What is Asian Interior Design?
Asian interior design combines popular design concepts from countries such as Japan, China, Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia. It’s also known as oriental interior design.
Adopting an Asian interior design style can give your home a zen-like feeling. Here’s a look at the characteristics of Asian design and ways to add it to your spaces.
Origins of Asian Design
The origins of Asian design come from Eastern Asian countries, with the most prominent influences from China and Japan. While elements differ by region, most Asian designs have a connection to the outdoors and focus on creating tranquil spaces.
Here’s a look at influences from Chinese and Japanese interior design.
- Chinese Interior Design – Chinese interior design dates back centuries with prominent features including screens and furniture with latticework, warm color palettes, pops of red, pieces made of metal, lacquered surfaces, and lanterns.
- Japanese Interior Design – Japanese interior design has a significant focus on natural materials, minimal decor, neutral color palettes, and indoor/outdoor connections. It’s often centered around “wabi-sabi,” or the belief in understated elegance and the beauty in natural but imperfect objects.
Fused together, Asian interior design creates an earthy, calm atmosphere. Furniture placement is strategic, and the decor is well-thought-out.
Asian Interior Design Characteristics
If you want a tranquil home, add some Asian interior design characteristics to your space.
Adopt an Earth-Tone Color Palette
Asian interior design features a lot of neutral colors found in the environment. Consider paint colors such as white, cream, beige, brown, sage green, or muted blue.
Incorporate Natural Materials into Your Space
Natural materials are the best permanent fixtures for your rooms. Choose flooring options like hardwood or stone floors. Also, opt for wood cabinetry, stone counters, rough-hewn wooden ceiling beams, and other wood or stone accents.
Decorate with Floral and Nature-Inspired Motifs
Asian decor mimics scenes found in nature. You can create mural walls depicting the outdoors or install floral wallpaper. You can also incorporate furniture with floral motifs or design a room using natural materials like rattan, bamboo, and wicker.
Use Chinoiserie Furniture
Chinoiserie is “Chinese-like” furniture. Chinoiserie pieces can add an oriental touch to your home and help your furniture coordinate with the rest of the space.
Follow Feng Shui Guidelines
Feng Shui is the ancient Chinese practice of arranging items within a home to create balance. According to Feng Shui, everything has negative and positive energy, and how you organize your house can influence your life.
An easy way to get started with Feng Shui is by using a Bagua map which covers eight life circumstances and presents a plan for improving these areas through design elements, color choices, and furniture arrangement.
Add Orchids and Water Features
Orchids are a top plant pick for Asian design. A water feature, like a small fountain, can also act as decor.
Keep Your Design Simple
Oriental interior design is simple and tranquil. Keep clutter to a bare minimum and look for furniture with clean lines.
Examples of Asian Interior Design
Here’s a look at some rooms featuring Asian interior design elements.
Asian Interior Design Bathroom
The designers of this Zen bathroom kept a neutral color palette and minimal design. The skylight and large window provide an indoor/outdoor connection, while the vessel sink and bamboo shades offer interest.
Asian Home Office
Asian interior design features bright pops of red, which symbolize luck and joy in China. The designer kept this room earthy and neutral besides the red accents. The bookshelf offers a streamlined look and adds contrast.
Modern Oriental Kitchen
The designers chose a tone-on-tone look for this kitchen with black trim work. The streamlined cabinets and color palette give the room a tranquil but modern feel. The clerestory lights create a connection to the outdoors.
Asian Living Room
The design of this Asian living room is tranquil and minimal. The woodwork and natural color scheme are simple, and the large windows give a beautiful view of the outdoors.