Firmly rooted in the philosophic base of traditional Zen, the Japanese Style of Interior Design has very particular features, that make it “love it or hate it”. Very trendy nowadays, Japanese is very requested in its more traditional way, but now is a heavy influence among other designers, even in the creating of new Interior Design trends, like Japandi. Let’s share some of its main principles.

Minimalistic

Japanese Style is the essence of minimalism. Decluttering, clean-cut lines, and a great appreciation for negative space, are very important features to take into consideration.   

Soul and Spirit

Japanese Style promotes peaceful, calm spaces, with just a simple use of materials: Wood in the first place, with the help of glass and metal

Flow of energy

Negative space is a very appreciated feature. When a room has enough negative space, energy flows.

Open Concept

Getting the most of the space is a basic characteristic of Japanese Design. It’s about getting to the bones of your home and keeping the essentials. Sliding doors are essential to the Japanese traditional homes,  they allow us to organically meld our space with nature in a harmonic way.

Wabi – Sabi

Wabi-Sabi means finding beauty in imperfection. Each word has a complementary meaning. While Wabi means Being one with nature with humility, Sabi means Accept the imperfections of nature just like they are. This can be seen as make yourself one with nature, with humility, giving to your place a natural environment, with a thoughtful decluttering and the love for a conscious minimalist surrounding. Instead of looking for the latest furniture novelty, it means to accept your current elements and use them wisely. This is call authenticity.

Organic and Natural

Plants. Wood, and all kind of organic materials are welcomed with all its imperfections, that brings character to the room

Furniture

One of the most distinctive characteristics of Japanese Interior Design is furniture. With their exotic names (for us), and their wise ancestral traditions, Japanese furniture has a lot to explore. That’s the case of the large windows (“Shoji”) to get the most of the natural light; the handwoven straw mats to sit on the floor and relax (“Tatami”); the large bathtubs in the bathroom (“Ofuro”), all of them are show us a different way for westerns to live in harmony within ourselves and with our environment.

For inspo, info and great offers in furniture, don’t miss the oportunity in Manhattan Home Design, the alternative for Mid Century Modern style furniture, with masterpieces like the Barcelona Chair  or the Barcelona Daybed.