Loft style has not lost its relevance for many years. It is especially popular among representatives of creative professions: artists, designers, writers, and it is often chosen by young people who value informality in everything. Despite the fact that initially the style implies large spaces, it is often used to design small rooms. The key to the popularity of the loft is that it allows you to create an actual interior that looks neat and expensive enough. Find out what features of this bright and interesting direction in design consist of.
A bit of history
Loft style appeared with the light hand of poor students and bohemians. After the crisis of the 1920s, many factories in America closed, and in order to save on housing costs, young men and women began to rent production premises instead of apartments. To at least somehow furnish their modest apartments, they bought old furniture at flea markets or made it with their own hands. The decor in such rooms was also very modest - for lack of wallpaper, the walls were left in their original form or pasted over with newspapers and posters. They also had no money for chandeliers and sconces, so all the same posters and newspapers were used.
Such a modest atmosphere did not upset the students, because they did not need much comfort for a fun life. Spacious production facilities allowed them to have fun while enjoying music and dancing. When more affluent guests came to one of these parties, they became interested in the concept of such a decoration and borrowed some ideas. So there was a separate direction in the styles of interior, called “loft”.
Style features
A brick wall is one of the main attributes of the loft style. She conjures up associations with the industrial era. Of course, in most cases it is replaced by a wallpaper with such a pattern, but even in this variation it looks spectacular. Also, concrete walls, wooden boards or natural stone are often used in this direction. Creating a loft interior, designers use the most natural shades, raw materials or imitating their texture.
As for furniture, it should be a little. The same applies to decorative elements. Numerous decor in the loft is also not welcome. It is enough to use a couple of jewelry, which can be both paintings and unusual lamps.
Color schemes
The most popular colors used in a loft interior are brown or brick color. Often, white and black are added to them. Classic combinations are:
- white and terracotta - the combination visually expands the space;
- gray and red-brown with black - these colors make the design of the hallway discreet and concise;
- black and light brown - can help to correctly place accents, but it is recommended only for spacious rooms;
- beige and light brown - visually expand the narrow hallway;
- black with beige and brown - it looks very modern;
- white and dark brown - will create a discreet design.
Finish
For many, an important advantage of this style is the optional finish. To create an interior corresponding to this direction, you can restrict yourself to brickwork or rough plaster. Materials should be associated with simplicity and reliability.
The interior should not be any pretentiousness and excesses.
In one room, several materials of various texture are often combined: stone, wood, concrete, brick. They allow you to give emphasis to individual zones or achieve visual effects for modeling the space. One material can replace another both vertically and horizontally. You can select one of the walls or corners by inserting another material.
Unlike walls, the floor and ceiling are usually made monochrome, that is, without inserts, otherwise the interior will turn out to be too clumsy.
Walls
Consider several options for wall decoration in the hallway.
Wallpaper with "bricks"
Since the hallway often collects a lot of dust, the most appropriate and budget option for its decoration will be washable wallpapers that mimic brickwork.
Panels
Laying wooden panels on walls is more expensive, they are quite unpretentious in maintenance and at the same time create a particularly warm atmosphere in the house. There are also cladding panels made of other materials that imitate wood or brick. They also look spectacular and help create an atmosphere of loft style.
Brick
In fact, brickwork can be done far from in every corridor, since this material takes up an area. But it will look incomparably more spectacular than materials imitating it, and will best convey the aesthetics of the loft style.
A rock
This material is a fairly expensive option, both in natural and in artificial form. For this direction, it is important that the stone surface has a minimal relief.
If you put it tightly to each other, then dust will not be collected at the seams.
The most common option for a loft floor is a wooden floor. The classic flooring for loft areas is wood. Parquet is quite expensive and not the most suitable option in this case, since it will visually narrow the space.
Laminate in this regard is more suitable. Expensive and durable material - a terrace board. Matte ceramic tile is a less popular solution, but it is also suitable for the loft style.
If you decide to use two materials, one for the hallway and the other for the corridor, then it is advisable to choose not too contrasting colors.
But remember that the easier the decoration and interior of your room, the more it will correspond to the chosen style.
Ceiling
Whitewashing is the most economical and appropriate option for finishing the ceiling. An interesting option is the use of wooden beams to decorate a whitewashed ceiling. The main thing is to take into account the dimensions of the room, because such a design can visually reduce the space.
If you still want to make a tensile structure, then textures “satin” or “whitewash” are preferable. If your choice fell on a plasterboard ceiling, then make it one-level. In the case of using a two-level design, it must be sustained in one color. In addition to white, beige, pale yellow, ivory, coffee with milk and similar dim shades are often used.
Furniture selection
Minimalist furniture is what you need for this style. It is good if, with apparent simplicity, it will include elements of modernism or futurism, but also simple wooden furniture that seems to be borrowed from the workshop will fit into the atmosphere of such a hallway. Shelves, racks can be with unusual mechanisms "from the future" or, on the contrary, be as simple as possible. Both will blend well with artificially aged wooden cabinets. Unusual accessories such as brightly colored wooden shoe racks are welcome.
Soft benches, sofas, banquets, poufs should be made of natural materials - leather and wood, or imitating them. They can either repeat the color scheme of the hallway, differing in just a few tones, or be contrasting. For an aggressive version of the style, a bright color that is not in the interior, for example, red, is suitable.
Remember that both the texture of the materials and the fittings of the products should be as simple as possible, whether it is a bench or cabinet. Ornate pens, monograms, plant patterns will look out of place. But shelves “antique” with books will be appropriate in such an interior.
If glass is present in the casement, then it should be without patterns and relief - you need smoothness and dullness. Clothes hangers are preferably wooden or metal, ideally floor. A sliding wardrobe can fit into such an interior if it matches the aesthetics of the style.
Choose skirting boards for the color of the walls or paint them in the appropriate shade. Large, unadorned mirrors complete the loft hallway design.
Lighting organization
The best option would be a hallway with a large window through which the sun's rays penetrate during the day, and moonlight at night. But if we are talking about an apartment, not a house, then this idea is unlikely to be implemented, because typical hallways usually do not have windows. Lighting will have to be installed using lamps that fit this style. It can be wall sconces imitating forged street lamps, spotlights on the walls, “garlands” of light bulbs, while the wires with the plug should not be visible.
The chandelier should not have excess decor.
Stylish track suspensions fit perfectly into the loft style concept. They are an aluminum tire equipped with several flashlights. The height of the tire may vary depending on your wishes, also the shape of the bulbs is selected according to your taste. Primitive Soviet plafonds are also perfect for the atmosphere of such a hallway.
If you like a more glamorous version of the loft style, then you can safely experiment with stretch ceilings and various lights. For example, in the central part of the ceiling a chandelier in the style of futurism can be located, and at the second "level" at the edges - spot lights.
Textiles and Decor Elements
There are no strict points that must be followed when registering a loft hallway. Decor should continue the industrial surroundings. Door handles for old iron pipes, metal mounts for a bicycle and the vehicle itself, road signs, posters, a metro map, modular paintings and photographs perfectly complement the “industrial” look of your room.
If you can decorate the entrance hall with rare things like an old typewriter or gramophone, then you should definitely take this opportunity. Textiles do not need to be used during its design, since mats and napkins are not welcome in this direction.
An exception may be curtains if there are windows in the hallway. Simple linen that transmits light, as well as roller blinds or even blinds, will do.
The main thing is that this decor element should look as minimal as possible, that is, there should not be any ruffles, lambrequins and other excesses on it.
Interesting examples
This interior is far from the loft style that was at the beginning of the formation of this trend - it is more glamorous. But at the same time, the main elements of the style were preserved in it - a brick wall, smooth leather furniture, a picture resembling a poster. Such an interior will look especially harmoniously in the apartment of a young girl.
The next option will be interesting to desperate mods and rebels. It seems that this cabinet was indeed taken from the factory. The wall covered with chalk complements the atmosphere of the production hall. Forged lanterns are one of the loft style business cards. In this performance, they look very brutal. All these elements give rise to a truly spectacular interior in the best traditions of this direction.
Many photographs on the brick wall and light bulbs hanging from the ceiling create a creative atmosphere and special cosiness. Once in this house, guests will immediately feel that extraordinary people live here.
The wall in this interior looks as if it is at least a hundred years old. Old chairs, as if moving here from the workshop, pipes, a lantern - all this creates a single harmonious interior in the style of a loft.
To summarize, we note that the loft-style interiors give a lot of room for imagination. They can combine antiquity and ultramodern trends, a work environment and glamor. With them, your home will be filled with the spirit of modernity and rebellion, because it is not without reason that young people “invented” this style. We hope that you have gathered a lot of interesting ideas from this material, and it inspired you to create your exclusive loft-style interior.
You can find out how to equip a hall in the loft style with your own hands from the video below.