Everyone wants their house to look good, whether it is a newly built one or an old one to be renewed. People don’t want to compromise the beauty and aesthetics of their houses, and hence they consult an interior designer. Interior designing is a field that considers the structure of your house and makes it more beautiful by suggesting some necessary steps or actions.
Several things need to be considered while designing the interior of any house, such as the house’s structure, the expectations of the owner, the budget allocated to décor, etc. Depending on these factors, there are some approaches defined in interior design. Minimalism is one of those approaches that are very similar to modern design style.
As the name suggests, minimalism focuses on minimizing things to basic needs. In this article, you will get to know the concept of minimalism in interior design, along with the elements, characteristics, and top benefits of minimalism.
Let’s look at the concept of minimalism first and then move on to the next part.
Minimalism in Interior Design
As an enduring design trend, it is quite interesting to understand minimalism in interior design. For some people, minimalism is about keeping a space simple and decluttered while accentuating the attractive architectural features of that space. Some experts believe that minimalism often goes hand in hand with functionality.
Being very similar to modern interior design, minimalism involves using bare essential things to create simple and decluttered spaces. Minimalist interior design provides an alternative to the over-accessorized, jam-packed interiors that became popular in the Victorian era and grew in popularity due to 20th-century consumer culture.
Being deceptively refined, minimalist spaces are mostly known for clean lines and simple, sculptural forms. Interiors comprise only limited, purposeful objects while leaving no traces of clutter. Minimalist spaces help you clear your mind while allowing you to focus on essentials. Let’s look at the elements of minimalism in interior design.
Elements of Minimalism
The following elements of minimalism in interior design explain why it is so popular –
Bare Essentials
The minimalist approach prefers only the essential elements, including light, form, and beautiful materials, generally in an open-plan layout, for creating a sense of freedom and relaxation. There is no additional ornamentation or decoration. Instead, a few uncomplicated details are used that blend harmoniously into the setting. This might be a single artwork furnishing a living room wall or a beautiful vase on top of your dining room table.
Clean Lines
Minimalist furniture and accessories concentrate on functionality and practicality. Flat, smooth surfaces and strong, clean lines create bold statements highlighting each item’s essential nature. You will neither find highly patterned furnishings and accessories nor highly detailed ornamentation. Instead, it focuses on the sterility and lucidity of the shape and form.
Monochromatic Colour Palette
A monochromatic color scheme comprising whites, beiges, and greys is common in minimalist-designed spaces.
Characteristics of Minimalism
The key characteristics of minimalism in interior design include:
- Less is more
- Focus on functionality
- Clean, simple lines
- Sculptural forms
- Lack of excess ornamentation and decoration
- A monochromatic, limited color palette, where color is sometimes used as an accent for creating a soothing environment
- Use of specific, well-chosen materials, like concrete, steel, glass, and wood
- Everything has a place and a purpose
- Use of space and natural light
- Spotlight on craftsmanship
- Interior design that is well-ventilated and decluttered, usually with open-play layouts and ample integrated storage
With this, you can clearly understand the minimalist interior design approach.
Top 7 Benefits of Minimalism in Interior Design
A minimalist approach to interior design offers the following benefits.
1. Spaciousness and Better Storage
With its primary focus on keeping minimum things around, the minimalist approach provides spaciousness as its key benefit. When you opt for minimalism, very less space is occupied with only essential things, and the remaining space remains unoccupied. This free space makes your rooms look bigger than they are.
Also, you can use this space for storage (essential things only!) wherever necessary. Over-stuffing of unnecessary things makes your rooms congested and reduces light and ventilation. However, with a minimalist approach, you’ll get ample light and ventilation since there’s no issue of congestion. In this way, this approach to interior design helps you with better storage and spaciousness.
2. Less Complex Furniture – Less Maintenance
The minimalist approach is not only applicable to walls and structure but also applicable to furniture items. When you choose minimalism, all the excess furniture will be removed and only essential items will remain in their place. When you have more furniture, you will be left with less free space and have to maintain all your furniture.
But, with minimalism, you only need to take care of essential furniture items, as they are the only items you can keep. Thus you get more space and less maintenance required. Isn’t it beneficial?
3. Easy on the Eyes and Relaxing to the Brain
The human brain has complex functionality. Colorful and extremely creative details easily attract human interest right away. However, too much variation can result in chaos and anxiety. As mentioned, human brains are at odds with concepts such as symmetry, neatness, and order. It induces a successful result.
Minimalism appears to be relaxing to human eyes and soothing to our brain, as well as to our mood. This health benefit is worth considering and hence this approach is opted for by many people around the world. This is an opportunity for you to relax your eyes and brain with minimalism in interior design.
4. Less Clutter and All Things in an Organized Form
An overflowing display or storage unit is certainly a distracting one for any person. However, with minimalism in interior design, you can get rid of these unwanted items. This approach helps you maintain your open display units neat and arranged. In case, you’re unable to get rid of such items, think of getting a bed with storage or a sofa with storage.
The minimalist approach focuses on keeping all your things in an organized form and keeps your space clutter-free. Thus, it increases your free space and allows you to utilize it for better purposes. Think of this benefit while choosing your interior design approach.
5. Focus on Quality than on quantity
It is already mentioned several times that minimalism focuses on having quality items only and not a large number of unwanted items. When you opt for minimalism, you start picking specific items that are high-quality. These high-quality items add to the aesthetics and beauty of your house.
Although some of them may be expensive, you can spend on them to enjoy better quality. Another side of the story here is you save much by not buying a lot of other unwanted items. Thus it is a double benefit from opting for minimalism. Don’t you think this approach is worth considering?
6. Less Stuff – Less Cleaning – Less Dust, Dirt, and Allergy
When you have too much clutter around you, remember it attracts dust that invites mites. Therefore, it’s your responsibility to keep all your furniture and surroundings clean regularly. This isn’t that easy. However, if you opt for minimalism, you will be having less stuff around you to be cleaned.
Further, less stuff results in less dust, dirt, and allergy. Thus minimalism helps reduce your cleaning efforts while protecting your family’s health in another way. Missing this benefit of minimalism, is not a good idea, right? Prefer minimalism for better health.
7. Luxury Through Simplicity
Although minimalism seems to be a simplistic approach, it focuses on simplicity. You might be wondering why this is getting confusing. Well, simple and simplicity are two different concepts. Simplistic means simple or basic whereas simplicity refers to sophistication. As said, this approach focuses on simplicity, it brings a sense of liberation.
Having a home with liberation and sophistication can make you feel luxurious. Thus it won’t be wrong to say that minimalism offers luxury through simplicity. Also, you will be using high-quality, branded products that also add to this luxurious feeling with minimalism. Choosing minimalism in interior design seems to be an overwhelming experience with so many benefits together.
Apart from the above benefits, minimalist interior design also provides other health benefits such as, it improves your health by offering better sleep. As you declutter the space around you, it creates a positive impact on your mind. Decluttered bedroom helps reduce your stress and control your emotions thus facilitating better sleep.
With a minimalist approach, you can create a comforting and relaxing environment. This pleasant ambiance and calming environment create a positive impact on your health. Thus you can also think of a minimalist interior design to improve your physical and mental health as well.
If you are not a fan of loud, crazy, or fancy things around but rather like simplicity and decency, then minimalism is perfect for you!
