Do you love holidaying by the sea so much that you long for the atmosphere of the Mediterranean when you’re back home? Would you like to feel like you’re on the Costas all year long? It’s easier than you think! We’ll show you the colours, materials and items you can use to decorate your home and create a Mediterranean atmosphere.
 

Everyone knows the feeling: your holidays are barely over, yet the sun and the sand have never felt further away and all you want is to go back on holiday straight away. Unfortunately, your job, your family and your other responsibilities keep you rooted where you are – who knows when you’ll hear the soft sounds of breaking waves again? However, that’s no reason to be sad, because you can create your own, private Mediterranean holiday paradise – and it’s easier than you think! We’ll let you into the secret of how you can bring the atmosphere of the Mediterranean directly into your own home with the right furniture, decorations, plants, and pictures!

Why limit yourself to the garden? You can put up a hammock in your home just as quickly.

How to get the colours of the Mediterranean in your own home

When we think of the Mediterranean, the blue sea and the little whitewashed houses in Greece, southern Spain and Italy automatically come to mind. However, there’s more to making the Mediterranean come to life in your home than just using the typical Greek colours of blue and white. The Mediterranean Sea extends over such a large area, and is bordered by so many countries with different cultures, that the colour variations that mix with one another in the region are every bit as diverse as the cultural influences.

Start with blue and white as your main colours, then choose your decorations

From blue and white via green, lavender and terracotta, you have a huge variety of shades to choose from when decorating your home. Ochre, in its various tones, is another of the most popular Mediterranean shades: yellow ochre, as well as the orange, red, and brown variants, will give your property a warm, sunny atmosphere to make you really feel at home. Perhaps you’d like to repaint your walls to allow these Mediterranean tones to come to the fore. If, however, you prefer a more neutral approach, paint the walls in a fresh, pure white. You can even whitewash them, which is a superb technique for a Mediterranean look, and then add a touch of colour in the form of cushions, covers, curtains, carpets, or custom rugs.

The Mediterranean look allows a plethora of colours and beach-house features

Why wood, stone and iron make you happy

Just as natural as the colours are the materials that you can use to create a Mediterranean feeling, with wood from olive, pine, and walnut trees being particularly popular. Using wood in your home, you can not only create a wonderful Mediterranean atmosphere but can also enjoy a surprising number of extra benefits. Wooden furniture has a positive influence on the living environment, regulates humidity and improves air quality, even sleep quality. It also has the benefit of not causing allergies. When you choose wooden furniture you’re opting for natural, long-lasting furnishings which will delight you for years to come.

Wooden furniture doesn't just look great in combination with white and blue tones, it’s also good for your wellbeing

Other natural materials that suit the Mediterranean lifestyle include rattan and wicker, as well as water hyacinth fibre and reeds. A wicker chair or a sisal rug in your home is bound to make a good impression! Stone should also be part of Mediterranean decor: earthenware, terracotta and ceramics in the form of vases, tiles, and crockery should all have a place in your home, while you can always rely on wrought-iron furniture, especially on the balcony or in the garden, where a wrought-iron garden table with matching chairs works wonderfully!

Natural materials like wicker, stone and ceramic build on the villa look for the full Mediterranean experience

Your new housemates are Olive, Lavender, and Agave

Plantlife on the Mediterranean consists of a wide variety of shrubs, trees, herbs and flowers – these will fit in anywhere in your home and will lift your mood. Depending on how much space and light you can provide, select a variety of different plants and arrange them on the balcony or windowsill or at any other suitable spot in the room. Miniature olive trees, oleanders, and kitchen herbs such as rosemary and basil not only look great but also give off a pleasant fragrance.

Fragrance and colour from plants are important for a relaxing atmosphere

You can even keep lemon or orange trees or opt for a palm or an agave. Although agaves admittedly originate in Mexico, they now grow wild in the Mediterranean and will be just as successful in your home. Don’t forget to feed and water your plants regularly. If you keep them on the balcony, make sure that they're hardy enough to survive the winter. Not all plants can survive cold winters outdoors, which is why it’s better to keep them indoors or in your basement during the colder months. A little tip: plant pots made of terracotta, water hyacinth fibres or basket weave will provide a lovely home for plants while also emphasising the Mediterranean look.

Give your guests a glass of water flavoured with lemon from your own garden

Add your own Mediterranean finishing touches!

Once you’ve chosen your colours and furniture, it’s time to talk about the finishing touches. Decorating like this is especially fun, because it’s quick and easy and, above all, because you can create so many variations on a theme! Don’t go too far, however: too many ornaments quickly make a room look busy and kitsch, while the Mediterranean style should be more relaxed and airy. Create the appropriate look with natural terracotta vases, ornaments made from glass, wood, or earthenware, mosaics or individual Spanish or Portuguese tiles hung on the wall next to your pictures.

Small bottles, bowls and shells are cheap and effective

If your budget is tight, create your own ornaments with items that you found on your last holiday and one or two additional items from a specialist shop to add a finishing touch. How about a home-made DIY mobile with shells, small pieces of driftwood, and pebbles? Another great idea is to create a terrarium or bottle garden decorated with items found in the Mediterranean. Get some sand from the DIY store and some succulents from the flower shop around the corner, then arrange everything in the terrarium. Another possible alternative is a wooden display case, while you could also take a wooden bowl and fill it up with sand and a few tea lights to create your own private sandbox that will also provide mood lighting.

Be creative and make your own ornaments from items you find on holiday

How to brighten up your walls with a Mediterranean theme

When it comes to decorating your walls, an amazing colour scheme isn’t enough on its own. The best way to create accents and structure is to use pictures, and there are so many images that can carry you away to the Mediterranean at any time. All you have to do is show them off! And if ships, fish, lagoons, beaches and the obligatory sunsets form part of your photo collection, so much the better!

Mediterranean photos are the most important aspect of this style

At the My-Picture.co.uk shop, you can print your photos on canvas, acrylic, photo board or aluminium and even have them framed. Select your favourite photos and create your own image gallery. Perhaps you’d just like one picture on a large-format canvas to set the tone for the room all on its own? Or would you prefer to collect a set of different, smaller photos densely covering your walls? Create your own individual atmosphere!

A creative picture layout, or a few, larger pictures – which style suits your home?

Tips for a successful Mediterranean makeover

Have we inspired you? Then get started straight away and follow our tips – you’ll have given your home a Mediterranean makeover in the blink of an eye! Now you can sit back in your private holiday paradise and dream of your next Mediterranean holiday over a glass of red or a cool long drink!