Columns in the interior: why and what to do with them? Columns in the interior of apartments and houses Rough concrete column in the interior.

Columns in the interior add grandeur, luxury and pomp to any room. empire style. Today, these vertical groups perform a purely decorative function. However, previously mystical qualities were attributed to columns; among the ancient Egyptians and Indians, these architectural structures had totemic significance.

But the engineering support function was still the main one. Columns in the interior of a modern home are a sign of the owner’s high material status, good taste and commitment to historical architecture. Columns are an indispensable attribute of the following styles:

1. Baroque.
2. Royal.
3. Gothic.
4. Rococo.

Taking into account the design of the columns, in the future we select type of finish, decor and .

Columns in the interior of a house - their main elements

Any column has three components:

• foundation or base;
• trunk;
• capital

The base is the lower part of the structure that supports the entire load. Usually the base has a simple shape, but sometimes it is decorated with horizontal gutters.

The column trunk, which is the main part, can be round, square, polygonal, and at the same time be absolutely smooth or textured.

The capital is the very top part of the column, but sometimes this element may be missing. Without a capital, the column looks like an ordinary pillar. It is this part, according to the architects, that is considered the most expressive and makes it possible to translate the most daring artistic ideas into reality.

On the capitals you can see:

1. royal bas-reliefs;
2. volutes - curls twisted in a spiral;
3. palmettes, which are a symmetrical pattern of palm leaves.

Types of designs

In order for all the interior details to be perceived correctly and match the style, you need to wisely choose the material from which the columns will be made. There are many such materials, it could be:

• ;
• metal;
• tree;
• ;
• polyurethane.

Natural stone means granite, marble, basalt, malachite. Similar architectural works of art can be seen in museums, theaters, exhibition galleries, luxurious restaurants and five star hotels.

Huge, luxurious columns are installed in the center of the halls, and less bulky pillars are usually built at the entrance to the building. For a private home, columns made of natural stone are a luxury, so only a very wealthy owner can afford them.

Metal structures are much cheaper, quickly erected and can have any shape. As a rule, such columns are decorated with or. These design trends are characterized, first of all, by practicality, and the aesthetic component is in second place. What other material can boast of high strength and reliability if not metal?

Wooden decorative columns in the interior are close in spirit to ethnic styles - and eco-style. Carved columns will take their rightful place in a house where any of these interiors reigns. First, the columns are installed, and then the remaining components are selected for them:

1. finishing;
2. ;
3. scenery;
4. ;
5. .

Plasterboard structures are constructed very quickly. Having a design project in hand, the owner can create such a column on his own, since the material allows him to create real masterpieces. A plasterboard pillar will be a worthy decoration.

Gypsum architectural interior elements are a classic of the genre. It is this material that professional designers like to work with most. Gypsum is easily restored, making it easy to restore a structure that has been damaged over time to its original appearance; as a result, it cannot be distinguished from a new one.

Gypsum is a very plastic material, so there are no restrictions in terms of shapes and whimsical elements for it. If the master makes a mistake during the work, it can be quickly corrected by sanding or applying a new layer.

Polyurethane columns in the interior deserve special attention. The material has significant advantages, including:

• low price;
• light weight;
• ease of processing and installation;
• reliability and durability;
• resistance to sunlight, moisture and temperature changes.

Polyurethane capitals can be given the most bizarre shapes and decorated with all kinds of ornaments. Polyurethane foam vertical structures are notable for the fact that they can be painted in any color. The material today is very popular not only among famous designers, but also among those for whom this activity is still new. This is due to the ease of working with polyurethane and its versatility.

Advice! If the owner cannot decide on the choice of material for the column, he should choose polyurethane, since this option is considered a win-win and is acceptable for any interior.

Modern columns and their tasks

Modern interior with columns in an apartment is not only about beauty and aesthetics. Most of these architectural works have specific benefits.

If the structure is made of durable material (brick, metal, stone), it can be load-bearing and perform a supporting function. To install a heavy column in an apartment building, the owner will need to obtain appropriate permission from municipal organizations.

Ideally, such architectural structures are designed together with the house itself and installed during its construction. This is the most correct, since this is the only way to optimally select the finish and take into account all the nuances of the design.

Using columns you can zone the space of the room. Owners of large rooms resort to this method of division if the latter require visual division into zones. This is a non-standard solution and is suitable for people who love creativity.

Installed vertically, architectural groups visually raise the boundaries of the ceiling and give the room even more spaciousness. Entire colonnades are erected in huge rooms, with the help of which the interior lines become clearer.

Decorative columns in the interior are the best solution for rooms with a large number of communications that need to be hidden. The home of a modern person is literally crammed with all kinds of cables and engineering systems that spoil the appearance of the room. The upward-facing structure will hide both low-current and high-power wires in its depths.

Advice! Through the trunk of the column you can connect communications and it will never occur to any of the house guests that there is something hidden from view in the beautiful decoration.

Columns and styles

Architectural decorative structures are selected not only taking into account the attractiveness of additional elements, material and texture. The main stylistic features should also be taken into account.

• For an Egyptian interior, it is necessary that the surface of the trunk should have painted patterns and plant-themed ornaments. As a rule, such columns are absolutely smooth, there is no relief or texture on them. Primary colors of drawings –

Do you want to add notes of sublimity, spirituality, and aristocracy to your interior? Complete the interior decoration with columns. The result will surprise and delight you. Once you use columns at home, you will never want to part with them again.
What functions does this interior element perform? In what styles is it used? What is it made of? Is it possible to use columns in small apartments? How can you “hide” a load-bearing column? An ambiguous design element raises many questions.
The attitude towards columns in the interior as elements of only a palace style is becoming a thing of the past. Their use in home, office, and public spaces is becoming increasingly widespread. And for good reason. Columns in the interior are worthy of decorating our lives every day.

Support or decorative element

Ancient architects were extremely skilled in the use of columns. They created magnificent grandiose colonnades of temples, public buildings, houses of the nobility, and royal apartments.
Perhaps that is why for several thousand years the history of architecture has considered columns as interior and exterior elements of luxury and power.

Here lies not only the status rank, but also the meaning of self-perception, self-esteem of the owner of the house. Try standing next to some grandiose column, for example, the Winter Palace, or walking along the colonnade of the Kazan Cathedral in St. Petersburg.

A classical column consists of three main parts - the base, the body and the capital. The base is the base of the column; when used as a support, the base carries a significant load. The body is a pillar connecting the top and bottom. The capital is the upper part, in the classic version richly decorated.

Richly decorated columns look best in rooms with a high ceiling height - from 290 cm and above.

With the advent of lightweight polyurethane foam products, the use of columns as decorative design details has become possible in high-rise buildings and small apartments. Any column, even one standing alone, “fragments” the surrounding space. Compositions of two or three columns are convenient for demarcating a room, highlighting individual parts, while maintaining a sense of integrity.

Colonnades with a large number of elements are almost never used by modern architects unless the design of the entire building requires it. Comfort and a high level of quality of life require the laying of a large number of communications running through all floors of buildings. Hiding cables and pipes inside the column is an original, sometimes the only acceptable design solution.

Considering columns as a decorative detail, it is worth including half-columns here. Semi-columns do not carry a supporting load. They are attached to the wall, performing decorating and zoning functions, while preserving all the aesthetic decorativeness inherent in entire columns.
Low columns from 80cm and higher complement the interior in an original way. They are used as tables, stands for vases, sculptures, bowls.

Era? Style? Direction?

Noble classics

The classic interior with antique columns is based on Greek samples - Doric, Ionic, Corinthian styles. The decoration of the base, body, capitals not only has not changed, moreover, good taste requires strict adherence to Greek ideals.

Mysterious east

Impressive colonnades connected by arches are an integral element of oriental architecture. In contrast to classical restraint, the body of the eastern column is richly decorated with mosaics, ornaments, and bright colors.

Modern interior trends

Minimalist style, hi-tech, loft – the columns have not been spared. These styles require large free space and significant height. The columns here act as floor supports. Most often, these are simple pillars, finished in accordance with the style of the room - metal (silver, nickel, chrome, copper), clinker “looking like aged brick,” concrete with traces of formwork.
The latest trend is the use of lighting in glass columns with bubbles.

Country styles

In the good old Provence, Russian rustic style, and other ethnic styles, wood and rough natural stone are preferred for decorating columns.
The columns can be entirely wooden, and the “stone” finishing on various bases (concrete, polyurethane foam, plasterboard, false column) is done with materials that imitate stone.

Using half-columns, columns, decorate them based on the style of the entire room, and any, even the simplest stand, will become a “highlight”.

Suitable...materials for making columns

Traditionally, column elements were cut out of stone - marble, granite, travertine. Local stone was used from nearby deposits, because heavy stone blocks are difficult to transport over long distances. The body of the column was assembled from several parts, the seams between them were tightly rubbed, the column looked monolithic.

How to hide a column that is not needed

The design features of some buildings require a large floor area with a small number of partitions and load-bearing walls. It is difficult to do without a support such as a massive column in the middle of the room under such conditions. If the column does not match the overall style of the room, it makes sense to decorate it.

Compositions made from half-columns combined with photo wallpaper are unusually advantageous. By choosing a drawing of a suitable style, you can transform any, even the tiniest room, for example, a hallway. A small street, a piece of garden or the canals of Venice will harmoniously enlarge and refresh the space, thanks to the frame with semi-columns.

Having comprehended the ideas of ancient architects and selected the appropriate modern technological materials, it is possible to turn a gray concrete and glass building into a luxurious palace, an oriental harem, a brutal loft or... a beautiful garden.

So what is the secret of using columns in the interior? They add volume, transform a flat image into 3D, create a stereo effect, set the rhythm of the space, and therefore make the interior alive and real.

Sep 27/12

Columns in the interior - a return through the centuries

As you know, fashion has a habit of coming back. This applies to clothes, shoes, hairstyles, and, no less, room design. Decorators are increasingly striving to elevate the minimalism of ultra-modern materials and solutions with the help of elegant “antique” elements. Today, antique columns in a modern interior are at the peak of popularity.

Such a detail adds grandeur and grace to even the most ordinary-looking room and invariably evokes associations with ancient Greek temples and luxurious Roman baths. It's true that columns in the interior“worked” for a general idea, the classical principles of their construction often have to be sacrificed.

Columns in the interior - a little history

The column - a symbol of ancient and classical architecture - is a cylindrical pillar that serves not so much as decoration, but to support load-bearing structures. A distinction is made between the base of the column and its upper, decorative part, often decorated with bas-reliefs. In ancient Greek and Roman temples, snow-white marble columns were used in large quantities at once, creating reliable support for the roof and, at the same time, making the monumental building dynamic, as if “floating” in the air. During classicism, both the practical and aesthetic value of this architectural element were actively exploited: massive pillars supported high ceilings with stucco, and their upper part served as an additional decoration for rich interiors. As in ancient times, columns were made of marble and valuable types of stone.

Today columns in the interior houses or apartments can perform all their classic tasks, but their appearance has changed a little.

Columns in a modern interior photo

What are columns for interiors made of today?

Classic columns made of solid stone or marble are not so common in modern interiors, mainly because due to the high cost and heavy weight of the raw materials, the production of such a decorative element can take a lot of time and cost the owner a pretty penny. However, marble columns are still the most fashionable and stylish accent in the interior.

Of the cheaper materials, limestone and basalt are popular. Cladding of columns for the most luxurious interiors can be done using onyx, jasper, jadeite, lapis lazuli and other semi-precious ornamental stones. If the supporting function of columns in the interior does not play an important role, a completely economical solution would be to replace real columns with lightweight and inexpensive plasterboard imitations.

Decorative plasterboard columns

Decorative columns photo

Today, a variety of wooden columns in the interior have become popular - carved, glued, from timber, and also in the form of balusters. In many cases, wooden columns still serve as a reliable support for the building, but no less often they are used as a decorative component of the interior.

Carved wooden columns in the interior

For an interior in eco-style, as well as country and rustic style, rough wooden columns are perfect, creating a feeling of unity with nature.

In a classic interior, carved columns with a certain symmetrical pattern are often found.

Columns made of polished beams will look good in a modern interior.

Functions of columns in a modern interior

The main tasks of columns in room design have not changed much. They are mainly used for supporting and masking load-bearing structures, visually correcting the proportions of the room, as well as for. As for innovations, today the surface of the columns can also be used to place color and texture accents in the room, and even as completely utilitarian objects.

They will be an excellent way out of the situation if, for example, the interior of the living room contains poorly located and conspicuous communication structures. Everyone knows how such unpleasant little things spoil a lovingly thought-out design, and columns can successfully hide them from prying eyes. If you are designing a house from scratch, and there is a very large load on the ceiling of the room, heavy, but at the same time elegant-looking columns will take some of the weight upon themselves.

As for the visual expansion of space, columns have no equal here: representing vertical lines, they, according to the well-known law, “pull” the room upward. For example, placed in a row around the perimeter of a room, these slender, graceful structures can visually add height to the ceiling.

One of the modern functions of columns in any interior is space zoning. There are a lot of options for using this technique. So, with columns you can “encircle” the dining area, separating it from the kitchen and living room, or place two columns on the sides, turning it into the real center of this room. Another way is to decorate a hall or entrance to a room using a series of columns.

If in ancient times the columns were mostly smooth and snow-white, or had a marble texture, today the color and texture diversity applicable to the design of columns in the interior simply knows no bounds. For example, columns can be covered or painted in a color that is contrasting or consistent with the overall color scheme, or even decorated with real painting. You can highlight the magnificence of such columns, which can be proudly called an “art object,” with the help of lighting built into the ceiling.

I would like to add a few words about very unconventional ways of how to use columns in the interior of modern housing. Considering the penchant of fashion designers for practicality, a false column hollow inside can be used as a cabinet or stand for equipment, and by placing it on it, you can equip it with a real mini-bar. Half-columns, in turn, can be used as an elegant and original support for furniture - tables, armchairs, chairs, and even cabinets.

Which room will decorative columns fit into?

Today you can use columns in the design of any room: the interior of a living room with columns can be called classic, but these elements will look no less advantageous in the hall, bedroom, or even in the bathroom.

The column is the personification of classical and ancient architecture. Many people wonder why columns in the interior have not yet lost their popularity, but on the contrary, they strongly attract both architects and designers. As for historical interiors, columns were used exclusively for support. Today they mainly play a purely decorative role. Although, in some cases, columns are used to hide communications, because... represent the best way. It is better to use double columns or in pairs in the interior, i.e. There can be two or three couples in the room at once, or more, it all depends on the area of ​​the room.

In which interior are columns used?

It is not difficult to guess that columns are used in those houses that resemble castles and palaces and are made in a luxurious royal style. Only then will the columns look majestic, solemn and proud, and the home will take on the image of classical beauty. However, columns are also used in modern interiors, because now there is a huge variety in the choice of their shapes, sizes and materials.

Column materials

The traditional materials from which columns were made were considered to be concrete, granite, marble, etc. In other words, reliable and durable materials. Currently, artificial modified stone is already used, and the creation processes have been significantly improved thanks to the rapid development of technology.

Although, marble columns are still successfully used and represent a very stylish and fashionable accent in the interior, as do wooden columns.

Only now the columns have different sizes, configurations and functional purposes. In general, according to the recommendations of designers, the material is determined by the style and functional purpose of the room. For example, columns made of polyurethane foam may well be suitable for a bedroom; for a living room with a balcony and access to the second floor, you will need a more durable material, such as concrete or basalt, because in this case, the functional purpose of the structure is not just decorative, but also serves as a support to support the weight of the balcony, i.e. in this situation, the columns are already part of the architectural layout of the building. And the material for surface finishing is selected based on the design. For example, either imitation marble or simply a smooth surface coated with paint can perfectly suit the classic style of the interior. Stone cladding is wonderful for country style.

Functional purpose of columns

In addition to decorative functions, columns can be used for other purposes. For example, for visual correction of room proportions. They can also be used to disguise a load-bearing structure or unsightly protruding communication structures, i.e., for example, all sorts of pipes that are undesirable to be displayed. The column in this case represents the best method for camouflage. Very often they are also used for zoning space.

There are a lot of techniques for this, for example, you can outline the dining area with columns or use a series of columns to decorate the entrance to the room in this way

or hall.

And in cases where the design of a house is done from scratch, and the ceiling bears an extremely large load, then the columns, as in the old days, can serve as considerable support and take on part of the weight. They are also ideally suited for visual expansion of space, because they are nothing more than vertical lines, which means, as evidenced by the law, they stretch the room upward. If you place these slender and graceful pillars in a row around the perimeter, the height of the ceilings in the room will increase significantly. As for the modern interior, with the help of false columns you can apply practicality and use them, say, as a cabinet, and if you place the column at the bar counter, then it can even be adapted into a wonderful mini-bar.

And yet, in what rooms would columns be appropriate?

Due to the variety of shapes, textures, sizes and colors of columns available today, they will be appropriate in almost any room. The most common options are staircases, arched passages, fireplaces, balconies, verandas.

If you decorate the interior of a living room with columns, then you need to use pairs, or even better, a whole composition of these decorative elements.

Moreover, not only the classic interior style, but also the modern one, can be designed with columns. For example, modern - square columns will look very stylish in such an interior, as well as in high-tech style. Columns give the room solemnity and majesty. They are like exclamation marks that cannot be ignored.

If this is a studio apartment, then with the help of a colonnade you can perfectly separate the kitchen from the dining room

or a corridor from the living room.

To zone a room with a large area, it is enough just to use different columns with different finishes and shapes, but at the same time, with some kind of generality, and any guest who comes to you will subconsciously immediately divide the space into separate zones - these are the properties of our perception. The main thing to remember is that all elements and components of the interior must be organically combined with each other - this is the basis of any interior design with columns.

Since time immemorial, columns have been an integral element of classical interiors, made with elements of antiquity. It is through the use of columns that designers achieve the elevation characteristic of interiors designed in a classical style. When creating projects of modern interiors, designers continue to pay tribute to antiquity, thanks to which many unique stylistic concepts with antique elements were released, in which columns gradually lose their functional load, performing only a decorative function. Despite this, modern high-rise buildings are characterized by a special design, in the structure of which columns play the role of load-bearing elements, which necessitates the need to solve a difficult but very interesting problem, the essence of which is to adapt columns as one of the main structural elements to a specific stylistic concept interiors. However, most of them are far from the classical direction, which does not prevent them from being a very organic detail of many interiors.

Columns in the interior: how to emphasize the originality of design solutions?

Loft, hi-tech, underground... the columns present in all these modern styles not only emphasize their technogenicity and functionality, but also give them a special expressiveness characteristic only of these trends. And the appearance of the columns present in such interiors is very specific - here they appear in the form of metal supports or columns finished with rough concrete. The no less relevant, fantasy art deco style often also cannot do without columns.

But even if the design of the house does not provide for the presence of load-bearing supports, stylized columns in the Art Deco interior will become that rich accent that will not only emphasize the uniqueness of the style, but will also streamline the space. Often, columns and possible options for decorating them are remembered only when they purchase housing, the design features of which imply the presence of load-bearing columns, which are not possible to get rid of. In this case, the owners are faced with a choice: to correctly design the columns and turn them into the “highlight” of the interior or to disguise, as many believe, awkward pillars located in the middle of the room. Which solution will be the most profitable? You can make your choice by reading the materials in this article.

Historical sketch or Tribute to antiquity

Translated from Latin, column (“columna”) means a pillar, which is mainly characterized by a cylindrical shape, but columns of round, square and multifaceted shapes are not uncommon. Columns have long been considered a symbol of ancient and classical architecture and were supporting structures that later began to perform a decorative function. The column as an architectural element consists of three main parts:

• The footing, also called the base, is the bottom portion of the column that bears the main load. Often, horizontal grooves are used to decorate the base;
• The central part or trunk of a column, which is characterized by smoothness or decorative design, implying the decoration of the trunk with flutes, which are vertical grooves;

• The capital is the top part of the column, which, like the base, may be missing. According to the architects, this is the most expressive part of the column, which is achieved through multiple decorative elements with which the capital is decorated. This includes a volute, which is a spiral-shaped curl, and a palmette, a symmetrical ornament in the form of palm leaves, and regal bas-reliefs.

The first columns became an attribute of ancient Greek temples, where they, made mainly of snow-white marble, gave the building additional airiness, while being a reliable support for the roof of the temple. The period of classicism was marked by a new round of popularity of columns, when they began to perform not only a decorative, but also a practical function.

Representing powerful cylindrical supports, they supported high ceilings, decorated with numerous stucco moldings, which significantly increased the overall weight of the structure and, as a result, needed support. Decorated with bas-reliefs, such columns were made of marble and other expensive types of stone. Today, designers actively use columns as an element of interior decoration, and also offer to implement the most daring solutions not only for large-sized apartments, but also for small-sized housing.

Columns in the apartment photo

Materials for making columns

Architectural columns in an apartment have long been made of decorative stone, marble, granite, basalt and metal, and modern designers suggest paying tribute to tradition if columns play the role of supporting structures in the design of your building. However, due to the high cost of these materials and the predominantly decorative function of columns, experts recommend using non-natural materials for their manufacture, such as polyurethane and gypsum, which we will discuss separately.

Polyurethane

It is considered one of the most popular materials for the manufacture of columns that perform a decorative function. Polyurethane is very popular both among eminent designers and among beginners, due to the fact that this material is easy to work with. The main advantages of the material are as follows:

• Due to the lightness of the material and ease of handling, even a beginner can work with polyurethane;
• Columns for the manufacture of which polyurethane was used can be painted in a wide variety of colors and without having to think about choosing specialized paints and varnishes, but purchase the most affordable acrylic paints;
• Polyurethane is an ideal choice for those who plan to install a column in an apartment, decorated with many decorative elements, since the smallest details of bizarre shapes can be easily made from polyurethane;
• Polyurethane columns, which can be purchased in retail stores at low prices, can also be made to order according to your sketch;
• Like all materials, polyurethane also has its disadvantages, the main one being a change in color several years after the initial installation of the columns.

Gypsum

It is considered a classic material for the manufacture of columns, which is why it remains popular among designers who already have experience in the manufacture of supporting structures in the interior. Columns made of gypsum can be easily restored, which makes it possible to easily restore the original appearance of the structure and editing, thanks to which the architect can make a column decorated with fancy decorative elements. Defects that arise during the work can be eliminated thanks to grinding, which can also be done by a specialist who has previously worked in this field.

Columns video

Functional purpose of columns in the interior of an apartment

• The decorative function is the most common role of columns in modern interiors, which can be played out in a variety of ways, described below;

• Masking of supporting structures or unsightly communications located in places accessible to prying eyes;
• Zoning of space. The most common examples of implementing this function of columns are the following: with the help of columns they decorate the entrance to the room or visually separate the dining area, surrounding it with columns;

• Visual expansion of the space of the room, which is achieved through vertical stripes creating the effect of a high ceiling;
• The function of supporting structures is also one of the most common purposes of columns. It is implemented if the interior is made in a classical or antique style, which is characterized by high ceilings, decorated with stucco and other elements that add weight to the overall weight of the structure;

• A practical function that involves the use of columns as cabinets and shelves. Despite the fact that this role of columns is partly functional, they can be made of polyurethane or plasterboard, which are less durable than marble or granite;

Columns: design variations

Columns in the interior can be present in the form of:

• Colonnades, a type of which are arched colonnades;
• Paired columns and columns united by an arch;
• Semi-column.

The functional role of colonnades in the interior is, as a rule, in zoning space. By creating an airy and light, but at the same time distinct division of space into zones, colonnades contribute to an unobtrusive delimitation of space, visually extending from one wall to another. Arched colonnades contribute to clearer, local zoning. The colonnade as a functional element carries a certain aesthetic load of the interior, created due to the original, fascinating rhythm of the columns, contemplating which, you can forget about time and all worldly problems. In the case when colonnades are designed at the construction stage, they can also carry a functional load, acting as a supporting structure.

Paired columns are a traditional way of organizing columns in a room. For example, columns are installed on both sides of a fireplace, window or flight of stairs. If paired columns are placed at opposite walls, they will also effectively cope with the role of zoning the space, highlighting zones with different functional purposes in the space. By combining the columns with an arch, you will even more clearly indicate the division of space into zones. If the room has sharp wall protrusions that somehow need to be masked, a column is installed next to the protrusion, which will restore the stylistic unity of the interior and at the same time hide the unsightly protrusion. In most cases, paired columns do not carry a functional load, performing only a decorative function, which necessitates the design of the columns, creating unity with the overall stylistic concept. The choice of materials is also determined by the same considerations. For example, stylization in an antique style is done using inexpensive materials that imitate stucco molding, characterized by high-quality decorative finishing.

Half-columns are imitation of columns protruding from the wall. Despite the existing external differences, the functional roles of columns and half-columns are similar: the latter also visually delimit the space, highlighting the most important stylistic accents, for example, the space near the fireplace or window. Unlike columns, semi-columns are not subject to such stringent requirements for fastening, due to the absence of a functional load on them. You just need to fix them against the wall, and they will become an equally expressive interior detail.

Columns are often an integral element of open-plan spaces. However, in order for a column to become an organic detail of an interior made in a particular style and create the impression of a complete picture, it must be played out, since a well-designed column will carry not only a functional load, but also bring aesthetic pleasure.

Tip #1: Make the center of the main column feel good to the touch

It will be nice if the column, located next to your usual route around the house, is pleasant to the touch and you want to touch it. For example, wrap a wooden column with coarse rope from the bottom up to the level of your hands. This will not only make the column tactilely pleasant, but will also become a decorative scratching post - an indispensable item in a house where representatives of the feline family live.

Tip #2: Cover the central column with decorative stone

If you have an impressively sized column in your room, consider covering it with decorative stone. This will not only remind you of the original purpose of the column, but will also add originality to the interior due to the contrasting combination of rough stone and softer material used to decorate the room. In addition, this will become a current design technique, implying a combination of interior and exterior decoration of the room due to a small inclusion of materials for finishing the facade into the interior of the room.

Tip #3: Convert two side-by-side columns into a shelving unit, wine rack, or media center

In a modern interior, it is popular to use two adjacent columns in the form of a rack intended for decorative figurines or memorable photographs. And if a homemade shelving unit is sheathed with the same material as the rest of the built-in furniture in the room, it will organically fit into the interior of the room.

And if the column is located near a cozy corner for family or friendly gatherings, surround it with a cabinet body, turning it into an ideal place to store wine, books or CDs, depending on the location of the column.

And for those who do not know where to place the TV in an apartment characterized by an open plan, we advise turning a column with a practical purpose into a media center, which will become a good place for placing a TV and a music center. If you do not plan to do this right away, install a block of electrical outlets near the column.

Tip No. 4: Turn a column into an interior partition and delimit intimate space

If several columns are located between two spaces characterized by different functional purposes, install a cabinet or rack between them, which will not only visually delimit the space into zones, but will also become an excellent storage place for personal belongings. And if the front part of the column is decorated with built-in shelves, it will effectively delimit a more private area from the main space of the room.

Tip #5: Create Contrast Between Styles and Materials

If the column is decorated with materials that contrast in color and texture with the main finish, it will become a bright accent detail in an interior characterized by minimalist decor. In addition, the column can be decorated in a classic style, which will help create a contrasting style in a modern setting.

Columns equipped with a niche require electric lighting, which will allow you to use a decorative niche to display your favorite piece of art or sculpture. A fashionable technique, borrowed from shoe stores, is to decorate columns with a seat in the form of a soft back surrounding the column. Another way to design paired columns is to install a bench between them, which will become a convenient place to change shoes.

And finally, tip number 7: Follow your preferences and decorate the columns to your liking

For example, strength-tested wooden posts can be used as load-bearing columns, which can be decorated with items dear to your heart or from a historical perspective: posters, artwork, antique dishes and other decorative items. And these are not all the ways to decorate columns.

Follow your imagination and choose the design method that is closest to you and your loved ones.