Country-style decor, furniture, living ideas

More and more people want country life - and suddenly we also like the rustic country house style. But instead of overwhelming and gloomy, the country style is now fresh and light. The best furnishing tips for the country house decoration and how the country house style works in 2018.

Country house decoration: opulent country house kitchen

This spacious kitchen is opulent and grand. The kitchen block is made of chestnut wood and invites you with its chairs to watch the cook prepare meals or to help you snip. Copper pots dangle from the top of the ceiling and are held on a forged frame. The large gas stove on the left offers enough cooking space and the stove has enough capacity to fill up large families and guests. The wooden floor also gives it rustic charm. Such an ambience is easier to create in the old building - the house in which this kitchen is located was built in 1780.

Manorial kitchen with chestnut wood block. By Haver & Skolnick Architects.

Photo: Robert Benson / Gestalten

Country style in monochrome

An elegant dining room in a French country house: it impresses with its simplicity and proves that the country house style works without colors. Checkerboard tiles, chandeliers and dining tables with artistically staged vases and sculptures give the room something solid without appearing capricious. A wooden ceiling and white built-in cupboards for dishes give the room warmth. Large windows with double doors give light and spaciousness. This house also dates from the 18th century - the economical furniture provides lightness and freshness.

Large double doors open the view into the elegant dining room and let a breath of summer breeze into the house. Designed by Vipp.

Photo: Anders Hviid / Gestalten

Country house kitchen in turquoise

The color turquoise has long been at the top of the popularity scale. It is therefore not surprising that we can also find them on kitchen fronts. It fits perfectly with the country house style because it combines earth and sky. The trendy marble look worktop is made of quartzite. That the washbasin is made of ceramic makes the country house style perfect. Stainless steel would be out of place here. The secret to cosiness? A few simple flower pots with succulents (you hardly have to water them) and a bouquet in the white clay vase. The large windows make washing up a matter of course - because you can look out into the magnificent garden.

This shaker kitchen with ceramic sink impresses with the fashion color turquoise. Design: Jersey Ice Cream.

Photo: Heidi`s Bridge / Gestalten

Modern furniture in a rustic country house decoration ensemble

Walls plastered with lime clay, ancient stone floors, newly glazed wooden doors - this is the basis of this medieval living room. To make it look light, modern furniture is combined in a reduced way. The old, thick-walled walls of the former stable are heavy enough. In order for the combination of old = " and new to succeed, a great deal of tact is required. This farm stands in Normandy - and now houses a guest house.

This living corner is very simple in a former stable building and proves that old = " and new harmonize perfectly. Furnished by Sofie Sleumer.

Photo: Marc van Praag / The Interior Archive / Gestalten

Country style bedroom

Calm and serenity set the tone here. This bedroom in a former recreational pension in the Taunus exudes a happy mood. In the basement, old furniture is interpreted in a modern way: the doors of the cupboard in the middle of the room used to be lattice windows, the owner found the bed on a trip to England. Cushions and carpets in yellow round off the overall picture perfectly. The light curtains made of beige linen also prove that a country house ambience can be created with just a few tricks.

This bedroom in the basement is inviting and radiates freshness and vitality. It was designed by Antonius Schimmelbusch.

Photo: Jens Bösenberg / Gestalten

Nothing works without a fireplace

You want to retreat to this cozy corner next to the fireplace even on hot summer days - it is so cozy. Wood can be wonderfully stored under the stove bench - the carpenter made the necessary storage space under the seat board. The bank also has enough space for magazines or books. The wall color is “Perfect Taupe” from Behr and gives the rural ambience a modern touch. The carpet, blanket and pillows are kept in bright white tones. That takes the heaviness.

A small inconspicuous wall lamp, a few pillows, lots of wood and wall paint in taupe - the cozy ambience is ready for a reading evening. Architect / Design: Jersey Icecream.

Photo: Beth Kirby / Gestalten

Country style colors

Like turquoise, taupe is a classic country house color and complements sterile white perfectly. Good for cohesion: the shutters are painted in the same color as the sofa (by Loaf). Wooden shabby-chic ceiling and floor create a cozy, rural atmosphere. The modern mirror fits perfectly with the furniture, wooden table and lamps are classics - interpreted in a modern way.

The room is kept in white and exudes rural exclusivity. Shutter and sofa wear color tone on tone.

Photo: courtesy of Loaf.com/ teNeues

Modern iron stove for the country house kitchen

Rustic stone flooring and wood stove (from Rangemaster) in Duck Egg Blue: Both are similar to the country house kitchen from one to one in the past - and yet something new is moving in. The optically old-fashioned oven with cooking function houses the latest technology, the control panel is smartly hidden behind the stove doors and the hotplates cover large hoods that can only be removed when cooking is actually in progress. Otherwise, such fine pieces (depending on the version) supply the kitchen with hot water or even feed the central heating via a thermal boiler. Correspondingly, such an iron specimen will gladly cost several thousand euros (also seen for example at Manufactum or Smeg), but is available in many colors of your choice.

This cast iron oven heats and warms food equally. State-of-the-art heating and cooktop can be easily controlled with a hidden control panel.

Photo: Tim James / Mabel Gray / AGA Rangemaster / teNeues

Sleep with a lust for the country

A camel hair blanket draped over the bedspread and a few additional pillows, the linen-covered bedding (bed linen from Lula Green) gains comfort. The old Biedermeier chest of drawers on the pushed-off wooden floorboards, a fine eggshell-colored wool carpet, picture in a gold frame and waist-high paneled wooden walls refine the country house interior. The icing on the cake for the country-style bedroom is the bouquet from the cottage garden on the bedside table.

Letting yourself into bed and falling asleep immediately - this is easily done in this country house bedroom. Huge linen-covered blankets and pillows in XXL format make it possible.

Photo: Lula Green / Darrin Jenkins / teNeues

Pimped country house furniture

You can simply get old armchairs fresh for the country house style. Or you can get a new copy (shown here by HOWE) that bears the patina of bygone times. This throne is presented in trendy water color, the owners cheekily combined it with a woven carpet in fiery red. You can place magazines on the wicker table or just put a teacup to accompany you through the reading afternoon. This can last into the evening, because the retro-look lamp provides the necessary light - and also fits stylishly into the ambience. The mirror with bamboo frame visually enlarges the room, but creates something cozy with its naturalness.

The colors red and turquoise meet here with bamboo and wicker. The mix of materials was a success - we would like to drop into the armchair and take a reading afternoon.

Photo: courtesy of HOWE London / teNeues

Book tip for the pleasure of the country: "Pretty parlor!"

"Schmucke Stube!" Was published by Gestalten (272 pages, 39.90 euros). Interior designers and stylists provide insights into farmhouse parlors and country houses. They incorporate local impressions into their work and create a fresh look with classic materials such as wood and muted colors. “Schmucke Stube!” Introduces country houses that re-stage the past and offers creative suggestions and inspiration for everyone who wants to get involved. Portraits of designer families who have created a country house home, reports about manufacturers and fabric companies that create true works of art by hand, inspire and invite you to discover the new country house style.

Photo: design

Book tip for Landlust: "Modern living - New Country"

"Modern Living - New Country" by teNeues (176 pages, 29.90 euros) shows simple and relaxed living in a modern, rustic style. Well designed, calm and irresistible, it presents itself whether it is a log house, a Moroccan villa or a mountain chalet. What unites all the rural hideaways: it shows with what enthusiasm the designers chose traditional handicraft and put the simplicity and beauty of natural materials in the limelight. Design writer Claire Bingham explores some of the most beautiful houses in the country and shows how you can create the look at home. The book contains numerous practical tips, for example how to combine old heirlooms and modern objects or how cosiness becomes a defining design concept. Bingham writes for architecture, design and style for magazines around the world and was the living editor of the British Elle Decoration and in international glossy magazines such as Vogue Living and Architectural Digest.

Photo: teNeues