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Industrial style interior design is about proudly displaying architectural features others try to hide; this industrial style originated in the 1970’s when people seeking affordable, spacious, light filled accommodation turned to city centre warehouses and factories.
These building were not designed to be lived in which created design problems for the new inhabitants. However, it was found that these buildings attracted some of the more creative individuals who were often more artistic than affluent. Rather than trying to strip out the historic features of the building it was more economical to enhance the features within their new homes, which was a great way of keeping the buildings heritage alive.
These buildings were typically large open spaces with few dividing walls, instead of dividing the space up into individual rooms, the new occupants embraced open plan living using furniture to define spaces such as sofas and kitchen units.
The word utilitarian is defined as “designed to be useful or practical rather than attractive”. This is an excellent way to describe the industrial style as many of the key features stem from the buildings working heritage such as the large metal framed windows, steel beams and concrete floors. The style has become a keen favourite amongst interior designers and can be found in inner city loft conversions to mid terrace houses across the world. Due to the recent surge in popularity many retailers have started stocking items specifically designed to complement this style; this often includes up-cycled furniture, metal effect accessories and rustic soft furnishings in natural materials like hessian, leather and cotton. An example of this is our Raw Metal column radiator range which would be perfectly suited in any industrial setting. These radiators are raw metal with a clear lacquer for protection. The clear lacquer allows the manufacturing processes to be shown which is a key element of the style.
Industrial interior designers like to emphasize the raw materials within the building such as brick, metal and concrete. These can be used throughout the property in a vast amount of ways such as polished concrete kitchen work surfaces, brick feature walls and large metal framed windows.
To create your own industrial inspired space the ideal starting place is with a large empty loft, however, not everyone has a loft space to play with so we have compiled a few ideas to create the style using the space you have. 
This is a very versatile style which can either be introduced to the space with little touches and accessories or with a full blown redecoration.
The best way to ensure you achieve the desired look is to create a mood board which will give you inspiration and also help you stick to the theme. Take a look at our Industrial Interiors Pintrest Board for a few of our favourites.
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One of the best ways to create this style is with a brick feature wall which can be used in any room of the house. If you do not have a genuine bare brick wall there are some excellent brick effect wallpapers on the market which come in a huge variety of colours, styles and textures to suite your desired look.
Exposed pipework is another great way of achieving this look, however this can be a costly and sometimes a tricky thing to do. A great way to incorporate exposed pipework into your scheme without having to get a plumber out is with your furniture. There are some incredible pieces of furniture on the market perfectly suited to this style such as bookcases and coffee tables.
Raw Metal lacquered column radiators are the perfect statement piece for an industrial style property offering a traditional design with a modern industrial twist. The vertical column radiators are idea for tight spaces such as behind doors and between windows as they come in a narrow width of 490mm. The horizontal radiators are available in three heights including 300mm, 450mm and 600mm. These radiators are available in from stock at Column Rads and come with a 5 year manufacturer’s warranty.
Finally, up-cycling and recycling is a popular trend which can complement the style extremely well, especially when up-cycling 
items with industrial uses, such as pallets and cable reels. Pallets are often transformed into trendy beds and benches, and cables reels into tables. Doing this yourself you are sure to create something which is in keeping with the style you are aiming for.
Whichever way you decide to introduce the style into your home, it is a bold statement and done correctly can look incredible. 
