home: trend [ greys ]

Continuing to be a strong trend for 2017, grey is a familiar safe option for interiors that is flexible and adaptable to your taste and style. It’s a modern neutral colour and especially when the lighter tones are used, it’s easy to compliment and create a homely interior. Although, those braver can make incredible design statements using the darker, richer tones and layering up shades of grey can be very effective.

Visit Pinterest, and great sites like ApartmentTherapy.com for inspirational guides.

Importantly your shades have to sit next to each other. With greys coming in warm, cool and varying Pantones, it’s worth having material swatches or paint samples when choosing pieces for a room.

A good base is to start with a wall colour and the main piece of furniture – like the sofa.

We love the (pictured above) Made.com Scott sofa (£999) matched with Farrow + Ball Railings almost pitch black grey. To this you can build on with soft furnishings, maybe using highlights of a blush pink or copper. For a clean, less bold approach use lots of white with grey to lighten and soften the look.

Above : choosing your shade of grey

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(Top image guide)

Clockwise from left :

Chair / Louis from Maison Du Monde £209

Wallpaper / Fiori from Cole & Son £90

Lamp / Lyss from Habitat £20

Armchair / Orson from Made.Com £349

Cushions / from a selection at Next

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Sources / Pinterest • ApartmentTherapy • and styling by Marie Ramse

home: made [ garden pot design ]

It’s May and the sun is beginning to make more and more appearances, so it’s definitely time to think about brightening up and bringing a new look to the garden. Think about current trends or colours that you’d like to incorporate into the garden and then you just need the paint and pots.

Decorating cheap plastic or ceramic pots is an easy way to update the garden time and time again.

Head to diy or craft stores for paint or spray suitable for outdoor use and explore Pinterest for pattern or colour ideas.

Including: MakeItLoveIt tutorial design (top left)

High street stores including Wilkos and any of the pound stores are great for getting basic plain pots and planters. For a better finish ensure cleaning the pots and a light sanding if old and tarnished to create the perfect base to design on. Set yourself up with outdoor primer, exterior sprays or paints and use a exterior varnish or lacquer to ensure a long lasting finish. Use masking tape or stencils to create modern designs with geometric influence, typography or embrace the popular dip/drop styles. And if you make a mistake it can simply be painted over.

For tips, guidance and advice head to CraftsByAmanda , PracticallyFunctional , TheCraftedLife and Diary Of A Mad Crafter (featured in top picture), Make It Love it (featured in second picture) or CountryLiving.

home: event [ ceramic painting ]

Not to be missed, this great workshop at Heals, London, with ceramicist Amanda-Sue Rope gives you the opportunity to create a painted set of four coasters for just £25.

THIS WORKSHOP IS AN INTRODUCTION TO CERAMIC DECORATION; HISTORY, TECHNICAL SKILLS AND PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE.

Ceramicist Amanda-Sue Rope comes to Heal’s for an exclusive workshop. In this class she will teach her techniques for decorating pottery, and guests will paint a full set of coasters which they can collect from Heal’s after firing.

Amanda has prepared a set of 4 different ceramic coasters for each guest, made from white stoneware, red stoneware, grey stained clay and porcelain-slipped clay.

You will be introduced to different approaches to paint application including brush, sponge, stencilling and splattering. Amanda will discuss how to create a coherently designed set, and show examples of different methods of paint application and decoration across different makers, cultures and time periods.

Heal’s Tottenham Court Road

Sunday 23rd April, 12:00 – 14:00

£25

home: trend [ raw white ]

The most tranquil of settings, the purest of environments – controversially thought to be sterile and clinical, all white interiors are calming, beautiful and warm if done with quality pieces, textures and detail.

Raw white, in a matt finish, is modern, clean and pure. It may not be the most practical in furniture but choose leathers, plastics or wood which are easier to wipe clean. White painted walls can be regularly touched up as the simplest paint is to use high street affordable favourite Dulux brilliant white, although we love Farrow and Ball ‘All White‘ for its great finish.

Enrich the raw white look with textures in the furnishings. Lace for curtains, long and drizzling in puddles on the floor (IKEA Alvine Spets are made for even the biggest biggest windows), ruffles and knit in cushions and throws, and smooth matt finishes in vases, lamps, dishes and table tops. Ensure all details stick to the white palette for the strongest look.

Even kitchens and bathrooms can be beautiful in all white. Vary tiles in size and style but all in white, matt worktops or counter finishes, handle-less cupboards to keep minimal and design in open shelving (and doored cupboards) and pile up endless white ceramics and glassware for detail and texture.

1 Dynan Shelving / IKEA £80

2 Vienna Sofa / Dwell (Now) £699

3 Kura Lampshade / Habitat £60

4 Alvine Spets Curtains / IKEA £10

5 Satin Cushion Cover / H&M £7.99

6 Hexagon Tiles / Tons Of Tiles 94p p/t

7 Sweep Floor Lamp / Made £99

8 Shianti Bed Linen / John Rocha at Debenhams from £50

home: made [ books ]

Often we have great ideas but don’t always know how to translate them into our homes. Whether it’s home decor ideas, colour options, diy projects or just the need for general inspiration, there is a book to help.

We have picked some of our favourites including basic diy techniques, the best ways of using plants in the home and a paint colour guide.

Clockwise from top left:

Make a house your home [ £20 ]

Design bloggers at home [ £8 ]

Reinventing Ikea [ £15.99 ]

Hygge [ £12.99 ]

In the mood for colour [ £19.99 ]

Bring the outside in [ £9.99 ]

How to decorate [ £30 ]

Collins complete DIY manual [ £24 ]

House of plants [ £20 ]

home: made [ plant pots and plant stands ]

January is all about new projects and hiding from the cold, and making crafty projects.

Introduce some indoor (or outdoor) gardening to your home but instead of just buying planters and pots – look to use, upcycle, recycle and make your own alternative containers and stands for your planting.

There’s great tutorials from favourites A Beautiful Mess and Brit & Co but there’s lots of easy projects without tutorials.

Search for unusual containers – cups, buckets, tins, old crates, bags or even tea pots. Depending on what you choose to plant your chosen container may need to have drainage holes. Then you can think about creativity with paints, sprays, varnishes or if the item has vintage charm it might look great as it is.

Look at trends in colour and pattern for inspiration and use masking to create designs on the outside – try geometric , stripes or colour blocking. Techniques including drip, dip and ombré may be a little more challenging but have great results too.

Find a collection of great tutorials all grouped together at Cool Crafts

home: trend [ olive green ]

Green is a colour associated with nature, harmony, safety and has a restorative effect. Olive green specifically is traditional colour of peace which is strong evidence that it’s a wonderful colour to use in the home. It’s a great colour to use on a big scale whether it’s wall paint, tiling or a large rug but what is particularly effective is layering up shades of a green and building a strong on trend look with the throws, sofas, cushions, paint on walls – all being in that olive tone. There are various shades of olive so the look can have a tonal variance.

Create texture by using knits, weaves and patterns in soft furnishings all in green and use pewter, warm or dark wood and black in other furniture with metallic highlights in small homewares.

1 Tiling from Bellissimo from £26

2 Hygena Lexi Sofa from Argos £349.99

3 Paint from Wilkos £10

4 Rug from a selection of green rugs from Benuta

home: made [ radiator refresh ]

A great way to freshen up a room and at the same time make a statement is to update an item which would perhaps usually be hidden. The majority of radiators in peoples homes are painted white or perhaps painted to blend in with the wall colour, but this shouldn’t be the case.

Explore some options, whether it’s covering it or painting, turn it into something you want to look at rather than something you don’t.

For painting ideas:

Brightbazaarblog.com

Dontcrampmystyle.co.uk

For covering ideas:

Decoist.com

home: made [ dipped spoons ]

Simple creative projects are great to make personal gifts, are fun with the kids and result in unique items for the home.

Items dipped in paint are hugely on trend right now with stores offering a variety of furniture and accessories with the ‘dipped in paint’ look. Anything from stools and coffee tables to vases and glasses can look great with splashes of colour. It’s an easy way to get highlights of present colour trends into an interior – currently popular is copper, neons and simple monochrome – either black or white.

Start small with an easy project of dipped wooden spoons. All you need is spray or paint, masking tape, a brush and to strengthen to allow washing use a sealing agent like acrylic sealer, shellac or paint in enamel paint instead.

Head to high street kitchen stores, IKEA, or supermarkets for cheap basic wooden spoons.

For simple tutorials try BespokeBride, BrightNest or LittleBitFunky.

home: made [ staircases ]

For a more unconventional idea, a more quirky design idea, we’ve looked into wow-factor ideas for staircases that go further than carpet or plain wood.

A great idea if you have spare tester pots of wood paint or off cuts of wallpaper – there are an abundance of examples across the net, especially Pinterest, for brilliant designs for your staircase using either paint or paper.

Your hallway is important design statement about the rest of the home, being it is the first room visitors see – so why not make a bold look?

We looked around and were inspired by the many ideas for bright colour choices, clashing patterns, blending pantones, using typography, saying something about the rest of the home, all giving a great feel and welcome to introduce ‘your home’. Colours and pattern can be used to liven up a space or brighten a hallway or even each tread could tell a story!

We found some great inspiring features from Brit&Co, Country Living and a how-to from DIYDoctor.
The important thing to start with is a well prepped set of stairs. It’s essential to sand down to a smooth finish, removing any nails, sharp points and excess old paint, and give a good clean to ensure a good surface to work on. Treads should be primed next, to give a good layer for the chosen paint to go on to. Priming can also help even if using wallpaper as it can help to make a smoother surface under the paper. It is key to apply a few thin layers, fully dried in between to create a solid, long lasting finish with paint and with wallpaper the same with clear varnish.

Look online for inspiration, and as it’s a small area – know that it’ll be easy to change in the future if you fancy a different look!

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