New Country: A Fresh Take on Classic Rustic Style

We’ve given the country look a modern Australian-meets-Scandi makeover, with native colours, luxe textures, and pared-back styling – meet our New Country style!

With its warm, cosy and relaxed feel, rustic style is a favourite among homeowners. With our New Country theme, we’ve taken this popular look and made it more familiar, with beautiful colours and materials drawn from the Australian landscape, while adding a modern, Scandi-inspired edge with simple styling and layers of touch-me textures. It’s Scandi-meets-farmhouse-meets-Australian, and we know you’re going to love it!

Check out the New Country look on display at our Portland Grand Pantry display home at Cloverton Estate in Kalkallo.

Or, read on to pick up some great tips from our interior designers on how to bring this sophisticated rustic look to life in your own home.

A kitchen for gathering

Unlike minimalist kitchens where everything is hidden away, the New Country kitchen is designed to be used and enjoyed. Opt for joinery in a warm oak finish, such as Laminex Classic Oak Natural Finish, with open shelving where you can display ceramics, cookbooks and potted plants. Rather than discreet, built-in cooking appliances, choose a statement range cooker that really draws people in.

Bright white benchtops or a delicately patterned stone such as Caesarstone Empira White add a crisp, contemporary touch. Contrast these with a tiled splashback in a soft sage to add visual energy and interest.

Outback hues

Draw nature inside your home with a muted palette inspired by your very own backyard. Think warm white and eucalypt green for walls, greige sofas and rugs, and ochre, terracotta and charcoal in your scatter cushions, accessories, and art.

Keep it cosy and laid-back with chunky, loop-pile carpets, soft furnishings with subtle stripes and checks, textural throws draped across the backs of sofas, and simple photographic nature prints on the walls.

Timber all around

Timber is a must in any country décor scheme, and New Country is no exception. Consider timber flooring, raw wooden furniture, and timber picture frames.

Remember that country style is all about embracing the authentic and unique, so not every piece of furniture has to match or be perfectly perfect – feel free to include the odd vintage find, be it mid-century console, a favourite old armchair, or mismatched wooden dining chairs.

Natural elements

Emphasise the earth-drawn feel by combining timber with other natural materials, such as stone, leather or brick. You could, for example, make a feature of your fireplace wall by cladding it in rustic stone tiles,  add a leather bench seat at the end of the bed, or run brick-look tiles across a feature wall.

Layer up the texture

Comfort is the goal in your New Country scheme, and texture is the way to achieve it. Seek out buttery soft leather dining chairs, a characterful wooden dining table, plump linen sofas made for curling up in, benches with woven seating, and chunky woollen blankets for those cooler nights.

Create a cosy backdrop for your layers of texture with painted, v-groove wall panelling or textured wallpaper in your living spaces and bedrooms, and floor-to-ceiling, stone-look tiles in the bathrooms.

Less is more

Country homes are traditionally known for being full to the brim with ‘stuff’, but New Country takes the opposite view. For this look, seek inspiration in Scandinavian design and keep your styling pared-back, with simple furniture shapes, subtle patterns, and flat-face cabinetry with classic cup handles.

Ensure furniture pieces have enough room to breathe within a space, and include generous storage in the form of shelves and built-in joinery so it’s easy to keep spaces clutter-free.

Contemporary lighting

A touch of the unexpected is guaranteed to elevate a space. Here, balance out those earthy, country vibes with sleek, modern lighting, such as tubular wall lights, and a trio of oversized, sculptural pendants over the kitchen island and dining table. Add dimmer switches so you can change the mood of the room in an instant.

And just like that, your favourite country look is remade fresh, modern and distinctly Australian!