Expert Infuses Religious Influence Into Home With Two Simple Steps: Here’s How They Did It
While religious iconography might not be a popular trend in the modern interior design landscape, honouring family history and culture is.
Just recently, three popular home designers shared their experiences infusing religious influences into three separate homes. The religions were Jewish, Christian and Islam.
One of the most interesting cases was with a homeowner who wanted to incorporate the influence purely as an emotional choice – using them to honour their religious upbringing, parents and their childhood.
The homeowner was not a practicing member of the Jewish faith, but they wanted to keep the family traditions alive, ensuring that their family’s virtues and interests remained present within the walls and formed a part of the existing design.
The expert’s job, then, was to ensure the religion was implemented tactfully into the space without jarring with what was already there. Below, we’ve listed out the two methods they used and – if you relate to the homeowner and think this is something you’d like to do – how you can apply the same strategy to your own home:
Making The Scripture A Constant Presence
Despite not currently practicing, the homeowner – based in Manhattan – wanted to curate a space for the practice of Judaism, should their children choose to rediscover their roots. The expert achieved this by creating a custom shelf in the living room where Hebrew scriptures, tefillin, tefillin boxes and Judaica candles could be displayed rather than stored.
The shelf itself was floating midway from the carpet to the ceiling and was painted in a colour that matched the aesthetic of the lounge – helping to blend it into the surroundings. By doing this, the expert ensured the religious theme could be present 24/7 in the family home without it compromising on the style they had already achieved.
Making The Dining Room The Heart Of The Home
In any Jewish home, there is always a strong emphasis on the dining room. This is the room where people come together on Hanukkah, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and many more holidays to celebrate the Jewish faith and reconnect with families. In this way, the expert decided it was also important to change the design of the dining room and focus it directly on the Jewish theme.
This was done by creating a more luxurious space, filled with ornaments you would find in a traditional Jewish dining room – including Judaica silverware, menorahs, wine fountains and spice boxes.
As well as this, the colour scheme was adapted to white and true blue. This is often associated with the Jewish faith, with a deep symbolic significance and a representation of the sky and spirituality. The colour was implemented here with table runners, wall paint and art. While there was a chance it could feel excessive, the soft, warmer lighting of the dining room helped to temper the colour and ensured the change-up remained subtle yet effective.
Infusing Religious Themes Into Your Own Home
If you’re infusing religious themes into your own home for the reasons mentioned above, this expert demonstrates how easy it is to infuse it delicately in a way that helps it match the décor you have already achieved.
Take some inspiration from this expert’s work and apply it to your own home. Look at which parts of the religion you would like to honour – whether that be through scriptures, iconography or colours — and combine it in such a way that not only avoids a design rift but makes your home far more beautiful and personal as a result.
