Hues of white really brighten and enlarge a space, but a beige or gray might be more your style. 

Once you’ve chosen the colour scheme, work on getting the walls painted and bringing in pieces of furniture that fit the palette. Again, avoid chunky, dark, bulky or visually-distracting items.

3. Add a Touch of Nature 

Continue to build upon your minimalist interior by getting a few plants to add some colour and freshness. If you’re no good with plants, fake ones will have the same effect. Go one step further by selecting single-coloured plants that are simple and visually appealing, like cactuses, ferns, and other large leafy plants.

4. Brighten Each Space 

Brighten your house by letting more light in, showcasing beautiful landscape views, or bringing in a water feature. Essentially, adding even more natural elements against the neutral backdrop of your home will brighten up each space. Doing so will go a long way in achieving the minimalist aesthetic, and that calm, tranquil vibe.

 5. Play with Accents

You can have a little fun with the accents in your home because they’ll naturally pop in a minimalist home. So, you can focus on finding items that reflect your personal style. Keep with the neutral colour scheme, but think about different textures and shapes that would complement or suit each space.

Advantages of the Minimalist Aesthetic 

Aside from the fact that the minimalist aesthetic is gorgeous, trendy, visually-satisfying, and modern, there are a variety of other advantages that come with it. These include:

• Less stuff means you have less to clean.
• With less clutter, you have less stress and more calm.
• You might be more productive with fewer distractions and less stress.
• Your home is always ready for guests because it’s clean and clutter-free.

We absolutely LOVE the minimalist aesthetic! It works in any home and can contribute to a happier, calmer family. It also allows you to save money because you don’t need to buy so much stuff to outfit your home. You might also find that a minimalist home (and lifestyle!) brings you more joy as you focus on quality items that inspire and delight you.

Omega Homes can help make your minimalist dream home a reality! 

About Omega

We don’t just build you a house, we build you a home. We assemble the top architects, designers, and trades personnel to work in conjunction with our experienced and licensed staff in order to make your dream home a reality. As a Tarion Custom Home Design-Builder, we feel it is our responsibility to be adaptable to each client’s individual needs. There’s no job we can’t handle, and we will do whatever it takes to meet your requests with high-quality results. Our architects and designers are always looking for new and exciting challenges, so the only limit is your imagination.

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