nw style - The Inspired Room

Today let’s talk about how to do “beach cottage style” with a northwest flair! There are so many wonderful ways to decorate in “beach cottage style” While many elements might remain the same, the way it all comes together might be very different! Here at The Inspired Room I like to inspire various ways you can your create your individual style! Let’s check out the Northwest Beach Cottage where my parents live!

There are so many ways to reflect YOU in your home.

Sometimes your uniqueness comes from treasured things you have collected over the years. Sometimes it comes from the fresh color combinations you love. The architectural style of your home can contribute to what makes your home unique. And sometimes your individual style will be expressed through the way you pull inspiration from your natural surroundings.

One thing I’ve noticed about seeing blogs from around the world is that by living in the Pacific Northwest I am exposed to a unique influence in homes! Here in our neck of the woods (literally, sometimes!) it seems many people are very in tune with the NW environment even in their homes. Being aware of your surroundings doesn’t mean you have to stick with one particular style, but it is interesting to see how you can incorporate what is outside INSIDE!

The Northwest is so beautiful and we really are blessed to have the best of all worlds — forests, mountains and oceans. The greenery of evergreen trees, the gorgeous varied terrain of mountains and hills as well as the rugged and beautiful coastlines are what make living here so amazing! You might have ALL of those elements right outside your door. So why pretend to be somewhere else when you have all that natural beauty around you?

I’m the queen of dreaming, but even I like to live in the moment when it is a beautiful one. If your surroundings are not at all inspiring to you, then by all means, dream you are somewhere else!

You can see by the nice stack of firewood outside the front door, the beach life here doesn’t necessarily mean warm sand between your toes… it most often implies being cuddled up inside by the fire! A handful of days of the year we might actually feel warm and comfortable ON the beach in our shorts and flipflops, but mostly it is beautiful scenery that is best enjoyed with a light jacket.

We do get to experience the wonderful varied seasons here, and with that comes many gray rainy days in and around the sunny ones! Oftentimes the color and material choices that work best for many of us in this climate and environment are much different than what works in other climates. I know I tend to need a little warmth, more color and some warm natural woods and textures mixed in to get me through our gray and rainy winters!

The Northwest has such beautiful natural wooded surroundings, it is wonderful when they are reflected inside in simple architectural details. When the architecture is beautiful in its own right (like nature is!), few decorative or trendy embellishments are needed! The hand carved falcon on the railing is a perfect touch since this home is in Falcon Cove, just a few miles outside of Cannon Beach on the Oregon Coast.

The colors on the walls and slate floors reflect the varied shades of the sea outside, which can range (all in one day!) from muted gray to green to blue. The ocean and sand here is not like what you find in Florida or Hawaii. It definitely has its own unique look and feel.

The focus in this home is really on the feeling you get from being in this Northwest beach environment as interpreted through the architecture. The simple handcrafted details seem to go hand in hand with a more Northwest style.

Splashes of color in the artwork, quilts and on the painted walls and furniture pieces balances out the warmth of the natural wood.

You can see all the green trees and natural forest area outside the windows!

Beach accessories like shells, oars, lanterns, and boats are an appropriate decorative item in most beach houses around the world. And they are right at home here as well! Yet, this house does not rely on accessories to set the stage for a beach home, the warm woods and NW sea colors create the perfect pacific northwest beach house ambience! The accessories just help define this home’s personality a step further.

Whether you are comfortable in all white rooms, prefer rooms with layers of fabrics, patterns and colors, enjoy lots of accessories or very few, or crave simple beautiful natural elements, what matters is how YOU FEEL in the space and how your space FEELS in its space! If it is comfortable all around, you will feel right at home.

I know I showed you around this house a couple of years ago (my parents live here, this has been our family beach house for the past fourteen years or so, but sniff, it is now for sale!!), but I had taken a few more photos while I was there last week. I think the last time I showed it to you it was still being remodeled. I have more photos for part two of this post, coming up tomorrow!

In what ways do you reflect your own personal style or surroundings in your home?

Do you strive to find your own unique style or are you more inclined to copy a popular look that may not even be right for you or this season of your life?

I know I can get a little bit overwhelmed looking at all the design options out there! I’ll admit I get easily confused. I start comparing what I have to what is pretty in someone else’s house, rather than focus on what is actually appropriate for me. Pretty soon I am thinking I need to get all new furniture or change all of my colors. And while that can be fun and even necessary at times, for me it is usually a slippery slope into discontentment.

As soon as I start thinking that way, I give myself a little wrist slap and remind myself that it is OK to love from afar! I do not need to change my style to be happy.

It really helps me to focus on what choices are right for me if I consider the following things:

I need to look at my particular style of house and its features (or lack thereof), ask myself what my outside surroundings are and if they inspire me, and think about what things I already have that I love or that I can at least work with!

I also need to consider my own time and financial limitations before I start making any major decorating changes. Time and money can easily get away from me so I need to be mindful of both in order to keep my priority focused on more important things than decorating.

Once I consider those points, I am able to move ahead with MY style and not be so confused by the style of other homes I love!