Architects and designers at all times have been inspired by nature: the plasticity of floral lines, the anti-stress effect of natural colors, natural materials and sunlight. By the end of the 20th century, the love of creators for nature collided with the ecological situation in the world and took shape in a new interior direction – eco-design.

Eco- friendly is not a separate style of interior, but rather a certain life position – an ethical approach to the design of space, which can be inherent in an interior in any style: from rustic to loft.

Eco-friendly has no such characteristic features. The main ingredients for sustainable design are natural materials, natural colors, plenty of natural light and responsible consumption. This recipe can work for a variety of styles. So it would be more correct to talk about an eco-interior in the rustic style, an eco-interior in the wabi-sabi style, an eco-interior in the loft style, and so on.

Closer to nature

Eco-design is materials that are safe for health with a minimum content of toxic substances: wood, paper wallpaper, decorative plaster, ceramics, natural stone, natural textiles. Such a set can appear in absolutely any style, including luxurious Art Deco or “rich” neoclassicism. When you want the eco-approach to manifest itself more stylistically, emphatically natural materials are used: wood cuts and solid wood, wicker furniture and rattan accessories, jute rugs, bamboo stems and cork.

Bamboo and cork are especially loved in eco-design because they are quickly recoverable materials in nature.

Love for nature in an environmentally friendly interior manifests itself not only in natural materials. The abundance of living plants and sunlight is also about eco – friendly. Traditional interior doors in such an interior are abandoned or replaced with glass counterparts that do not get in the way of sunlight. If possible, the windows are not curtained or hidden behind light curtains made of natural fabrics. The color palette is also inspired by nature. You can take a certain landscape as a basis, for example: a seaside with sandy, azure, and sunny shades based on white, or a “forest” scheme, where there are more deep green tones and wood.

Recycling and responsible consumption

No matter how paradoxical it may sound, but design in eco-design is not the main thing. The main thing is the principles of responsible consumption.

An eco-friendly solution – the so-called recycling. This concept in the interior includes not only the recycling of materials, but also what the designers call “the new life of old things” – the use of the potential of an already produced thing.

An old grandmother’s shawl can serve as a material for a decorative pillowcase, a vintage mirror, from which only the frame remains, can be used as an independent decor (remember the frame on the peephole from the Friends TV series), old suitcases as a creative coffee table. Some designers go further and trim the floor with planks of vegetable boxes and the ceilings with old wooden shutters. More and more environmentally friendly materials are appearing on the construction market: recycled glass tiles, wallpaper from paper waste, and so on.

A responsible decision is to reduce water and energy costs. Choose windows and finishing materials with good thermal insulation, lay carpets on the floor – all this will help keep the room warm.

t’s a good idea to ditch conventional lamps in favor of energy-saving LEDs and adjust the light intensity.

Eco-approach assumes a decrease in consumption rates. When choosing furniture and finishes, it is recommended to give preference to high-quality, durable, easy-care materials that will not soon fail. The longer things live in our interiors, the less we buy, the less natural resources are wasted and the less waste ends up in the environment.