Super Natural Design
Decorate With the Found Sculpture of Driftwood, Sticks and Roots
When thinking of a textural palette for a room, it's always nice to add items that come from nature. It may be a bowl full of rocks you've collected on your favorite beach or from trips you've taken; it may be a vase of feathers; or it may be a large piece of furniture crafted from driftwood, found sticks or tree roots. Below I have found unique pieces of wood that have found their way into coffee tables, have been crafted into lamps and coffee tables, or have simply been hung on the wall or propped in a corner.
If you keep your eyes open on auction sites, you can often find a slew of interesting driftwood lamps. Sometimes you have to look past a kitschy lampshade the seller has paired it with: Close your eyes and imagine it with a crisp white paper or linen shade. Jamie Young's Twisted Vine Lamp has a similar aesthetic.
I love the way Holly from Life in the Fun Lane has transformed these long sticks into a piece of artwork. She was kind enough to share how to hang them when one of our readers wondered how to accomplish this look:
"Driftwood usually has all the little knobs and knots worn down to a smooth surface, which helps. It also takes some playing to rotate the branches to find the side with the most points touching the wall. Once we figured the general layout, one of us held the wood up while the other person marked the wall where the branch physically touched. We then anchored medium-sized L brackets at those points, set the wood on the brackets and screwed the wood to the brackets as well. It is a bit tricky and it does make a big difference in how flat/smooth your wood is! The good news with driftwood is that it is pretty lightweight after drying."
"Driftwood usually has all the little knobs and knots worn down to a smooth surface, which helps. It also takes some playing to rotate the branches to find the side with the most points touching the wall. Once we figured the general layout, one of us held the wood up while the other person marked the wall where the branch physically touched. We then anchored medium-sized L brackets at those points, set the wood on the brackets and screwed the wood to the brackets as well. It is a bit tricky and it does make a big difference in how flat/smooth your wood is! The good news with driftwood is that it is pretty lightweight after drying."
This table makes a spectacular centerpiece for the room. Finding the right chairs to go with a table like this one is important: The seats of these chairs are a good match to the wood's color, while the backs and legs are painted a complementary lighter color.
A stack of found pieces assembled into a table lamp is a striking piece.
A driftwood cocktail table mixes well with light colored walls and luxuriously upholstered pieces. Here is a similar table.
Oversized walking sticks add a sculptural element to this modern staircase. Their dramatic shape and long lines grab attention and provide some visual separation between spaces in the open floor plan.
Interior designer Christi Holcombe loves to add natural elements, like this piece of driftwood, into her rooms.
Fun little driftwood assemblages can be found in seaside towns, souvenir shops, and if you're lucky enough to find one, in a local artisan's roadside stand or shop in the barn/studio behind his house. If that doesn't work, here is a fun little driftwood fish you can buy online.
Houzz member Tricia Rose is a whiz with natural textures and rustic woods. A mirror fashioned from driftwood or even weathered, reclaimed barn wood can add a dash of coastal style.
This found-wood mirror adds personality to this bathroom. One of my favorite mirrors of all time is available at Pieces, and a more rustic round version is available from Arteriors Home.
Back to Tricia Rose again, her unique headboard combines found boards and smaller pieces, adding to her eclectic coastal style.
This weathered floor lamp is a wonderful contrast to the much more polished wood paneling on the wall.
Your favorite piece of wood can become a sculpture and add height to a tablescape.
You may find your favorite found piece of found wood makes the perfect centerpiece. Give it a try!
Here the coffee table plays off the large pieces of wood in the corner. These elements work very well with the mid-century pieces in this room. Also, the designer has created a coastal color palette that is unexpected and fresh.
Do you have driftwood or other sticks in your décor? Please share it with us in the comments section!
More: Tricia Rose's Creative Cabin on the Water
Life in the Fun Lane
Do you have driftwood or other sticks in your décor? Please share it with us in the comments section!
More: Tricia Rose's Creative Cabin on the Water
Life in the Fun Lane