Japanese interiors use natural and neutral color schemes, and emphasize architecture with a simple background. This provides for a sense of geometric order. Natural and neutral colors help to minimize the feeling of clutter. Eastern art is characteristically strong and graphic in nature. Japanese textures and materials include cedar, rice paper, bamboo, stone, and woven wicker, among others. The key in Japanese culture is Yin and Yang, which simply means to balance opposites in all aspects of one’s life.

Adding the feel of a Japanese interior is neither hard, or extremely costly. For instance, you can add a screen to a bedroom, which not only serves a purpose, but also lends to the Eastern appeal of the room. Statuettes, wall hangings, and decorative fans will also provide the Japanese interior that you may be looking for. You might place a lacquered box on top of your dressing table or night stand to give an air of Japanese décor, or perhaps a polished wood floor with a heavily textured mat.

Among other ways of bringing a hint of Japanese culture to your home or office décor, is the garden aspect. Japanese gardens are becoming very popular. Their beauty and tranquility is highly coveted. Creating a Japanese garden, or even bringing the feel of a Japanese garden into your home is not a hard task.

We’ve already touched upon a Japanese styled screen in the bedroom, you can actually place a screen strategically anywhere in your home or office, to give the feel of a Japanese garden inside. These screens are intricately designed, and the variety of sizes and colors make them a perfect choice for beginning your decorating task.

Water is a very important aspect when considering the Japanese garden décor. Whether you’re decorating inside or out, water is vitally important in the process. If you are choosing an inside decorating, consider a fountain. Choose a stone fountain, these can be found in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. You can place a fountain on a fireplace mantel, or atop a table, or you may choose to use a larger, floor sized fountain in a corner, or focal point of your room. Fountains emote peace and tranquility, and look beautiful in any room.

Japanese lamps or wall sconces, or lanterns will also give a feeling of the Orient to your room. Placed strategically around the room, you’ll get the overall feeling of tranquility from just these few pieces. Also consider wall hangings. Crafted to resemble scrolls, some wall hangings will give you an instant feel of being on an Eastern land. Putting all these things together will give your room an overall look and feel of the Orient. Just be careful not to put too much together. Remember, the key is spaciousness, and organization. You don’t want the room to appear cluttered.

One key point to remember is to not use artificial materials. You want to be in harmony with nature. Your garden spot, or home décor should be soothing to the mind and spirit. Nothing that conflicts with the serenity of nature should be used in the decorating process. You can simply place a stone or wooden table under your gazebo, or place stone figures by benches or chairs. Keep anything boisterous to a bare minimum, the idea is to promote optimal harmony and peacefulness.