Interior inspiration from the House of Dior

Love grey?

There is plenty of interior inspiration from The House of Dior in London.

20 different sculptures are placed around the store and all are amazing, 

ranging from art work, pieces of furniture and lighting.

Light fantastic!

Out shopping this week I noticed this gorgeous chandelier.

I love how some of the shades aren't straight and some bulbs are out.

How you can make or break a room

Accessories can make or break a room.

Hunt down great accessories to make a feature and talking 

point in your home.

I love this robot light, I've never seen one like this before.

I want one!

It's perfect for a child's room or study and is great

for industrial styling.

A-Z Art Deco style

U - Uplighting

Create an atmosphere with stylish uplighting.

V - Vanity

Add a glamorous vanity unit to your bathroom.

W - Woven

Use Lloyd Loom furniture to achieve the classic look.

X - X-rate flapper

Rising hemlines and bobbed hair gave the flapper an independent and reckless attitude.

Y - Yellow daisy cocktail

A classic cocktail.

Z - Zebra

Being black and white the zebra pattern is an interiors hit.

A-Z Art Deco style

G - Go for glamour

Use colour to add glamour to your decor.

H - Hollywood

Take inspiration from Hollywood to add great lighting to your scheme.

I - Iconic interiors

Mix up your interiors with sharp lines and curves.

J - Jazz

Use elegant Jazz artwork in your scheme.

K - Key prints

Use geomatic wallpapers and fabrics, play with colour.

L - Liner chic

Look to the ocean liners for opulence and inspiration.

M - Monochrome magic

Graphic black and white never fails to make an impact.

Lighting inspiration

Don't forget to look up when you are out and about otherwise you will never notice the beautiful lights and chandeliers.

There are so many different styles around, all providing inspiration for your own home.

It would be rude not to ......

Who can resist a visit to Laduree when in Harrods?

Apart from the delicious and beautiful sweet treats available its great to see the amazing decor too.

Their displays and lighting in here are just amazing!

HOW TO HIBERNATE IN STYLE THIS WINTER

A cold January is ideal for two things: hibernating and winter-proofing your home. By that, I don’t mean braving face-numbing winds to ‘batten down the hatches’ but rather taking the time to tackle those interiors amendments that you’ve been meaning to focus on. To help, we’ve put together a selection of the cosiest winter warming furniture and accessories to make your home fit for hibernation

Starting small is a good idea for those who are dipping a toe in the interior design pool. When it comes to colourful cushions, there are no faux pas and all that matters is that you choose something you love. These plain velvet ones (below) are wonderfully easy to chop and change with 25 colours to choose from. On top of that, there are more shapes and sizes than you’d think, so do be bold and embrace the idea of mixing and matching.

Rich, jewel coloured shades like purples, dark reds, oranges and pinks are excellent warming colours but also work as lifting and brightening options in the summer. Cotton velvet is a wonderful texture and so these are as comfortable as they are colourful…definitely not the sort that you feel you need to move before you sit down. Create your own set with two large cushions behind two smaller ones in different colour and prop them on a bed or sofa for an instant finishing touch. If you fancy something new, simply change the covers and enjoy a whole new scheme.

Of course, cushions and pillows need homes and a different texture looks simple and smart. Our second choice is a pair of early 19th-century beechwood fauteuils (above), upholstered in a soft pale-blue fabric. These chairs have delicate guilloche detail on the seat frame, so are elegant enough to have in a drawing room but are also subtle enough as bathroom or bedroom additions. Natural wood is wonderful in all its forms and beechwood in particular is soft and works with a multitude of fabrics. Dress these up for colder evenings with dark-coloured cushions or a faux-fur throw and an antique becomes a snug armchair.

Winter wouldn’t be winter without a roaring fire and updating your fireplace can transform the look of a room. If you’ll forgive the slight plug, Jane Churchill has designed two classic and beautiful fireplaces. The Ebury is elegant and understated; simple in its design but with delicate acorn and oak-leaf carving, whereas The Coral (above) is slightly louder. Bianco Avorio limestone is a little rougher in texture and so lends this second fireplace an antique look. The coral pattern comes from fabric weavers in Northern India but doesn’t make The Coral too overly ornate. Both are pale marble, so will fit nicely in either a period or contemporary home and will work with antique furniture as well as more modern pieces.

Even when not in use, fireplaces can add a little grandeur and homeliness to a room; drawing rooms are an obvious choice but fireplaces can really work well in kitchens and bedrooms. A blocked chimney can still entertain a decorative hearth, with log baskets or DIY wine storage in a kitchen and a period fire grate or fire basket filled with decorative objects in a bedroom. Keep walls neutral and wallpaper plain and use bright lamps or frames on the mantelpiece for accents of colour.

Speaking of bright adornments, lamps are now bigger and brighter than ever before and a colourful lamp base can give a brilliant lift where it’s needed. Shades of turquoise, green or fuchsia are great if you’re of the opinion that bigger is better while yellows/golds and blues make excellent table lamps. Large urn lamps with big colourful silk shades are better in pairs on a hall table, for example, whereas smaller, slimmer ceramic lamps look good hidden among photo frames on round tables or on console tables and desks. The only thing to get right is the shade carrier, so it’s worth experimenting to get the height absolutely right.

A combination of the above will ensure that your home is warm and inviting, even in the coldest of winters. So light the fire, sit back on your velvet cushion and read by the light of a colourful lamp.

Source: Letty White-Spunner

12 Key Decorating Tips to Make Any Room Better

Get a great result even without an experienced touch by following these basic design guidelines

I hate to break it to you, but designers don’t follow a secret rule book. There are no hard and fast laws governing what we do. We are creative types by nature and love to imagine, dream and explore, following our intuition. That said, there are some rough principles that guide us to ensure a great result every time. They are just tried and true things that work. And these aren’t tricks or skills that take years to master. Anyone can do them from day one. Consider this a foundation for developing your own quirky, creative, rule-breaking intuition. 

White T Design

1. Pick the paint color last. 

I get calls all the time from homeowners who want to pick a paint color before they move in. I get the logic. Why not arrive to walls with a fresh coat of paint? Of course you can do it this way, but in my opinion it’s not ideal. 

There are thousands of paint colors with various tints, tones and shades. And each one looks different from home to home, because light sources vary, meaning what looks good in your current home might not in your new one. You want the color that best complements your upholstery, artwork, rug and whatever else. You can pick that color only if your stuff is actually inside your home.

2. Give your furniture some breathing room. 

Resist overcrowding a room. Gracious living means space to maneuver with ease. This is really great news if you are working with a tight budget. You don’t need to fill up a space with lots of furniture. Spend more of your budget on fewer but better-quality pieces, and your room will look better than if it’s stuffed to the gills with flea market finds. The high-backed chairs shown here, for example, stand out because they don’t have to fight for attention.

Nest Architectural Design, Inc.

3. Hang artwork at the right height. 

Galleries and museums hang artwork so that the midline (center) of each piece is 57 inches to 60 inches from the floor. (The average human eye level is 57 inches.) And you should do the same.  

In a room like this, where the ceilings soar, there might be a tendency to hang the art higher. But remember: It needs to relate to human scale, not the structure’s scale.

If you’re not sure, take a picture. It’s remarkable how much a photo can reveal. Print it out or use Photoshop or an app to draw on the photo. This can give you a sense of whether a larger or smaller piece of art is needed or a tall plant might be best to fill a vacant spot. 

KDW Home/Kitchen Designworks

4. Know how to arrange furniture on a rug. 

There are basically three ways you can arrange furniture on your rug. 

All on: The rug is large enough to place all of the furniture legs on top of it. This creates a more luxurious feel. For this, bigger is better. Just be sure to leave at least 12 to 18 inches of floor surface on all four sides of the rug’s borders. 

All off: If you have a small room, keeping all legs off the rug is a great cost-effective choice. You don’t want to pick too small a rug, though, or it may look insignificant, like an afterthought. The rug should appear as though it could touch the front legs of each of the seating pieces. This approach is best suited when you’re layering a pattern over a larger solid or textured rug.

Elizabeth Reich

Front on: Put just the front feet of all your seating pieces on the rug to tie the arrangement together visually and create a well-defined space while lending a feeling of openness. 

Blackband Design

5. Resist the urge to be too theme-y. 

For example, the Cape Cod look is a very popular request. You know the hallmarks: beadboard, a blue and white nautical palette, some sailboat paintings. But this has been done so many times, it lacks individuality. In this room the coastal vibe was achieved through a palette, artwork and materials that give the effect without drawing on the obvious clichés.

OLighting

6. Create a focal point. 

There are leading roles and supporting cast members in any production. The same holds true in design. Choose your star and make it the focal point to anchor a room. Allow other items to take a secondary role. Don’t ask everything to have a leading role; it will just result in visual noise. 

Your focal point might be a dramatic hood in the kitchen, a mantel and art piece in the living room or a headboard in the bedroom. Whatever it is, choose something that will draw attention. In this room the fireplace and the lighting work together as a collective focal point, bringing your eye right to the center of the composition and anchoring it there.

Julia Cutler Interior Design

7. Consider sight lines. 

Your focal point should be free and clear from one room to the next, so that it feels like you’re being drawn between them. That’s why the best spot for a focal point is usually directly across from the entrance to the room.

Jamie Laubhan-Oliver

8. Edit your collectibles. 

Don’t hang on to a piece that just doesn’t fit. I don’t care if your great-aunt Sally gave it to you. If it’s not working for you, then find a new home for it (maybe in a different room).

The unifying theme here is the use of black in the utilitarian pieces. The balance is almost perfect. It reminds me of something Coco Chanel said about accessorizing: “Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off.” In design, know when to stop.

What to Let Go and What to Keep

Sutro Architects

9. Vary the scale. 

What looks good in the store may look like an elephant in the room when you bring it home. Or it’s too tiny to be of any significance. So always vary scale and proportion. 

The oversize sunburst mirror frame fills up the wall space nicely here, while the sand dollars make an interesting grouping below. They would be much too insignificant individually. Threes and fives make for more pleasing arrangements than even numbers.

Gast Architects

10. Add layers of lighting. 

In this kitchen seating area, the backsplash is lit, the artwork is highlighted and the cabinet interiors are filled with light. One central lighting fixture would not have had nearly the same dramatic result.

Professionals build layers of lighting to create interest, intrigue and variety. In a room where everything is lit evenly, nothing stands out. Pick a focal point and perhaps a secondary focal point and highlight those. Add general ambient lighting and some lower lighting, like table lamps, for interest.

STEPHEN FLETCHER ARCHITECTS

11. Be bold. 

Personality is what makes a space great. Make your own statement and have fun. The more you try, the more you will begin to see what works and what doesn’t. 

Incorporate unexpected elements for drama. The unconventional ottoman seats, library-style bookshelves and oversize chandelier here are all unexpected in a conventional living room, but the result has charisma. Eschew expected pieces and interpretations if you want a room that will really wow.

sarah & bendrix

12. Ignore all principles in favor of creativity. 

Having some guidelines gives people a good starting point for furnishing and decorating their home, even if some of them aren’t practical for a particular space.

Go with something personal that makes you smile and, above all, is comfortable. Overly designed rooms don’t really translate in modern life. A pillow collection and an art arrangement that are seemingly haphazard, as shown here, create a dressed-down look with plenty of style.

Source: Judith Taylor - http://www.houzz.com