Decorating Ideas for Native American Arts

Living Areas

• Homes in the southwest reflect the dry, desert environment as well as the Native American culture. For the interior of your main living areas, it is customary to have earth-toned flooring that is covered with animal skins or woven rugs. Native American woven rugs are collectable art pieces themselves. Walls are painted in the traditional Native American colors of turquoise, Taos blue, bright reds, yellow and oranges. Accent the bright colors with brown, beiges and greens from the desert. Adorn the walls with traditional Native American painting and drawings. Furnish living areas with antique Spanish pieces or simple wooden Mexican style furniture. Leather also fits this theme well.

Bathroom

• Showcase Native American pots and baskets in your bathroom. Paint the walls with a neutral desert color so that that the pots are sure to stand out. Native American art pots come in a wide variety of sizes, shapes and colors. If you are an art collector, antique pottery is a great item to add to your collection. Use the pots to hold towels, washcloths, and other toiletries. Hand woven baskets make ideal storage for magazines and toilet paper. Display pots on natural wooden shelves or in the corner of the room arranged by size.

Bedroom

• The bedroom allows for a wide variety of Native American arts. Paint the walls bright or subtle depending on your tastes. Find hand-woven blankets to use as bedding. If you use bright paint, choose a desert tone bedding theme or if you have muted walls, use a bright-themed bed. Use the wall space in the bedroom to hang hand-painted Native American carvings. This ancient art is still practiced today by many tribes. Carvings are available online, in art galleries and Native American themed stores. Display them organized by type, like totem carvings, face carvings or fetish carvings. They can be hung on the wall by attaching metal hanging fixings to the back or on shelves.

Kitchen

• The kitchen is the perfect room to feature Cherokee wood carvings. This ancient art is still practiced today by Cherokee tribes. This form of Native American art is primarily done for functional purposes. The wood carvers make wooden spoons, utensils and traditional dough trays and corn beaters. The utensils and bowls are all fully functional for daily use. Store fruit and vegetables in the dough trays if you don't plan on using them for making tortillas or flat bread. Display antique utensils by hanging them on the walls. Carved wooden masks, pipes and flutes would also fit well with this theme.