Why do people love visiting thrift stores and antique shops?
There’s nothing like flitting from item to item, taking them in your hands, and imagining their unique history. When you incorporate these rugged, natural artifacts into your home decor, you are adding a rustic touch to your home’s aesthetic.
There are many other names for rustic decor, from “shabby chic” to “touch of country.” Often, the effect of filling your home with these raw room accents evokes a rural farm or bygone era. When you embrace the rustic look, you will transport yourself back to a simpler time without leaving home!
How do you achieve this simple but specific look without spending all of your savings traveling from antique shop to antique shop? Rustic decor has become so popular nowadays that you can find the perfect pop of country in your favorite home stores! If you’re crafty, you can even achieve this look with a little elbow grease using items you already have on hand!
Keep reading to pick up a few of the coziest and easiest rustic decorating ideas that will add a little bit of nostalgia to any room in your home!
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Custom Door Transformation
One of the most popular ways to incorporate rustic style into your home is to emulate the look of a farmhouse. This has led to the popularity of the “barn style door.” These are metal or wooden doors that open and close by sliding on a track rather than on hinges.
Often, these doors look like they came straight from a real working farm! Many feature wooden bracing that resembles the doors on a genuine barn. While you can order a closet barn door and install it in your home, you can also add a rustic touch to existing doors.
One thing that you can do is add a new layer of dark stain to an existing wooden door. Additionally, you can paint the door and then use sandpaper to gently reveal the woodgrain at the very edges. Replacing existing knobs with rustic-style hardware is probably the simplest way to give existing doors a country makeover!
The “chalkboard look” is also a staple of modern rustic style, and you can achieve it with a little bit of chalkboard paint. You’ll be able to practice your hand lettering skills and write directly on your closet door!
Mason Jar Makeover
One of the simplest ways to incorporate a touch of rustic charm into your home decor is by using mason jars. Mason jars evoke the rural way of life. The best part is that they are incredibly inexpensive and simple to transform!
A painted mason jar can effortlessly transform into a vase, organizer, or candle holder. Paint the interior of your jar in a dusky hue that best matches the rest of your room.
Even if you leave your mason jars as it, their contents can help add that rustic flair that you’re seeking. A sprig of dried lavender quickly brings a touch of the farm indoors. Likewise, adding an electric tea light can create a flickering home accent for pennies on the dollar.
Thrift Store Score
If you love to thrift, chances are you’ve stumbled upon some artifacts that would look perfect in a rustic-themed room. A good thrift store is a budget-friendly source for all sorts of authentic home accents that will elevate your interior design in a truly bespoke way.
When you’re out thrifting, you might want to look out for the following treasures:
- Key cabinets with hooks
- Old wooden crates
- Wooden wall shelves
- Horseshoes
- Wicker baskets with character
- Mail sorters
- Terracotta pots
- Wooden benches
- Candle Sconces
- Wooden trays
All of these items can be painted and sanded or incorporated as-is to add a real sense of history to your rustic decor. If you see something you like that isn’t quite perfect, you can often replace the hardware yourself very inexpensively. A touch of wood stain can also completely transform your favorite finds!
Upcycle Your Heart Out
A lot of rustic charm is achieved through upcycling! In essence, reusing found objects and wood to add that farm-like feel to your space. Repurposing scrap wood is an excellent way to create unique, country-inspired pieces such as headboards, lanterns, and wall art.
Many creative upcyclers have taken advantage of free industrial wooden spools. These spools have a lot of character! You can transform spools into beautiful round tables – just make sure to sand down the splinters first!
You might even already have some items that you can upcycle into brand new decorative pieces! Clever designers have turned old dressers into rustic bars, transformed old windows into wall art, and even turned wooden crates into planters!
Before you spend money, see what you have available and take advantage of the hidden beauty hiding in plain sight! After all, that sense of history is what real rustic style is all about!
Give Your Home That Rustic Touch
There are so many ways to add a contemporary rustic touch to your home without paying designer prices. With a little bit of work, you’ll be walking into a space that feels like a warm, comfortable memory of rural comfort. Put these tips into practice today to build your own country oasis, no matter where you live!
Are you looking for more ways to turn your home into a paradise? Check out the rest of the blog for more posts that can inspire everything from staycations to closet makeovers! We’ve got a little bit of everything, so keep reading!
