How To Decorate Your House In Traditional South African Style
South Africa, a tropical country in Southern Africa, has attracted the world’s attention for its wildlife, demography, history, and culture. Traditional South Africa has a rich history; it was the birthplace of the movement against racism. Its demography is composite, and it has a European population as big as the native African population.
The country is famous for its rich tribal culture, its wildlife, and its wildlife safaris that give people a glimpse of majestic animals like the lion and the cheetah. It is no wonder then that traditional South African decor involves a lot of natural elements and greens. If a person is looking forward to giving a rehaul to their home, they can find here home decor South Africa style.
Ways By Which One Can Decorate Their House In Traditional South African Style
Naturistic And Eco-friendly Furniture
The best way to give a naturalistic feel is to fill up the house with furniture that is made up of natural substances. People these days prefer wood, bamboo, and rattan furniture because these look natural and give utmost comfort. A handwoven jute hammock or a stool made from a wooden stump of a tree makes one feel the wilderness inside their houses.
Moreover, to enhance the African feel, people can place astroturf glasses on their patios and balconies and place bamboo or rattan furniture in such areas. Bamboo grows fast and can be obtained naturally from bamboo thickets; thus, furniture made of bamboo and cane looks beautiful and is equally affordable.
Moreover, rattan is cool during summers; thus, these materials reduce the need for artificial air-conditioning and keep the climate of the interiors naturally cool during hot summers.
Doors And Windows With Large Openings
Doors and windows that give a large view of the outside world give the most naturalistic feel because they allow a view of the greenery outside and also allow natural light. However, safety and privacy are the two most important concerns when people are designing their houses. Hence people can go for tinted and toughened glasses when designing their doors and windows.
Tinted glasses have a coating applied on them that significantly reduces the harmful ultraviolet rays of the Sun. Also, with toughened glasses, the chances of glass breaking are reduced to a great extent.
Decorating The House With Plants
Having a living plant in the house looks refreshing and natural, and it also purifies the air inside the house. For a South African feel, one can go for a plant that has large leaves. Plants with large leaves give out a lot of pure oxygen and thus are a healthy option to keep indoors.
An elephant ear plant has large leaves resembling an elephant’s ears. Nothing else could reflect the African feel more than this plant with large, shiny, and dark green leaves. Apart from an elephant ear plant, a banana plant, crotons, or fig leaves can also be placed inside the living or the dining room.
However, with these plants, it is essential to take care that they do not dry up. To keep these plants healthy, they need to be watered. Also, their positions might need some shifting depending on the principal source of light. Maintaining the shine on the leaves is easy, and wiping the dust off their surface using a wet piece of cloth should be enough.
Painting The Walls And The Flooring
Since the house is expected to be decked up with natural elements like plants, the colour of the wall should not be very jarring. The walls should be painted with light shades like paster or different tones of white like cream white, buff white, etc. Light wall colour will enhance the natural elegance of the plants and bamboo furniture and present a nice contrast.
If the intention is to recreate a traditional feel, then wooden flooring is the best option. Tough wooden flooring can get affected by termites these days; anti-termite coatings and sprays available can increase the longevity of wooden floors.
Lighting Inside The Rooms
Although large doors and windows allow a lot of natural light, artificial light will be required during the evenings and nights. People can go for LED lights as they are eco-friendly and they last long. Moreover. LED downlights with a yellowish tinge that are fitted directly into the ceiling and give out a smooth beam of light can be used to give a calm and serene feel.
Lamps with yellow light and gorgeous lampshades also produce a dim light that is warm and soothing.
Items Of Decoration
Vases, paintings, show-pieces, and rugs are often used as decorative household items. If a house is to be decorated in a traditional South African style, then wallpapers that depict traditional tribal artwork like stick figures can be used. Wooden masks decorated with feathers and paints that give a rustic feel can also be used to decorate the walls.
Zebra prints can be used as wallpapers. Apart from this, upholstered furniture, be it a chair or a sofa, can be fitted with rustic cloth designs. Painting with wooden frames and bold themes can also be used to adorn the walls.
Artefacts like animal horns or antlers come as ceramic and metallic pieces and look quite close to natural horns or antlers. Such artefacts, if placed on the centre table right in the middle of the living room, will draw the attention of all the guests.
Conclusion
Apart from these, some people also like animal prints. If people like animal prints, they can have them in their bedroom as bedsheets, pillow covers, or even as curtains. A lot of other decorative items like large clocks, rugs, wall hangings, etc., can be added to the house. Whatever item is chosen, it should give a natural, traditional, and exotic feel.
South Africa is synonymous with big game, natural grasslands, and the indigenous African population; hence people all over the world want to recreate the feel of this African nation to feel the bold, rustic atmosphere of the country.
