Achieving the ‘California Casual’ Style: Wall Art

After a very long and very wonderful holiday weekend we are back today with another in depth look as to how one is to achieve that “effortless california casual” style as we have dubbed it. And in case you missed where it all began, click through to our intro to the style and where we broke down the key furniture pieces in said style. Today we are moving onto the walls of those stunning rooms that you are seeing all over your feeds and going through which types of pieces work best when trying to achieve this style. And yes, while we get that art is totally subjective to every single person and that you might not want to hang a massive floor to ceiling rope weaving on your living room wall that vaguely resembles an owl like they did in the home below, we wanted to show you all sides of the spectrum when it comes to this style and what exactly works for each category, so let’s get into it.

Let’s start with woven and textile art. Versions of it have been around in the design game for quite some time, and we have seen versions of this recently popularized with the ‘boho’ trend (should we cover that style next in our breakdowns?). Although when it comes to incorporating this type of art on your walls in the ‘effortless california casual’ look you can get away with a few different styles and opportunities for woven art on the walls besides the ever popular and go-to macrame.

So below we have rounded up a handful of our favorites. Anything with black, white, and cream are always good contenders, and you will also see some that are mixed with more modern metal elements like #8 and #17 which help them from going to boho and feeling a bit more modern. You also will find some with more graphic patterns, and simple weavings. And if you have a big wall to fill we have got you (and your walls) covered with the large scale items like #4, #5, and #15 which we love for the price and the size.

1. Hand Woven Black and White Wall Hanging | 2. Mandala Wall Hanging | 3. Penny Woven Macrame Wall Hanging | 4. Jumbo Jute Macrame Wall Hanging | 5. Louise Grey Quilt No. 1 | 6. Woven Wheel Wall Art | 7. Hapao Basket Wall Art | 8. Fringed Wall Art | 9. Large Triple Macrame Wall Hanging | 10. Ojai Fringed Wall Art | 11. Meda Metallic Macrame Wall Hanging | 12. Rossa Woven Wall Hanging | 13. Quiet Noise Wall Hanging | 14. Black Woven Star Basket | 15. Besso Textured Fringe Tapestry | 16. Suncircle Wall Hanging | 17. Edra String Hoop Wall Hanging | 18. Cream Woven Wall Hanging

Up next is framed art. Typically in this design style you find pieces that are large and graphic, with hits of black throughout like the piece below. Framing them in a light wood frame always helps, but is not required (black and white are also acceptable). Yes, you could go out and spend a small fortune on finding an original that is going to fit the bill and probably be worth every penny, but there are so many great prints these days that can also work to achieve the look on a budget.

If you aren’t into the monochromatic scheme then you could pull in a little bit of color while still keeping it neutral like the print below that has hints of nude and neutral coloring while still being modern and graphic which are a requirement for this style. Another popular type of print that you’ll see below is anything that has landscaping, black and white photography, or anything that feels like you took it with your vintage polaroid camera while visiting Joshua Tree on a meditation retreat with your two young children named Dasher and Meadow – maybe that is a bit too specific but you get the idea. This art is all about evoking that casual and relaxed feel to blend with your light wood furnishings and textured and cozy textiles, so landscapes, seascapes, and graphic abstract photography that is simple all work well.

1. ‘Dance’ Print | 2. ‘Layered Colors II’ Print | 3. Still II – Black & White | 4. Framed Abstract Paper | 5. ‘Chelsea 01’ Print | 6. ‘Sgraffito 752’ Piece | 7. ‘Lineup ‘ Print | 8. ‘Path of Life’ Print | 9. Seventy Tree Tropical Art Print | 10. ‘Shapes Print 2’ Print | 11. ‘Hovering Union’ Print | 12. ‘Ocean Lullaby’ Print | 13. Joni Majer 1 Art Print | 14. ‘Mountains of the Judean Desert’ Print | 15. ‘Logic of Stripes’ Print | 16. Still I White | 17. Shape Up 3 Collage | 18. ‘Celebration of the Three Graces’ Charcoal Drawing | 19. ‘Quibe Kiss’ Art Print | 20. ‘Oceano’ Print | 21. Framed Faceted Wire Cubes

Next up are mirrors. No “cali casual” room is complete with out at least 1 oversized mirror. And while huge leaning mirrors like the one below have always been popular in this style, if you really want to get the look then an oversized round wall mirror has become ubiquitous to this style.

Amber Lewis perfectly shows us how to do it below what with that 4 foot wide wall mirror reflecting the cali casual lifestyle in the rest of the room. When it comes to mirrors you will want to steer clear of anything too ornate, carved, or with a lot of detailing. Simple, clean, and refined are key to the mirrors in this category. The size and the large shape will do the talking for the piece so there is no need for any fancy adornments or details on the frame of the mirror. Either a light wood frame, a simple metal frame, or a frameless mirror are great options to get the look.

I believe this one below from Chrissy McDonald’s entry area is from Target and for the price cannot be beat if you are trying to get the look on a budget, and extra brownie points for have some adorable woven purses and bags styled along row of hooks like she does.

1. Modern Hanging Mirror | 2. Anni Oversized Wooden Circle Mirror | 3. Fairmount Wide Oval Mirror | 4. Large Sophia Mirror | 5. Acacia Wood Floor Mirror | 6. Round Wood Wall Mirror | 7. Norm Oval Wall Mirror | 8. Averly Mirror | 9. Metal Framed Wall Mirror | 10. Round Captain’s Mirror | 11. Day Mirror | 12. Asymmetrical Wall Mirror | 13. Metal Framed Oversized Round Mirror | 14. Holler Design Mirror | 15. Bentwood Rounded Rectangle Mirror | 16. Stave Mirror | 17. Turn Mirror | 18. Copper Round Mirror

Last but not least, we have three dimensional art. These are the pieces that typically are so unique that they can be used on your wall without having to clutter the rest of the wall space with a bunch of other accessories or art, like that little guy on the left in the picture below.

This category can get a little out of hand or abstract as you technically could hang a piece of driftwood or a strand of sticks on your wall and call it a day like the below living room, but there are a few key things to keep in mind when it comes to three dimensional art.

Keep it tonal, simple and in a lighter color. It could be accented with black, rope, or wood but anything that feels too bright or colorful doesn’t work well in this look. Michele Quan’s handmade bells below which I used in my old living room (she also makes those simple wood hooks), and have now found a perfect spot for in my new living room (pictures coming soon) are a good example of the three dimensional art that is simple, refined, and so beautiful that it doesn’t need a lot of other stuff going on around it.

You could also opt for an all wood version in the three dimensional category like these below, that bring in a lot of texture and visual interest without any color and keep things very tonal.

Here are a few of my favorites at different price points and sizes.

1. Small Wide Black Striped Bell | 2. Phases Rock and Rawhide | 3. Coiled Hanging Incense Stick | 4. Medium Apple A Mobile | 5. Wall Hanging Wood and Black Metal | 6. Sunrise Wall Hanging | 7. Phases Redgum Eye | 8. Trent Wind Chime | 9. Full Moon Ornament | 10. Small Round Carved Constellation Bell | 11. Crop Circle Metal Mobile | 12. Xixa Bell | 13. Hanging Wall Basket | 14. Indigo Rings Eye Ornament | 15. Ceramic Arrows

So are you into the look? Do you think you could get away with hanging a bushel of sticks on your wall or your more into the framed art? Let us know if you have any questions on how to get the look below and if you have any more resources or artists that we haven’t included in the looks above be sure to link up their sites below so that people can continue to use this post as a resource for this style. Until then I will be staring at my bells and prepping out the roundups for lighting and textiles which we have coming up next.