When most of us see a blank wall, our urge is to protect it—with images, posters, art, or colour. But in the inviting home of Maria and Paul Le Mesurier, the founders of United kingdom furniture organization WoodEdit (see our tale about it in this article), there is not a trace of wall art to be found, nor is there substantially shade. “I can hardly ever see the position of using lots of distinct shades of paint,” Maria, who acts as the brand’s inventive director, tells us. “Every hour of each and every working day of each and every season, the light adjustments all the time, so the white walls do, too—which, for me, provides so considerably variation in by itself.”
In spite of the couple’s minimalist tendencies, there’s lots of arresting visible curiosity within their 17th-century abode. Rather of color, Maria and Paul (an osteopath-turned-home furnishings-maker) depend on discovered foliage to breathe existence into rooms. And in lieu of designs, they emphasize textures, prioritizing all-natural supplies like linen, terra-cotta, sisal, and wood in their dwelling. They may well be dwelling in a brick-clad former steady in a West Sussex estate with five young ones, ranging in age from 4 to 18, but their house exudes a peaceful, sunny serenity that feels extra Mediterranean than English Channel. (Maria’s father’s household hails from Madeira, Portugal.)
“We dwell very minimally, I really don’t like owning heaps of things— just what is desired. I come across it calming,” suggests Maria. The important to sustaining a tidy minimalist home with young children who may possibly not share the identical plans? Layering. A lot of layering. “There are spills and stains almost everywhere. I throw tons of jute rugs all over the place to cover the worst bits. As for the sofas, I layer them with linen throws and blankets.”
Read through on for extra good recommendations on how to make minimalism do the job in a home with young ones.
Photography by Maria Le Mesurier.
