How to get the Japanese Look & Feel

• Use screens to divide and conceal.
  
  You can make or buy your own screen. Japanese joinery, which uses no glue, no screws, and no nails, is meant as an element of décor as well as of function. Each joint is made with delicacy and strength.  In traditional Japanese homes the screens are placed on sliding wooden tracks. Attach and staple gun translucent paper to your wooden frame. You can use tracing paper though it might not last that long. You can also paint the frame black or just leave them in plain pale wood.

• Flooring
  
  Flooring should be made of tatami mats. Tatami mats can be quite pricey when bought from shops. You can buy cheap mats and just imitate the look of a tatami mat. You have to pay attention to certain rules when fitting tatami mats. The number and layout of tatami mats can bring good or bad fortune. The mats shouldn't be laid in a grid pattern, as it will bring bad luck. The only time this layout can be used is during mourning. In Japan, shops are designed to be the size of "five and half tatami mats," as this will ensure you have good fortune no matter what kind of business you are in.

• Colour schemes
  
  The colors to be used should be pale and neutral but with accent of red, black, and occasionally yellow and the green of sushi. You could paint a whole room in a crimson red with a lacquered finish. It is suggested that you apply work in a well-ventilated room, lots and lots of varnish or use a special paint.

• Furniture
  
  The types of furniture to be used should be low-level furniture and kept to a bare minimum. For the bedroom, you can either use a futon or just a mattress on the floor. For your tables, you can use low school-type benches on either side of the table. The use of black ash furniture is recommended.

• Lighting
  
  In Japanese homes, a paper is used to diffuse light, giving it a warm glow. To achieve this look, place lights behind your screens. You can't go wrong with a simple white paper lampshade.