Many of you have asked our team for design inspiration and about the best color palettes when considering your sofa fabric. We consulted Natalie Myers, an award winning interior designer, to bring you four mood boards to inspire your home decor.

Natalie first worked with Sabai when decorating a client's home - she enjoyed our sofa so much she got one for her home too! I recently spoke with Natalie to learn more about her style, how she incorporates sustainability into interior design, and the inspiration behind her mood boards. 

SK: Natalie, we love your style - can you tell us more about what Scandifornian design is?

Scandifornian design is a term I coined that I use as a guiding philosophy in my work. It combines a minimal and edited approach to decorating and furnishings inspired by Nordic and Japanese sensibilities. Being purposeful about the objects you bring into a home and consistent in the material and color palette. It's also inspired by the laid back Californian lifestyle that meshes indoor and outdoor living year round and incorporates mostly natural materials and textures. 

SK: Do you have any sustainable design tips for the Sabai community?

A love for the natural environment means a sensitivity to sustainably made goods. When shopping for large furniture pieces I look for items that are domestically made, and locally made is even better, to reduce the carbon footprint of shipping the items. I look for well constructed and well engineered pieces that won't fall apart and be shuffled off to the landfill in a few years time. I look for natural materials like wool, cotton, hemp, jute, sisal, linen, and wood or recycled plastics. Woods that are sustainably harvested. No MDF. I can feel good about specifying a product that I know won't have toxic chemicals, has longevity, can be recycled or upcycled, and was made with fair wages. Luckily there are so many amazing companies and products out there providing these options, like Sabai. The style is on par with designer pieces and the quality is typically better than the fast fashion furniture brands. 

SK: I love all of this! Our team is also a huge fan of secondhand pieces as they have a lower impact on the environment, are often more affordable, and prevent waste. Would you mind walking us through the four mood boards you designed with our fabrics? 

For the mood boards, I played around with different Sabai fabric options to show how you can make the sofa work for many home styles and user personalities. 

Warm

The Dusty Rose and Mustard recycled velvet fabrics take on a young energetic mood when mixed with blonde woods, brass, and funky tile concepts. On first glance the mood board reads feminine, but from experience I know even the most masculine personalities love spending time in these colors. It's a mood booster for all and feels fashion forward as well as contemporary.

Fabrics: Recycled Velvet Dusty Rose and Mustard 

Blues

A modern space can take on masculine clean lines with the Indigo Recycled Velvet and Midnight Upcycled Poly fabrics, smoky cerused oak wood, tobacco leather, and matte black accents. It is a confidently handsome mood board that works for everyone with more streamlined sensibilities.  

Fabrics: Midnight Upcycled Poly and Indigo Recycled Velvet  

Greens

The Seafoam and Moss Recycled Velvet fabrics with light grey and polished nickel accents is the most family friendly mood board. It will age beautifully with kids and pets and general life happening around. It reads very well balanced. A crowd pleasing combo.

Fabrics: Recycled Velvet Moss and Seafoam 

Neutrals

The neutral scheme is a dreamy vacation inspired mood board that will instantly relax you. More suitable for a person who likes the spaces unfussy and zen, rich with subtle natural texture. 

Fabrics: Oat Upcycled Poly 

Thanks so much to Natalie for all of her design insights! These mood boards are so beautiful - our team can't wait to see how they are incorporated into our customers' homes. Feel free to tag us @sabai.design and Natalie (@nataliemyers) on Instagram. And don't forget to use our hashtags: #SabaiAtHome and #OnMySabai!