All Squared Away: How to Decorate with Cubes

Aaahh, the cube. There are few shapes as satisfying as the perfect cube to those who appreciate geometry; there’s a reason cubes are so popular in home decor. They’re angular, geometric, and effortlessly sharp; the blocky shape is perfectly balanced by other naturally occurring shapes.

Trouble is, those cubes – like every other good thing – can be overused to the point of abuse, especially in minimalist homes. Fortunately, it’s pretty easy to soften them up; they’re absolutely fabulous when their sharpness is offset by circles, ovals, arcs, rounded edges, and even other angular and abstract shapes.

(To summarize: cubes good. Only cubes bad.)

With that in mind, check out these awesome rooms and fixtures that are the ideal mix of cubic and, well, non-cubic.

Cubes are perfect for seating, storage, and catchall surfaces (can’t fool us, we know that those cubes at the foot of the bed are covered in yesterday’s clothes when you’re not doing a photo shoot). Just look out for those corners!

Bedroom by Amy Lau Design
Living Room by LUX Design
Patio by area design, llc.
Living Room by Streamline Development

But the cube ottoman is not exactly a new concept in design, so start branching out to cubes in the bathroom (that’s a weird phrase), beyond the ice-cube block wall of bygone decades:

Wetstyle M Collection Metro Series Wall Mount Vanity
Italbrass Cube Vanity
Newport Brass Skylar Roman Tub Filler
Terra Acqua Above-Counter Vessel
Nameeks Block Single Hole Tall Basin Mixer
Grohe Euphoria Cube Wall Union for Handshower
Hastings Cube Wall Mounted Sink

Or add cubic style to every room with a cube light fixture or accessory:

Arteriors Matthew Pendant
Dainolite Table Lamp with Crystal Cubes
Arteriors Noel Pendant
Arteriors Edgar Round Glass Bottle with Brass Cube Stopper
Arteriors Luca Andirons (Set of 2)

Which shape is your favorite? Weigh in on the cube (and your faves) in the comments!

yael