How to achieve a simple, clean and minimalist look for your windows| 247 Blog

The Minimalism trend has gained traction in the UK in the past couple of years.  Seen as an exercise in restraint, with direct links to clean living and ‘scandi’ living, the art lies in ensuring the room is still inviting and warm in the colder winter months.  Due to the lack of colour and clutter, you are able to spend a little more to get the required textures and materials.  For a window, this means thinking about the overall theme of the room and how each piece of furniture and accent works together.

Pronounced “hue-guh”, Hygge comes from the Norwegian word for ‘well-being’ and directly correlates to creating a balanced, cosy and mellow living space, even in the darkest and coldest of winters.  Being ‘light’ can also mean creating positive feelings, improving your happiness and upkeep of your physical and mental well-being.  Your window, and how you dress it, directly impacts the look and feel of the room, especially when it comes to light levels throughout the year.

Whilst there is a minimalist aspect to the decor side of things, there is also a thought process to your overall life processes and events.  In Scandinavia, largely due to lack of natural light in the long winter nights, many  homes feature a white to neutral colour palette, to try to uplift rooms that may otherwise seem too bleak or ‘cold’.  Due to this limited palette, there is a wish to ensure that the room still features soft, cosy textures, plenty of candles and lamps, thus creating that warm inviting ‘glow’.  This links directly to the ‘Hygge’ way of living, when decorating you want to capture that positive feeling.  Think warm pub fires on a stormy night, warm baths after walking in winter, and a hot mug of chocolate or tea on a brisk Autumn day. That is the aesthetic you’re trying to capture and emulate.

A mix of creamy colours and textures can help achieve this, whereas the use of white, though it's used to quickly brighten the room, you need to use plenty of warm lighting and textiles to counterbalance the stark, bleak white monotone.

Clean lines at the window can be an excellent way to break up monotone textures and colours.  By adding a touch of interest, such as by using vertical blinds or horizontal woods, you create a guide for the eye to follow; each way will create the illusion that the window is either wider or longer

By introducing wooden blinds to your home in a stylish white, bright cream or even light grey, you lighten the whole look of the room, no matter the size of the window.  Wood blinds are also a smart option for kitchens and bathrooms as they come in a wide array of ‘faux wood’ styles.  Faux wood is flame-retardant and waterproof, and features some nice textures and stains. To avoid too busy a window, consider the larger, and most popular, 50 mm slats.  Why not also add some taped woods into the mix, these allow you to combine textures and colour without being too overwhelming, and nearly cover the cord holes, helping to reduce the light that normally comes through them, and as a bonus, softening the whole look.

Another option to consider is Shutter Blinds.  These come in three main types, full-height, tier on tier and café, all help enhance the look of the window to help create a traditional, yet modern look. Differing from European-style shutters which are normally fixed directly to a wall, these sit within a frame, securely fitted within your window recess or wall.   Our favourite is the café style, as this style features shutters just halfway up the window, it allows an unobscured view of the top half of the window - Perfect for rooms where privacy is still a concern, but you don’t want to lose too much natural light.

White wooden blinds are a fantastic way to control light and privacy

By layering blankets and soft textiles in the room, you’re not only creating a cosy room to be in, but creating a calm, pleasing ‘Hygge’ feel to the room.  Soft browns, light creams and woven greys can create a harmonizing look when mixed together.  If you’re not overly keen on having loads of blankets and cushions, then you could go for a Roman blind.  We have a good array of natural Roman fabrics available, as they never go out of fashion, and introduce a softer look to the room when up at a window or door.  Seeing these fabrics 1st-hand is the best way to judge what textures will work in the room, and luckily we have a free, sampling service to help you decide.  Romans are also a fantastic natural insulator!  We’d highly recommend layering up with curtains for maximum effect of warmth and noise-reduction!

If you still wish to achieve the minimalist look, but still want some colour, we suggest working with a maximum of two or three colours, in soft or blush tones.  This still allows you to try and introduce a bit of colour, and can be harmonised by introducing similar coloured throws, cushions and a few nick-nacks.  Roller blinds in their wide array of colours and finishes, are a great way to achieve all the above, and feature clean lines and minimal fuss.

Checkout our stylish grey blinds here!

Growing the number of plants in the room helps to create a positive, cohesive look to the room.  Adding a small amount of luscious plants in various sized and coloured pots, can help break up a monotone room and create a refreshing, earthy look.  We recommend starting small with succulent plants and cacti, as they’re super low maintenance.  Larger indoor favourites that are still hard to kill are the Rubber plant, hanging Pothos and the Money tree.  If you’re not very green-figured, having fake plants can work just as well, and if you have pets, these might be preferred over finding soil flung everywhere... and half the plant eaten when you come home!

Due to the wealth of options at the touch of a button, another viable option is to use textiles to introduce your favourite aspects of the outside world into your home.  Leafy blankets, blinds with delicate insects and floral wall art are great ways to introduce a bit of green to the room.

Shop the look here - Dragonfly roller blind

Minimalist doesn't have to mean a total monotone room with little colour.  We understand that in some rooms, especially those with an already limited palette, a bolder approach is needed to inject some colour.  Where light is limited, but you would still like to retain privacy, we’d recommend choosing a fabric that still allows some light through in an uplifting colour such as yellow, citrus green and light blue.  The colour of the blind will be ‘spread’ further  into the room by the  natural illumination of the blind - Making for a stunning window centrepiece.  Going for a bolder colour and pattern will still work well in minimalist rooms, providing the room isn’t over cluttered.

Shop the stylish look here!

To summarise, a minimalist decor can be tailored to you - Just like our blinds!  Try different combinations, have fun decluttering and organising and flex your interior design skills.  Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you need it and call our team of experts on 01484 443790. Based up in Yorkshire, we understand the importance of getting it right the first time!