Story by Olivia Lidbury / Illustrations by W Studio

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If you tune into a lot of celebrity home tours or interior design shows, then you’ve surely heard about the trend for “bringing the outside in” (industry insiders have a fancy term for it: “biophilic design”). Which is all very well if you’re building from scratch and have a handsome budget to integrate the natural world into your lounge (it usually involves knocking down walls and installing floor-to-ceiling windows or French doors galore). But what if you’re residing in a fifth-floor walk-up looking out over a fire escape? The simplest way to bring a touch of the outdoors into your home is to come back to the simple question: what would Mother Earth do?

If she were an interior decorator, chances are she’d eschew polyester-blended curtains for an organically grown linen pair of the flax variety, their irregular and crinkly texture contributing to their appeal. Or maybe she’d do away with them altogether; there’s no alarm clock quite like those morning rays of sunshine bursting through the windows.

She’d moodboard equally homespun linens for the bed sheets and pop a jute mat underfoot to root her first thing as she steps out of her slumber. Her sofa would host a melange of trompe l'oeil Living Stone Pillows, and she would daub her walls in warming shades of bone or blush. But hold the toxic paints; it’s all about eco-friendly limewashes derived from crushed minerals (not least because they lend that chalky, cave-like effect).

Tending to some house plants would be next on her list, whether that’s a pot of fresh basil perched on a window ledge near the kitchen, a string of pearls gloriously suspended from a hanging pot and that Insta must-have: a gangly cheese plant. The more the merrier. Unlike artworks or upholstery, this is a composition of the type that you can’t get wrong. More lethal-fingered than green-fingered? It’s in this scenario that dried flowers are the gift that keeps on giving. A stem in a bud vase here, a little posy in a pitcher there; these crispy blooms won’t give you the cold shoulder if you abandon them for a vacation.

Even Mother Earth has inventory to stash, so for storage she’d bookmark beautifully tactile baskets woven in Indonesia and shelving units crafted from cork. Then she’d layer in the ornamental with hand-turned walnut wood containers in spherical shapes and clay water jugs embedded with the potter’s fingerprints. For her, it’s all about slow, conscientious craft.

But perhaps the biggest surprise is that Mother Nature would gleefully indulge in a bit of coastal grandmother vibes; so there’s a riot to be had with recreating a seascape in even the most clinical of bathrooms. Shell ornaments are a go, as are natural coral sponges and macrame wall hangings. Got space for a hammock? She’s given it the thumbs-up, so get rocking. And she’d even see the humor in a live moss bath mat, connecting her deeper to the outdoors as she goes about her ablutions.

Scent, of course, is key in unlocking the barriers between manmade spaces and the natural world. If she’s all out of palo santo, a ceramic diffuser masquerading as — yes, you’ve guessed it, a stone — can step up to the job, scenting the air with carefully chosen essential oils.

If it all sounds painfully earnest, remember that she’d have fun with a little dash of unexpected color. In the same way you’d find a bright red poppy in a meadow or a searingly yellow buttercup in a lawn, she’d echo these surprises from the natural world with a hand-painted ceramic, a sculptural chair or even a lamp shaped like a mushroom. While you can ponder what Mother Earth might do, don’t for a moment think that she’s predictable.

VP Production, Talent: Katie Karole / Digital Director, Talent: Justin Moran / Art, Fashion Director: Malcolm Mammone / Executive Creative Director: Jordan Bradfield / Managing Editor (SBLBT): Laia Garcia-Furtado / Managing Editor (PAPER): Eliza Weinreb / Illustrator: W Studio / Market Editor: Suea Cho / Partnerships: Caitlin Sharp, Bonnie Monk / Web Design: Composite