Vintage and Rustic Farmhouse Decor Ideas: Design Guide

There are two ways you can go about creating that vintage farmhouse decor look in your home. The first way, which is the best way, is to invest in the focal points of the room – the bed in the bedroom, the dining table in the dining room, etc. This one piece in the room, the focal piece, that will immediately styles the whole space.

The other option is to look for small rustic decor pieces. The problem with this, is that if you don’t have a farmhouse style home, you’ll have a hard time creating the look.

In this post I go over ideas for the focal pieces of a room and smaller home decor pieces that can be used to style a farmhouse inspired space.

In The Bedroom

The main focal point in the bedroom is the bed. If you get a stylised one, you can instantly transform the look and feel of the room.

The go to option for a bed is an iron one: just like in picture (1). This is really the only true farmhouse bed. You could go with a wooden one, maybe a four post bed – but the iron bed is really the style to go with.

And don’t forget about the bed linens. Since the style and color you choose for them will also have a big impact on the styling of the bedroom. Go with white or off white sheets, and add in some subtle texture and patterns – again just like the farmhouse bedroom in picture (1).

For more farmhouse bedroom ideas have a look at my post here: Farmhouse Bedroom Ideas, How To Style Your Space.

Farmhouse Kitchen Decor

White is a popular base color for a farmhouse kitchen. White walls, and white cabinets with iron handles – mixed in with a porcelain tub sink and a wooden counter top – just like the kitchen in picture (2). Barn house style lighting (such as pancake lights) would be an ideal fit for a vintage or french style farmhouse kitchen.

Bathroom Farmhouse Designs

The important area in the bathroom is the vanity. Just like in the kitchen, a porcelain tub sink is the way to go. A free standing sink with porcelain legs is more on the farmhouse style. But if you are tight on space then you’ll want a countertop with storage built in underneath.

Try and incorporate wooden countertops into the bathroom design (3) (4), along with wooden shelves.

Since traditional country farmhouses have a lot of space, a free standing bathtub is a standard fixture in the bathroom.

The Living Room

For the seats, it is usually white or off white. It’s the coffee table where more focus is needed. You’ll want an antique looking wooden one (5). Reclaimed wood would be ideal with iron fixtures.

Farmhouse Living Room Ideas, How To Create The Look

Farmhouse Decor Ideas

My way of thinking when it comes to decor pieces is based on design through function. That is, decorating a room with stylized and high quality functional pieces such as lamps, storage containers, and furniture pieces. These pieces go a long way in styling the room vs. buy small decor pieces to try and style it.

This way you keep out the clutter, and can invest more in fewer pieces that are functional and decorative.

Storage: Use wooden crates (6) and trunks (7), wicker and wire baskets, galvanised and enamel buckets (8).
Lamps and Light Fixtures: Check out industrial and barn light fixtures here and my post on Vintage Lighting Ideas.
Natural fiber rugs
Iron curtain rods
Wooden side tables
Or how about a wooden ladder to store towels in the bathroom, magazines and blankets in the living room, to hang up clothes in the bedroom, or to hang up pots and pans in the kitchen.