Today's post is the last in my series of five posts featuring different types of coastal style. Honestly, I can't believe 5 weeks have gone by since my first post in this series, and New York State remains in "Pause ", and only portions of the country are starting to recover from the Corona virus pandemic. I'm hoping these posts are a welcome change from what's going on in the world today. Writing them has certainly helped me focus on something I love. When I speak to most people they aren't aware of the different interior design styles within creating a coastal home. Most have different opinions about what coastal interior design is. Some people conjure images of boats and a palette of navy blue and white. Others describe palm trees and bright colors. My hope is that you'll see the that coastal style really about creating an environment using colors and textures of the sea throughout your home. Then, you choose the interior design style that reflects you most, whether that be traditional or modern or somewhere in between. More and more, I am seeing clients gravitate to an eclectic coastal style. I'm seeing this as movement toward expressing more individuality in your home.

Mix styles

If you like many different interior design styles or furnishings from different periods of time, such as mid-century modern or the 1890's, you may want to create an eclectic coastal interior in your home. The key to making an eclectic interior feel cohesive and coastal is your palette. Choose a neutral palette that allows you to mix patterns and colors with your furnishings and fabrics. My client loved the snake print fabric and knew she wanted to use it in this room. I brought in coastal tones with the aqua velvet bed and sanding colored wallpaper. You can mix traditional style nightstands with a mid-century bed frame like I did below. This room feels even more eclectic with the vintage print letter. The over color scheme is beige and black with the aqua accent. Often rooms are designed around a key piece of furniture. Maybe you have an heirloom piece your grandmother handed down or a piece you found while travelling abroad. You can start designing a room with that piece in mind and work the rest of the furnishings around it. This could be a piano or a piece of art. My client had both we needed to incorporate in the room below.   If you've been reading the posts in the series, you will be noticing that the color scheme and using natural materials are two elements are important regardless of your coastal style. If you like the eclectic coastal look, one way for you to achieve this is by adding natural accessories like the mandala above the bed in the photo below.

Natural Accents

      You'll want to balance the scale of your pieces to make the eclectic coastal look work in your home. This style can be tricky to do right. It may seem like you can just mix things up, but if you want to do it right, make sure the proportions of pieces and patterns work well together to create harmony. What do you think of the eclectic coastal look? Do you like the idea of mixing old and new, modern and traditional? Let me know in the comments if this type of look appeals to you. If it does, let me know what you like about it. Be well, Shannon
February 28, 2024 — Shannon Willey