How to Nail the Boho Glam Look

You don’t have to choose between laid-back style and high glamour — simply blend the two to create boho glam

Karen WilsonApril 18, 2016

UK based Houzz contributor and freelance property and interiors journalist with experience in both the regional press and national magazines. I've picked up loads of tips from homeowners and experts alike, having visited hundreds of gorgeous real homes across the North of England.

Are you drawn toward the relaxed vibe of a bohemian retro scheme, with its seemingly “thrown together” ambience? But do you also have a magpie-like urge to include glam metallic accessories, luxe textiles and opulent jewel tones? If so, then boho glam, a striking blend of relaxed style and luxurious glamour, is the look for you. Here’s how to combine two design worlds in one very happy union.

BRAVE BOUTIQUE LTD

Pick a peacock chair. If there’s one item that screams 1970s boho, it’s the iconic peacock chair. Although perhaps associated with hippie chicks in floaty floral dresses strumming guitars, this attention-grabbing, fantailed wicker beauty traces its origins to Southeast Asia in the 17th century.

Having bobbed in and out of fashion over the years, it’s seeing a resurgence in popularity once more and is the perfect piece if you want to play with scale and add height to a room that has low-slung seating.

Vuong Interior Design

Combine wicker and sheepskin. Whether it’s a classic peacock, tub or hairpin-leg chair, wicker and rattan seating has an unmistakably laid-back boho feel that evokes the 1970s like nothing else.

This makes it the perfect bedfellow for sheepskin, with its luxe look and equally retro connotations, providing a fail-safe combo that will ramp up the boho glam factor no end. Why not add some edge with a gray or black sheepskin if the usual white feels a bit too ordinary?

Eleanor Baines Photography

Add a bar cart. This stylish vintage cart encapsulates the boho glam look all by itself. Its midcentury styling gives it boho cred, while the choice of material — a glorious gold — guarantees the glam. Now all that’s left is to style it with a fabulously over-the-top cocktail shaker, elegant glasses in jewel colors and beautifully designed liquor bottles.

Turner Pocock

Avoid uniformity. If you have two of anything, whether it’s lamps, chairs or rugs, make one glam and one boho. For instance, this dual room feels so much more informal with an animal print rug (glam) and a geometric rug (boho) to highlight the two different zones.

Swoon Worthy Ltd.

Make room for plants. For an instant boho vibe that will bring your decor to life, add some plants. Pick a specimen with large leaves, such as a philodendron, to make a big, bold statement or, for an instant hit of 1970s nostalgia, opt for a rubber plant, low-maintenance succulents or a spider plant in a hanging macrame basket.

In this living room, the wildness of the greenery is balanced with a luxe chesterfield, sparkly cushions and a marble-topped coffee table.

Design Manifest

Mix in tribal prints.
What makes this bedroom so appealing is the introduction of relaxed boho touches into an otherwise Art Deco-style scheme. The stylish white headboard, with its edging, and the glass-topped bedside table shout glam boudoir, but the elephant cushion and ethnic-print throw bring in a whole new laid-back vibe. It shouldn’t work, but somehow it does.

Honeybee Interiors and Joinery

Make a feature of lighting. Lighting in a boho glam room should shout “look at me” with as many sources as possible competing for attention.

Mix a floor lamp, a colorful chandelier and table lamps together, but just make sure they don’t match! Ornate embellishments, such as fringe and beading, will maximize those boho credentials, while bases with metallic and shiny surfaces will add the glam factor.

Juliette Byrne

Go to town with metallics. Touches of silver, gold, brass or copper will add instant glamour, but they don’t have to be confined to accessories such as lamps, mirrors and picture frames.

Copy this look and use a metallic wall paint to create a stunning backdrop for your decor. Here, the contrasting bold rug, quirky artwork and Moroccan-style brass frette stools provide the boho vibe.

Swoon Worthy Ltd.

Be daring with dark walls.
The moody luxe trend of dark walls is the perfect backdrop for a boho glam scheme.

Here, the mishmash of styles is truly boho — who’d have thought striped and leopard print pillows would work together? — yet it screams opulence thanks to the plush velvet headboard and metallic accessories.

Laura U Design Collective

Steal some Moroccan style. Still not sure where to begin with creating the boho glam look? Pick an exotic destination to inspire you. Morocco is the obvious choice, as its style tenets— bright, bold colors, an abundance of pattern and gorgeous ornate metallic accessories — overlap with the key hallmarks of boho glam.

Start with a beautiful Moroccan-style rug and build up the colors from there. Don’t forget finishing touches, such as radiator covers or panels featuring fretwork that can be painted to tie in.

Tell us: How do you make the boho glam look work in your home? Share your ideas and tips in the Comments.

More: 12 Key Decorating Tips to Make Any Room Better