I’m an avid skier and had the good fortune of staying in some great places at Whistler, BC (the first example below is one such place). I also happen to love the chalet interior style in the right setting such as on a mountain. The chalet is typically a vacation home but some people live in a chalet-style house year-around; I get the appeal because it’s a beautiful style when done right.
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While rustic chalet style is common, the examples below include a variety including contemporary takes not the chalet.
1. Whistler Mansion Chalet (We Rented this Incredible Ski Chalet
I’m kicking this off with the finest house we’ve ever stayed in (we rented it via Whistler Platinum Rentals). It’s a mansion chalet located in the luxury neighborhood called Kadenwood in Whistler. This hood includes a private gondola into Creekside village. Yeah, you read that right – you get your own private gondola. The living room as you can see is classic chalet style but without being overly rustic as many are (not necessarily bad, just different). As an aside, this house includes a pool with amazing views (not a whole lot of houses in Whistler have a pool).
2. Classic Rustic Chalet
Here’s a sumptuous living room in the Villa Casa Nova in Park City, Utah. This particular living room oozes a luxurious rustic design throughout (it’s a huge chalet coming in at over 12,000 sq ft). Seriously, check out the entire house here to see one of the finest ski chalets ever built.
3. Modern Take on the Chalet Style
Next up we swing in the opposite direction with a modern take on the chalet interior. This is a ski chalet home designed by atelier BOOM TOWN. It’s a minimalist interior with chalet elements throughout. There’s the classic cathedral ceiling, wood-burning stove and the requisite mountain view. I included this example in our chalet gallery to illustrate that the chalet design has evolved.
4. Contemporary Chalet Design in Spectacular Utah Ski Resort Mansion
So far you can see I’ve gone beyond the typical chalet style (I’ll return to it below) but I love this contemporary take on the chalet home concept. This living room is a particularly interesting example with angled, large sectional, multiple ottomans and a large round concrete fire pit. It oozes cozy chalet design but with a contemporary twist. You can see this entire house here (it’s incredible).
5. Small Chalet Home with Cozy Living Room
This quaint chalet designed by Chevallier Architectes is located in Chamonix Mont-Blanc, France. It’s a cozy yet beautiful “work of art” chalet combining wood, metal and glass throughout.
6. Single-Story Timber Frame Chalet
Look at that beam-work! Stunning. It’s a work of art as is everything about the interior of this single-story mountain home. With overstuffed furniture, large ornate coffee table, soaring fireplace with stone work and of course the intricate timberframe design. See this incredible home here (it’s worth a look).
7. Living Room with Actual Tree Trunks as Suppor Columns
It doesn’t get much more chalet than this – a living room replete with actual tree trunks as the beams. Obviously, this is a well-planned interior but with all those round tree trunk beams you could imagine some lumberjacks just built this house as they cut down the trees. It’s a terrific chalet example. See more of this home here.
8. The Coziest Chalet Living Room I Ever Did See
Is that not the coziest chalet living room you ever did see? It’s tiny but offers all the luxurious chalet living rooms offer – rich wood, overstuffed leather furniture, stone fireplace, a fascinating wood chest coffee table next to an entry with a front door that looks as if the wood was planed on-site from a felled tree (via Architectural Designs).
9. Elevated Chalet Style Living Room Design
Rustic? Yeah, maybe a little. Elegant? Yup, definitely some elegant aspects to it. Contemporary? Yeah, it offers that too. The above by Wade Design Architects is a fascinating chalet living room with the elevated sectional, charcoal gray fireplace, exposed wood ceiling and then a ladder leading up to a loft area which is a classic chalet feature. I like to think of this example as an elevated chalet living room.
10. Glam Chalet Living Room
Wow, what an interesting mix of styles we have here. I call it the glam chalet. Not full glam. Not full chalet but a mix with wood yet pink feminine furniture. There’s the slender round fireplace off to the side sitting on rustic dark hard wood. What a clever and impressive result by ARS-IDEA Interior and Architectural Design.
11. Top-Down View of a Classic Chalet Living Room (from the Incredible Chandelier)
If you ever wanted a view of a classic chalet-style living room from the peak of a soaring ceiling, here you go. Plenty of overstuffed seating around a large fireplace on rustic hard wood floor with soaring windows offering an incredible view. This rustic mountain home was designed by ACM Design Architects.
12. The Refined Chalet Design
This is a close look at the living room that has a tall textured stone wall that houses the fireplace across from the wooden coffee table on the patterned area rug. See more of this home here. Source: Architectural Designs.
13. The Nearly All-White Chalet Living Room
The living room has a tall ceiling with an indoor balcony looking over the gray sofa set and dark cushioned coffee table across from the mosaic stone fireplace. See more of this home here. Source: Architectural Designs.
14. The Rambling Family-Oriented Chalet Living Room
The above isn’t particularly striking in design but I included it because this is an example of the reality of most vacation homes and that is it’s a bit eclectic with furniture selection. You can tell this is a well-used space which is a refreshing take on any room. See more of this home here. Source: Architectural Designs
15. The Window vs. Fireplace Encountered in Many Chalet Living Rooms
This particular chalet living room isn’t spectacular but it illustrates a design dilemma so often faced and that is whether to orient furniture around the large windows or the fireplace. This is an example that does both – maybe you hate it or maybe you love it. One thing I’m sure you’ll like is the layout of this house by Donald A. Garnder. See more of this home here. Source: Donald A. Gardner Architects.
16. Classic Chalet Design
The large living room has a set of red leather sofas, armchairs, and ottomans across from the stone fireplace. These are then complemented by the large glass wall on the far side. See more of this home here. Source: Architectural Designs
17. The Ornate Chalet Living Room
This is a close look at the living room that has a large mosaic stone fireplace on one side and a large glass wall on the other that brings in natural lights for the brown leather sofa set and wooden coffee table on the patterned area rug. See more of this home here. Source: ZillowTM Listings / Zillow DigsTM.
18. The GRAND Finale Chalet Living Room
I’m ending with one of my favorite rustic style architects and that’s Locati Architects. Locarti is synonymous with rustic and chalet style. The above is a perfect example. Seriously, go check out this home here and visit Locati Architects here.
Related: All Mountain/Chalet homes | Mountain/Chalet Kitchen Ideas | Mountain/Chalet Dining Room Ideas | Mountain/Chalet Primary Bedroom Ideas | Mountain/Chalet Primary Bathroom Ideas | Mountain/Chalet Foyer Ideas | Mountain/Chalet Landscaping Ideas
