Design tips & trends
2018’s Top Decorating Tips
Mixing Wood Finishes:
A little worried about your dark espresso floorboards competing with your timber kitchen cupboards and bleached table? Don’t be – follow the lead of top architects who mix and match all kinds of different timber types, stains and finishes in a room. The ‘collected look’ is far more natural and less contrived than if everything is a perfect match.
Curtains and Blinds Can Be Friends:
It’s more important to consider what will work best for the shape and position of each window than to ensure your entire room has matching window treatments. Try using the same shade or fabric across curtains and blinds to create a cohesive look.
Try Unusual Furniture Plans:
If a living room full of armchairs is better suited to the way you live than a sofa and coffee table, use them. If you’d like a chaise and bookcase in the dining room, go ahead. If it works for you, it works.
When In Doubt, Opt For No Rug:
If you are fortunate enough to have fabulous timber flooring or just don’t like the look or feel of a floor rug – forget it. Some of the best interiors in the world feature bare boards.
Don’t Be Afraid to Mix Styles:
Not too sure about teaming an inherited walnut dresser with the new-designer marble table and Perspex lamps you’ve been coveting? A dramatic mix of periods, styles, looks, and materials is key to creating a personal environment that reflects ‘you’. Don’t worry about what the neighbours think – the most successful interiors are a mix of heirlooms, saved-for pieces, and bits bought from the heart all put together by the same ‘eye’.
