Outside In

« Inspired Home Lifestyle

Share

Text by Paul Stenquist
Photography by Chris Christen

From bamboo room dividers to lotus-leaf wall hangings, natural decor is exploding in popularity. That's not surprising given the inherent beauty of nature.

Autumn is the perfect time to snag a table accent or furniture piece made from natural stone, twigs or bark.

Julie Wynn of Lewis Art Gallery in Omaha loves home furnishings that utilize reclaimed wood and natural fibers, including rushes and bamboo. Chairs with woven seats are a personal favorite. Offerings in her furniture gallery include weathered boards and ornate burls with distinctive grains. She even carries a floor lamp with a tree trunk base and a twig shade.

Ann Etienne of Voila! Blooms and Decor in Dundee is crazy for small tabletop conservatories. Lined with moss, fresh foliage and flowers or small plants, these glass structures are mini greenhouses. If you don't have a green thumb, you'll find an array of glass-free conservatories perfect for artificial topiaries and stone statuary.

Next time it storms, don't throw those fallen tree branches in the trash. Etienne fills big urns with branches, and then surrounds the base with fresh moss. Strings of battery-operated lights are wrapped among the twigs or arranged to shine through the moss at the base.

A branch with nice shape and texture can be turned into a wall hanging, a coat rack or even a coffee-table leg. We spotted tree trunks about 3 inches in diameter and 5 feet tall at Conversations in Rockbrook Village. They're being used as curtain rods, spikes in oversized outdoor pots and accents for hearths. One customer, we're told, even bought several to bind in a tight row as a headboard.

You can walk all over natural fibers these days - fibers woven into rugs. While plant fibers have been used to make rugs in tropical countries since human beings first sought shelter under roofs, they've recently become a staple of American design. Area rugs made from sisals, hemp, sea grass, jute and other plant fibers are widely available and look great in living rooms, bedrooms and foyers.

Local fine art galleries, interior design showrooms and art fairs are excellent sources for artisan vases, bowls and platters. Tom Larson of Turning Trail Studio in Brainerd, Minn., has an impressive collection of wood-turned pieces, including platters with feathered edges that command $800 and more. Larson, who shows his work at Omaha's Summer Arts Festival, loves the surprises wood yields in color and grain. An investment piece, he says, should make a statement from every angle. "The piece also should feel balanced, like a bowling ball, in your hands."

For an autumn table, the designers at Muhall's suggest filling a wooden bowl with artificial crimson artichokes or a lush mix of moss spheres and succulents. Spike a centerpiece with antlers, or decorate a door with peacock feathers.

Driftwood - wood that has been shaped and bleached by water - frequently assumes compelling forms without human intervention. You might be able to find your own natural driftwood sculptures at the seashore or alongside a lake, but interesting pieces are available commercially. We found beautiful examples between $20 and $30 at etsy.com. The same site offers other delights in wood, including hand-turned wooden bowls, wooden chess sets, duck decoys and more.

It's easy to bring the outdoors in, with beautiful results.

Inspired Home Omaha Editor Chris Christen contributed to this article.