All in Interior Styling
This year has certainly been like no other, and a compromised Christmas is something we’ll all have to contend with when it comes to socialising and (the lack of) house hopping this year. But this same, minimal formula need not apply to your dining table, nor the joy in celebrating the festive season.
For a while now, I’ve wanted to create my own magazine pages, curating what I believe to be an important mix of items, and showing how my love for the fashion, colours and shapes that I’m drawn to has a direct influence on my home interior choices. And I think what we see on the catwalk, guides a lot of us when it come to interior design.
This year, Christmas might look a little different and yes, we’ll need to toast it on a much smaller scale, but it’s by no means cancelled.
Our physical environments have a huge impact on our mental health and wellbeing – which is why it’s so important, now more than ever, to cultivate home environments that support us to feel happy, comfortable and secure.
Velvet is my personal fabric of choice, and it’s currently everywhere. Donning cushions, curtains, upholstery, stationary, handbags and even jewellery, the fabric that was once the preference of grandmas UK wide, has now become a designers go-to texture.
Copious amounts of flowers require the need for multiple vases and vessels to display them in. I have an obsession with vases and I’m always on the hunt for shapes, colours and textures that are a bit different, so here it is! Your next instalment of Damn Cool!
Discuss: Why not create the ‘set’ of your liking by buying separates, instead of what the buyer has pulled together for you? We buy separates for our wardrobe all the time so why not apply the same thinking when buying for our home, after all, we’re ‘dressing’ it for ourselves! So let’s add our character and individuality.
When artist, maker and creative producer, Sally Gilford asked me if I’d like to photograph her cushions in my home, I jumped at the opportunity. Shooting these sumptuous colourful creations amongst my own favourite pieces was absolute play-time and it gave me the opportunity to learn about each pattern and exactly where they derive from.
With flexible working becoming more opportune, and in a lot of cases mandatory since the Covid outbreak, we’ve had to evaluate how and where we set up our work stations each day in order to concentrate, be comfortable and most importantly, able to disconnect from it all when ‘leaving work’. So where possible, it pays to have a designated area at home that’s set up specifically for work.
So, ‘Do You Like Good Music’? I have a print in my bedroom with these opening lyrics from the track Sweet Soul Music by Arthur Conley, and it got me thinking about the importance of music and how what we listen to influences our design aesthetic.
I always loved this feature in Vogue magazine which sadly they no longer publish, which was all about buying well and investing in a few key pieces that stood the test of time, then importantly mixed and matched with affordable bits to freshen up the wardrobe for that season. I follow this concept for the home.
And now as I’m flicking through the current magazines and researching what’s new in my favourite stores online, we’ve arrived at an object that will remind us of walks along the beach, holidays and souvenirs, yes the new micro trend is shells.
I think you know that you’re destined to be a stylist when you enjoy the faffing part of taking the photo as much as the actual photo. Well, its way more than just ‘faffing’ isn’t it? Its researching, planning, sketching and listing the images you want by the end of ‘the shoot’.
The prospect of refurbishing this chair has been looming over me for so long. When furlough came along via lockdown, I promised myself that I’d use the time to finally tackle it and start ordering the paint and fabric samples that I’ve been threatening to do for years.
Collecting art, prints and generally anything that can be flaunted on your walls is an ongoing hobby for those of us who love it. I truly believe there’s no hard stop to the amount of art that you should display in your home.
