Santa Fe Style Decorating Ideas

To add instant warmth and color to your home, introduce some influences from the soft hues and colorful style of Southwest or Southwestern interior design. Also known as Santa Fe style, this theme encompasses lots of warm colors, plenty of texture, natural materials and soft lighting.

This week we explore this home decoration style in more detail and list some ways you can add a Southwestern interior design theme in your own home.

Southwest or Southwestern Home Decoration

Color

Distinctively recognizable by its earthy color palette, the Santa Fe style or Southwestern interior design scheme is comprised of dark browns, burnt orange, deep emerald green, and vivid clay red. Evoking hues of the desert and Mexican horizon this color palette is inspired by the earthy environment and green cacti that are ubiquitous in the Southern states.

Full of personality and warmth, introduce this scheme into your home with splashes of this color palette in throws, cushions, pillows and bed linen, or bright wall art. Ensure your home includes a few plants such as succulents or cacti for that great pop of green.

Texture

Texture is an essential characteristic of this interior design trend. Leather and suede are commonly used on items of furniture, particularly on upholstered armchairs and sofas. This rich and supple texture adds another layer of warmth and creates an inviting place to relax.

Woven materials and wool are also included, which again adds a slice of texture and a tactile, cozy element.

credits: pinterest

Furniture

In a Southwestern interior design theme, light-colored woods make up all types of furniture, sometimes treated with a bright distressed paint finish or a geometric pattern. These are often inspired by traditional Mexican art and ceramics which also featured similar vivid designs and prints.

Woods included can range from maple wood, oak, cherry, hickory, or pine; wood features heavily in this decorative theme, always in light or natural tones.

oriental-lamp-shade-nyc-southwestern-design

credits: pinterest

Wrought iron or shaped metal is also often found in furniture as structural form or as a decorative flourish. Industrial interior design is often paired with Southwestern style, due to both interior styles possessing urban, weathered and rustic features. If you already own some industrial items, merging influences from Southwestern style can easily add an element of warmth to your space.

Lighting

The most crucial factor in illuminating a space like this is to keep the lighting soft and warm. Wall lights, table lamps, and sconces are often popular lighting solutions, as they offer ambient and occasional lighting which create spots of illumination and won't overpower the warm colors of Southwestern style.

oriental-lamp-shade-new-york-southwest-design

credits: houzz

Light designs that best suit the Santa Fe theme are made from earthy materials such as wrought iron, stone or concrete, bronze, and rattan.

You can create the look with our selection of products, such as our bronze Essex Torchiere Floor Lamp or gold Leipzig LED Torchiere – both floor lamps which add a subtle metallic element while providing ample, ambient up lighting.

Our Vivien and Sophia Flush Ceiling Lights feature a layer of frosted glass to diffuse light – add a warm bulb to match the warm colors in a Southwestern interior design theme. The star shape of these ceiling lights also mirrors the geometric patterns found in Santa Fe style.

Alternatively, for table tops, our gold Cloisonne Porcelain Table Lamp creates soft lighting; perfect for adding a warm glow in any dark corner.

Inspired by this blog on Southwestern interior design? Looking for more tips for home decoration style? Read our blogs on New European Trends for 2019 , or Decorating Ideas Inspired by the Chinese New Year.