A room with western style furniture says comfort. With the new designs, materials and techniques available, it also offer a casual elegance to your decor. Western furniture is not just about cowhide anymore. Designers use a variety of rich leathers, exotic hides, hand tooling, hand carved wood and special finishes and fabrics to create exciting, innovative styles. With numerous options available, a piece of custom western furniture can be created to coordinate with almost any decor or a room full of your favorite ranch furnishings.
Once you've decided on the perfect piece of western furniture, capturing the new refined look in western decor can be a challenge. A good rule of thumb is to let accessories enhance your western furniture, not overpower it. When asked about common mistakes that are made by people trying to achieve a great western look, Steffany Hollingsworth, Designer at Wiseman & Gale & Duncan Interiors, Inc. in Santa Fe said "There is a tendency toward clutter...branding irons, horseshoes, spurs, old bottles scattered all about a space. One should tend more to work with groupings, both in tables and wall (a grouping of cowboy hats or sombreros for instance)."
Start with the basics. Select a good piece of western furniture. A unique leather sofa, an interesting coffee table or as Traci Clark, President & Principal Designer at Finial Design in Steamboat Springs, Colorado suggests, "...a wonderful aged or antique armoire, a rich jewel toned oriental rug and a chandelier that defines the word elegant."
Be consistent with your western theme. A mistake many people make in designing a decor around western furniture is "confusing a southwest decor or a mountain lodge decor as a western look," according to Kim Fancher of Kim Fancher Design in Frisco, Colorado. Think about using saddles, wooden wheels or bridles in an interesting way as accessories. Leave the moose and drums for the decor in which they belong.
Follow a few simple guidelines, purchase quality western furniture, create unique accessories and you will enjoy your western decor for a lifetime.
