Bringing Travel Home: Designing with Inspiration from Abroad
Travel has a way of awakening our senses — from sun-washed colours to market treasures and beautiful textures. In this summer journal post, I’m sharing how you can bring those meaningful experiences home, weaving them into your interiors in a way that feels personal, timeless, and beautifully layered. Whether it’s a vintage brocante find or the feel of a Provençal breeze, let your travels inspire a home that tells your story.
Welcome to the third in my monthly series of journal posts, a place where I share design tips, inspiration, favourite finds, and a more personal look behind the scenes at Emma Young Interiors. I’m so pleased you’re here.
As a family, we’ve had a long-standing love affair with France. For many years, our summer holidays took us to Île de Ré, a small Atlantic Island off the coast of La Rochelle. With its whitewashed buildings, soft sandy beaches, and wide blue skies, it’s a place that lingers with you. The pace is slower, the colours are sun-washed and chalky, and the inspiration? Endless.
Whether it’s people-watching at the markets, admiring laid-back French interiors through an open shutter, or noting how the textures of linen and rattan feel effortlessly chic, I always come home creatively recharged.
This summer, we’re heading to the Luberon, our second time exploring the beautiful hilltop villages and towns of Provence. The food, the scent of lavender, the soft stone buildings it’s all so evocative. I’m particularly partial to a brocante or two and always try to leave a little space in my suitcase for a vintage treasure or antique find.
But travel doesn’t have to stop at the end of a holiday. With just a little thought, those inspiring sights, textures, and colours can find a lasting place in your home.
How Travel Inspires Timeless Interiors
As an interior designer, I’m always absorbing the world around me and travel plays a big part in that. Each destination has its own palette, materials, and pace, and bringing elements of that into your home doesn’t have to feel themed or overly curated. It’s about layering details that feel personal and collected, a philosophy at the heart of how I design.
Here are a few ways to weave your own travel inspiration into your home:
1. Start with Something You Loved
Rather than beginning with wall colour, I always encourage clients to start with something more personal a beautiful textile you brought home, a painting from a market, or even a photo you took on holiday. Perhaps it’s the ochre tones of a Provençal rooftop or the soft green of a shuttered door.
These elements can inspire an entire scheme — and because they already mean something to you, your home instantly feels more personal.
2. Seek Out Character Pieces
I always make time to visit brocantes when I travel, they’re full of charm and history. Whether it’s a carved mirror, a linen tablecloth, or a set of hand-painted plates, these items bring real character to your home and often become beautiful conversation starters.
They don’t need to match anything — they just need to feel right.
3. Translate Texture and Atmosphere
You don’t need to replicate an exact look, instead, ask yourself: how did it feel? Light and breezy? Rustic and warm? Refined and elegant?
You can express that feeling through layers of texture and material:
Linen or cotton drapes that move softly in the light
Natural woven baskets or stone floors
Glazed ceramics or vintage wood finishes
These tactile elements bring depth and warmth the hallmarks of a truly timeless interior.
4. Embrace Colour from Nature
One of the joys of travel is seeing colour in a new context. From the deep blues of the ocean to the soft creams of plastered walls, nature is the best colourist. Let these organic palettes guide your choices back home.
If you’re unsure where to start, look to your wardrobe, the colours you’re drawn to in clothing often reflect what makes you feel most at ease in your surroundings.
5. Let Your Home Tell Your Story
A beautifully designed home isn’t about following trends; it’s about telling your story.
Some of the best interior schemes aren’t just a collection of borrowed ideas, but rather an accumulation of experiences, memories gathered from places you’ve been, colours you’ve loved, and objects that hold meaning. That’s what gives a space soul.
By layering your home with collected finds, art, texture, and colour, you create something truly timeless, a home that feels deeply personal and entirely yours.
I hope these ideas inspire you to bring a little piece of your travels home, creating a space that’s rich with story, texture, and personal meaning. If you’d like to explore how to weave your own experiences into your interiors, don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Thanks for reading,
