6 ways to add industrial style furniture to your interior

Industrial interior style first developed in the early 70s when old factories, warehouses and mills were closing down and turned into living spaces. People who moved into these converted spaces decided against covering up the old industrial mechanisms and exposed brickwork and instead worked to style their homes around these features. You'd be forgiven for thinking that the industrial interior décor style sounds a little like living in the middle of a building site but this couldn't be further from the truth. Reminiscent of spare but functional Scandinavian interiors, this is a style that is as much about displaying functionality as it is about the way a room looks, with minimalism a key aspect of industrial designs. Here at The Wooden Furniture Store, we thought we'd look at why the trend has become a staple of many homes in need of modern revitalisation and how to add industrial style furniture to your home whether you live in a Manhattan loft apartment or not!

Add some exposed bricks

Image from thebesthomedecor.org

For some lucky homeowners, stripping away drywall reveals beautiful brick walls, which impart timeless texture and character to a space. There's nothing quite like original clay-and-mortar blocks to recall a home's history—after all, fired bricks have been around for thousands of years. Left raw or painted, the look lends itself perfectly to industrial style and gives the room an air of being unfinished which conceals the fact that everything has been carefully selected and positioned for maximum impact on the eye.

Image from architizer.com

Just one exposed brick wall would make a fantastic accent in a room and also means that you can change the colour scheme of the room whenever you want. With the right lighting, décor and accessories, a room with brick walls can be far more visually appealing, as it lets the furniture in neutral hues shine through

A mix of metal and wood

Image vintageindustrialstyle.com

The origins of the industrial design were established when there wasn’t a lot of choice of building materials. The utilitarian nature of the style dictates the absence of too much decoration and ornaments, so wood and metal surfaces are the perfect foundation for the rest of the room. The textural interplay of grainy, earthy wood and smooth, lustrous metal is a perfect industrial interior design trend and if you want to make the whole look even bolder, you can add a dose of concrete into the mix.

Image from vintageindustrialstyle.com

It is precisely these materials that combine to create a large number of industrial-style furnishings - many are truly vintage, while others are inspired by old factory and laboratory pieces.

Crafted from reclaimed, rough sawn pine, our new Hulstone Industrial furniture collection has a rustic, solid feel and the powder coated, black steel frame gives each piece an urban edge. The range is beautifully finished with a grey, wash tint lacquer, which enhances the knots, grain and imperfections of the wood to ensure that each piece is truly unique. Featuring furniture specially constructed for the living and dining room, the collection combines contemporary design with inspirational, stylish pieces and would work well in many settings from a pared back Scandinavian design, to a Brooklyn urban loft or even a modernised rustic country home.

An open plan space

Image from lovechicliving.co.uk

Stemming from the industrial styles origins in warehouse conversion, wide open spaces are key aspects of any industrial interior design. It's important not to make the room feel too cavernous though, so furnishings must be carefully positioned to maintain the feel of space without leaving too much of an open area. Warm, neutral colors are generally favoured for industrial style homes, which are typically large and open. Such hues help to bring visual warmth to an area that might otherwise be overwhelmed by the coolness of metal pipes and ducts

Vintage style pieces of furniture

Image from vintageinteriorstyle.com

Reclaimed furniture plays a significant part in the industrial décor scheme. Turning old tea chests into coffee tables or cinder block piles into shelving units is just the start – anything in that looks functional but doesn't have much in the way of style or colour could work in the right space.

Each piece in or Urban Chic range is 100% unique and has lots of character from the different grain patterns, knots and burrows, nail holes, discoloration and uneven edges found in salvaged wood that used to create the furniture. Each piece of wood has its own story with a little piece of history to tell. Recycled wood furniture is more interesting than mass produced furniture and that’s what makes each piece charming and unique. Urban Chic furniture works well in any modern living space, making a contemporary home a little less new looking and any home with wooden flooring, high ceilings or a large floor space can benefit from one or two pieces to add depth and character to the space.

Image from hearthomemag.co.uk

While industrial interior design ideas tend to be minimalist, there is a lot of room for creating drama by contrasting metal finishes with rustic or vintage cabinets, countertops and furniture.

A mechanical centre piece

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As with any interior design, it is good to have a centrepiece or two. It’s about selecting pieces that are as much about function as style from an old vintage clocks to scissor accordion lights. This design style celebrates engineering and mechanical ingenuity like little else.

It's all about the little details

Image from frenchfancy.com

Another way to work industrial architectural designs into your home is to incorporate vintage posters, murals, and music related merchandise. These are an excellent way to make an impressive yet cheap impact in your bedroom or living room.

Image from vintageindustrialstyle.com

So you can see, industrial style takes many forms. From exposed piping on ceilings and walls to wood and metal furnishings and accents, there are many ways you can get the industrial look at home. Which will you try?