For a wonderfully warm, relaxed, exotic feel, with a real sultry flair, take a look at how to get the Moroccan style in your home. Go for a unique and distinctive, very striking look!
A Moroccan style is wonderfully exotic, but warm and welcoming too. It is a very sumptuous, and even sensual, style.
Morocco is North African, but its influences are very wide-ranging – Arab, Spanish, French and Moorish influences are what give Moroccan design it’s very unique and striking look.
Moroccan interior design is a look full of deep, rich colors, an earthy, spicy feel, patterns, fabrics, and lots of very distinctive styled accessories. It is a look that brings to mind the desert, Arabian nights and a real flavour for the exotic.
Moroccan style is a very beautiful look – that you can make your own. If this sounds like something you would like in your own home, read on for hints and tips of easy ways to bring Moroccan interior design into your home.
Walls and Color
A Moroccan style is quite a rustic look – so your first thought for your walls should be the texture. Moroccan walls are quite rough in texture, so to get an authentic look, go for your own textured or weathered finish on the walls.
If you don’t want to re-plaster your walls with a textured finish, try a suede effect paint, a faux-finish paint effect, a color-wash or even mix a little builder’s sand in with your paint to get a really textured look. These will all just take the smoothness off your modern walls, and help you get a more ethnic and Moroccan style.
Ideal colors for that sultry Moroccan feel are deep, rich colors. You might want to choose deep, blues – these are a very popular choice of color – especially for shutters, windows, woodwork and doors – probably because the color was thought to ward off evil spirits – which can’t be a bad thing!
If you choose blue, blend in turquoise and aquamarine tones and colors, with accents of white. Yellow, gold, silver and green will also look great combined with blues.
The other way you can use colors to achieve your Moroccan interior design look is by choosing warm tones – and an earthy, spicy color palette. For this look, base your colors around reds, pinks, oranges and yellows. These colors work very well used in cool climates, to help get that hot, desert feel.
Choose colors named after spices – for an easy way to get the exotic, ‘spicy’ feel – cinnamon, paprika, saffron, curry, burnt sienna. A splash, or accent, of cobalt blue, will give a very Moroccan feel. Again accents of gold and silver will bring that sumptuous feel to mind.
If you fancy something a little calmer for your choice of color in your home – don’t worry – it is not absolutely necessary to go color crazy, to get an authentic Moroccan interior design feel. Choose warm, soft neutrals – like creams, taupe, and especially ‘sand’. Accents of brighter colors can be used on a focal wall - or just in accessories and fabrics.
Tiles
Tiles are a very important aspect to Moroccan interior design. Beautiful, hand-made tiles, in exotic Moorish designs, are a very typical Moroccan look.
Tiles can be used all over – flooring (this is often just a simple, terracotta tile), walls and on table tops. Mosaic is quite frequently used to decorate furniture, such as table tops.
If you can’t get hold of genuine (or reproduction!) Moorish style, Moroccan tiles, you can still get the look quite simply! Choose a handmade style (or slightly misshapen seconds!) in a mixture of different colors and sizes. Try to choose a blend of cool colors for the best look – blues, greens and turquoises!
Fabrics and Textiles
Again, fabrics and textiles are a very important part of Moroccan interior design. For the general feel, think Bedouin tent, and you probably won’t go far wrong!
Make sure you pile on the fabrics - start with luxurious, Persian style carpets and rugs underfoot… Antique Persian rugs can date back hundreds of years. Now you can own one for less at Rugman.com This is an excellent company. I am completely in love with all of their really stunning rugs. And they have surprisingly reasonable prices, actually, considering the quality.
Use throws, wall hangings and plenty of cushions, in the same, deep, rich colors, with opulent patterns.
At windows, choose floaty, lightweight fabrics – and also consider draping these from ceilings, as Bedouin tent-style canopies – all very opulent and sensuous!
Furniture
Don’t choose anything too fancy for your furniture – a simple, rustic style is best, in a dark colored wood. Carved wood and wrought iron decoration will look nice, though, and add to the Moroccan feel.
Try to use screens as room dividers – these are a very typical Moroccan interior design idea – ornate wrought iron is the best material to choose for the screen.
Accessories
Accessories are the place where you can really show off your Moroccan interior design goodies, and really get an authentic feel.
Again, wrought iron ornaments, decorative wall art, wall sconces and lighting are ideal accessories for this look.
Look out for typical, rustic Moroccan pottery, glazed in beautiful colors, and intriguing, geometric patterns.
Ornate, brass and silver lanterns (some with rich, jewel-color glass) are the perfect touch.
Also look for colored glass and silver or brass tea sets of tray, jug and glasses.
Plenty of ornamentation and decoration is ideal for this look – but still be careful not to overdo it – think Moroccan bazaar, not Moroccan jumble sale!
Take a look on eBay to find unique, Moroccan treasures, that might well be hard to source on the High Street...
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I am sure that your Moroccan interior design look will light up your life, with its wonderful colors and scintillating patterns.
It is a really beautiful and unusual look, but at the same time is warm, welcoming and very relaxed and easy to live with.
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