It is exciting that you are celebrating Black History Month and considering embracing it by introducing some African inspired interior decorations into your home. Your home is close to your heart and it makes sense that you would want to celebrate an important event of the year by bringing it home. 

However, when it comes to making changes in the home it is easy to feel lost and confused about where to start or what you can do. This is understandable because decorating your home is a huge task and your home says a lot about you so you don’t just want a space to feel comfortable, you want it to reflect who you are. 

Chances are, you already have a theme for your home. You can choose to work with that to create a fast budget friendly Afrocentric interior decoration that will help you celebrate black history for this month and beyond. On the other hand, you can decide to go all out. After all, there is no such thing as too much effort when it comes to what actually matters to you. 

We have collated amazing ideas that can help you create your desired Afrocentric look, from making a little change to a lot. You can now become your own interior decorator and work it like a pro. 

At the end of reading this article, you are not going to be lost as to how to give your space an African inspired theme, the only question thereafter will be how far you are willing to go. 

Ways to get an Afrocentric interior

African inspired prints and patterns: One of the very prominent features that Africa is known for is for prints and patterns. Bold, artistic native prints that nobody can ignore. From North, to South, to East and to West Africa these prints may differ but you know for sure that they are going to be there. Finding a way to bring in prints and patterns into your home is a great way to create an African inspired space. You can have them feature on pillows on your furniture, you use them for upholstery and you can get artworks that feature African prints and patterns. All these things can help you make a quick lift to your home just in time. 

Making a statement with some basket weaving: Incorporating basket weaving into your home is really versatile and interesting and you should get excited about doing this. This is because, you can use it in any room in your home, from the living room to the bathroom and you can decide to display it as an aesthetic element or you can purchase some utility pieces made from basket weaving. You can dedicate a wall and display different decorative basket weaves in order to create an accent wall for yourself either in the living room, the bedroom, the lobby or your study. You can also decide on basket furniture like a flower vase for instance, or go for utility pieces like a lamp stand, a tissue and or towel holder, the list is endless. 

African artworks: Artworks are a great way to lift your spaces and make it look expensive, it is also an amazing way to express yourself by getting something that really represents you and putting on a display for anyone to see. There are lots of African inspired artworks by African artists that you can get to uplift your space. Things like a painting, carvings, pottery etc. having these things in your space is a sure way to get a classic Afrocentric home. The artworks are often made of dark wood, hand carved and/or hand painted and inspired by culture in such a way that it pays respect to the origin of these pieces. You can get something that even combines the use of patterns with carvings and paintings to create something holistic. 

An accent furniture: Furniture is definitely a way to add character to a room, especially with the use of larger furniture. Knowing this, if you want to have an African inspired space, it makes sense to have an African inspired furniture. You don’t necessarily have to go all out by changing all your furniture since this will be a costlier move, you can decide to have an accent furniture that embodies African roots. If you are going with the accent furniture, you should keep other furniture minimalistic and clean so that you don’t have conflicting themes. African furniture is often bold, expressive and made from earthy materials. Think about a nice chair or centerpiece as your accent furniture. 

Animal skin prints: Animal skin gives such a royal touch to your home at the same time it pays respect to Africa. There are so many beautiful things you can achieve with animal skin, in your home and of course in your wardrobe, the best part is that you can decide to go for a mimic and not an actual skin as a way to advocate for animal conservation. You can have animal skin rugs and carpets, that are cut in interesting shapes rather than having regular defined geometry, you can go for an animal skin tapestry or table cloth, you can simply lay it lazily over a piece of furniture, just resist the urge to put it on because it is a fashion hit as well. 

Warm earthy tones: Afrocentric interiors usually feature warm earthy tones in walls, furniture, floors and ceilings, paying a deep respect to nature. You can create this in your home with the use of warm colored lighting, wall paint, warm colored upholstery and rugs, lamp covers, curtains and so on depending on how much change you are willing to make. Combine this with any of the other five ideas mentioned earlier and you are good to go. 

There are different ways to create an Afrocentric space, from buying a new vase to changing the color of your wall paint, how far you want to go is really up to you. At the end of the day, incorporating pieces that embraces African art and nature while keeping other things in the home complementary and minimalistic is an amazing way to give your home an African inspired interior decoration.  

Here is a list of our favorite local stores in Buffalo where you can pick up some of the items mentioned above. 

Global Chic  242 Grant St, Buffalo, NY 14213

Global Villages 216 Grant St, Buffalo, NY 14213

Saibo African Imports 77 Allen St, Buffalo, NY 14202

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