Minimalist interiors: Why less is more for the modern home

image source: decor4all.com

Not many homeowners appreciate the beauty of a minimalist home. But with the busy lives we live today, minimalism is a promising and practical trend for the modern individual.

Minimalist interiors need not be a mattress-and-chair kind of design. While that is indeed the extreme version of it, the minimalist interior design can also reflect the home owner(or designer)’s creative streak through eye-catching pieces that are not cluttery.

The minimalist style traces its roots to ancient Asian civilizations, mainly China and Japan. In Asia, most people are taught to live with less clutter. Even in modern Asian locations, not everyone sleeps on a bed and eats on a dining table full of chairs.

When you incorporate minimalist values into your home, you save a lot by promoting natural lighting and less furniture. The abundance of light is a key feature for minimalist designs. Doors and windows are usually transparent or translucent—as long as they welcome light into the interiors.

image source: home-designing.com

Asian minimalist design features a lot of connection with the nature. For central pieces, you can settle for a relaxing wall painting or a tranquil water feature. Some Asian interior designers also put wooden statues with cultural significance on some of their home projects.

Jonathan Bunge here. Know more about architecture and interior design trends when you visit this blog.

Five Awe-inspiring Websites for Design Inspiration

There are times when creativity and talent are not enough to produce a good architectural design. Despite being in the business for years now, I still find myself hungry for that special “something” to get my train of thought running. And so, like everyone else, I browse the Internet for inspiration.

For those in need of design inspiration, these websites are highly recommended:

Archiphile (www.archiphile.tumblr.com). While the blog owner remains anonymous until this day, his page, which contains hundreds of interesting building designs from different countries, has inspired thousands of designers throughout the years.

Image source: lifewithoutbuildings.net

ArchDaily Error! Hyperlink reference not valid. architectural website that probably attracts the most traffic in the world, ArchDaily provides readers almost anything architecture—from news and features to the latest designs and trends in the industry.

Houzz Populated with user-uploaded content (mostly photos), this website does more than selling various products online. You’d be surprise on what you can actually find here.

Image source: cascadecoil.com

Apartment therapy. I consider this website more of an online magazine with much content about style and DYI features. I recommend this to those who are more methodical with their concepts.

Abitare. The website is owned by one of the world's best known design magazines, Abitare, which has been running since the 60s. Apart from architecture, the website also focuses on interior design, furniture, product design, and graphic arts.

These websites, which I consider my style bibles, have helped me through rough times. I hope they can help you, too.

I am Jonathan Bunge, an architect and a lover of art. Follow me on Twitter for discussions on structure and design.