Home on the Range

For a rugged, less formal lifestyle look to the Western frontier and America’s past. You don’t have to have a bison head over the fireplace or leather couches and branding irons. This style has become a lot more sophisticated. It can still feature horseshoe-ringed mirrors but now there are exciting fabrics with Western symbols repeated in the patterns. Rustic new furniture lines incorporate rough sawn woods, distressed finishes and the impact of wrought iron hardware. Drawer and cabinet pulls feature arrowheads, braided rope and sheriff’s badges. Age-worn, weathered-look, antique paint finishes in colors of “bitter root brown”, “prairie green” and “desert teal” evoke echoes of the west and blend beautifully with adobe walls, brick and tile floors and carved wood “vigas”. Willow chairs and tables add texture and can be used inside or out in a favorite shady spot in a courtyard or under a ramada.

Old quilts with Mandala patterns make a dramatic statement on a lodge pole pine four-poster bed. Accent floors with Kilims or one-of-a-kind Navajo rugs to bring softness, warmth and color into your furniture grouping. You may choose to hang one on the wall to incorporate an element of the rich Indian lore that is associated with the Western heritage.

Accessorize with cowhide lampshades, leather and suede throw pillows trimmed with fringe, an old cowboy boot planted with cactus, a barbed wire sculpture, the ubiquitous cow skull inlaid with a Zuni design in turquoise and silver. Cover a chair or ottoman with old Indian rugs or saddle blankets. Tarahumara pots and reproductions of Indian baskets, in a variety of styles, make colorful accents against a stucco wall or fireplace niche. This is a look that can be as “cowboy” casual or as elegant as you make it.

by Jacque Ramsey