mainstreamimages a library of stock images: 2013

Bright new world

All of the interior design trends for 2014 will feature colourful palettes, whether focussing on muted colours or fluidity associated with the blues and greens of water. Pantone’s ‘eccentricities’ palette is vibrant, colourful and encourages a defiance of the established or traditional designs. This spectrum of colours allows an opportunity to experiment, with a sense of playfulness and wit or to combine juxtaposed colours. Lemon zest, green flash, nectarine orange, skydiver purple, rouge red and strawberry ice can be complemented or contrasted to reflect the homeowner’s personality. Monochrome stalwarts can always seek refuge with pirate black or marshmallow white. Please see a selection below…

Bright Ideas

Victoria Whitbread’s design company has had huge success with its range of Pantone mugs, so it’s hardly surprising that her love of colour can be seen all over her South London home – from purple floors to Union Jack tea cosies and pink elephants, it’s anything but drab… View interior feature

Nilsson House

Hans Nilsson, a Swedish engineering consultant and his Swiss social scientist wife Ruth came across a rather run down apartment occupying the upper three floors of an Edwardian townhouse in a leafy garden square in the north London suburb of Primrose Hill. It had been used as a studio for filming and photography, therefore not lived in for years - many scenes from the film Sliding Doors with Gwyneth Paltrow were shot here. It was in dire need of a total refurbishment before it could be lived in again, so Hans and Ruth brought in the dynamic interior designer Mia Karlsson – also Swedish – to apply her idiosyncratic Scandinavian panache and joyful décor to the shabby and tired apartment, thereby turning it into a sleek, colourful and thoroughly modern home… View interior feature

Vive la différence

Moveable coloured cubes, quirky 18th-century reproductions… Who’d have guessed you were in the Loire Valley? Many successful relationships are based on compromise, working around differences with a bit of give and take. But seldom are such adaptations as clearly visible as in the French forest home of Yves Legendre and Micheline Taillardat. When you first encounter the house, deep in the Loire Valley, it comes as a shock. An apparently random collection of cubes clad in pale pink, vivid yellow and grey looms out of the dark leafy woods. Strawberries nestle around the steel poles of the Meccano-type structure that anchors the cubes, sedum and grass grow on the flat roofs and fish-eye round windows glint in the sunshine. Step inside this space ship of a house, though, and despite the yellow walls, it is furnished in a classic and feminine style. A Forties Italian bed sits in the main bedroom and a pair of vintage red-leather armchairs stand up well against the vibrant background… View interior feature

A percussion of colour

At home in the apartment and housing business Pang Christianshavn. Both places bursting with life, imagination and love for interior design, for which Anna-Britt has many years experience - including, set designer at Danmarks Radio. "After 18 years with Danish Radio, where I worked on set design, decor and props, I wanted to live my dream of owning a shop," says Anna-Britt Harding. Ceilings and floors are white and bright and are finely contrasted with all the many colourful things… View interior feature

Casa Chicca, Italy

The interior design of this apartment is the result of the proprietor’s – a young woman from a noble Sicilian family - passion for antiques, furniture from different periods, and for a variety of collectable objects. Her hobby has resulted in a vintage yet fresh style, mixing mid-century designs with 19th century prints, and putting into the blend the occasional contemporary objects in order to maintain a playful, informal look. The living area of the apartment is laid out in a series of spacious, interconnected rooms, arranged in one plane, and offering a stunning visual perspective. These ambiences (two living rooms, a dining room and an office) are delineated by bright colour schemes, yet the wide doorways enable the individual spaces to remain visually connected with each other, echoing the cool marble flooring, which flows throughout, and which is only punctuated by the occasional colourful rug… View interior feature

Salvage loft in an old summer camp

Somewhere between an art gallery and cabinet of curiosities, surrealism and design point you towards Christian Nesler’s home on the Isle of Ré; a former summer camp canteen transformed. A somewhat fortuitous find, several friends purchased the buildings as a collective; Christian chose the kitchen, which was in ruins, a refectory, store room and a cold room. Converting it to an avant-garde loft was the challenge and with graphic elements like the black and white tiled floor, the red couch or the yellow lamp Christian nourishes his art of salvage materials. Assembling abstract compositions where the different materials play and colours create singular atmospheres "Each piece is unique and absolutely not reproducible". Christian Nesler made us discover his universe, his humour… View interior feature

The Ancients

One of the upcoming interior design trends for 2014 will be Greek and Roman inspired themes, a revival of the components from these ancient cultures but with a fresher, new approach. This neoclassical inspired look will feature an overwhelming presence of the ancient warrior modernised to present influences.

Rooms will feature more busts - conventional but current, murals and columns; a return to symmetry to create a balanced, timeless space. This new trend from ancient civilisations also includes an Egyptian revival. Please see a selection below…

Illusions of Grandeur

From the opulent palette to elaborate fittings, such splendour might make one wonder among which rolling acres of countryside this stately home sits. The answer is none. The tiny one-bed flat is the back of a former laundry in Clapham. The flat is the work and home of Tim Gosling, who trained as a theatre designer and, for almost 20 years, worked with the Queen’s nephew viscount Linley before 4 years ago starting his own company… View interior feature

Restoration Drama

An East London Victorian pub was the perfect building for Owen Pacey to convert into a showroom for his reclaimed furniture store. But having also made his home above it, the more beautiful pieces he acquires don’t always linger downstairs for long. The work included raising the ceiling into the frame of the new roof to increase the head height of the rooms on the top floor by 3ft, without altering the exterior profile of the building. "We needed the extra space to make it viable to put the bedroom, dressing room and bathroom at that level," says Pacey… View interior feature

Nice village, I'll take it

When Brunello Cucinelli, the cashmere king of Italy, bought a huge house in a 14th-century hill town, he couldn’t stop there. He had to have the town as well If you had to describe your dream home, it would probably be much like Brunello Cucinelli’s. The cashmere mogul lives in a 17th-century manor house in Umbria, just up the road from Perugia. It’s set in an impossibly romantic 14th-century hill town, which he also owns and which forms the HQ of his business empire. And casa Cucinelli is the dream: flagged floors and vaulted ceilings, 400-year-old charm with 21st-century air conditioning. The house is filled with Renaissance art and antiques, the gardens with cicadas and cypress and olive trees. Terraces lead off every room and there’s even a choice of swimming pools, for goodness’ sake – indoor for winter, outdoor for summer. If Cucinelli weren’t such a nice, sincere chap, you could easily hate him. Or at least not buy his clothes in protest. But it’s difficult to begrudge him his house, because he’s worked incredibly hard for it, hauling himself up from humble beginnings… View interior feature

Theatrical in Paris

Interior architect, Oscar Ono graduated in art history. “From my earliest age, I moved all the furniture around the room in the House of my parents. My mother was “mad”! I think it was my vocation, something innate. I always wanted to do this job, create moods, and express my sense of aesthetics. The sceneries I create are all different depending on the place, its history, and the client.” Once the door closes on the small courtyard in Paris, we enter into his universe, dark but suitably light, intimate and theatrical. The living room takes advantage of the large plate glass windows, and other parts become animated, through the different lamps and spots, that are widely used… View interior feature

House in Somerset

Shortly after the arrival of their fifth child, Damian and Patricia, realized that they needed a place in the country to escape to. They are both professional consultants in the financial industries, and quality time off with their children was important. They soon found their dream - a rambling old manor house in a small village in rural Somerset, along with stables and outbuildings, with lots of surrounding land. It needed a lot of work, including repairing the stonework and replacing the roof of the main house which dates back to the 1600s, and to help them they employed Baldassare La Rizza, an interior designer who had the requisite qualities and quantities of experience, taste, patience, and perseverance to undertake this mammoth project in such a remote location in the most beautiful English countryside. As many of the original features were kept and enhanced wherever possible, and the interiors were decorated in a simple but classical manner… View interior feature

Spring light

The changing of the seasons is always a time to bring changes in one’s life, work and surroundings. The urge in Spring is towards renewal, growth and regeneration; getting rid of the old, tired and cold to make room for the fresh and invigorating, new ideas and inspirations.

This is the idea behind the notion of Spring cleaning and it is an essential factor in Spring interior design for the home. After the heavy, dark and sombre months of winter Spring brings a lightness to the world, both in terms of weight and illumination. Lightness should be the theme of any Spring room. Heavy fabrics and dark colours make way materials that are airy and minimal, such as sheer window treatments. Colours should also be paler hues that reflect and amplify light instead of absorbing it. Cool colours, airy patterns and floral themes will go a long way towards creating a spring feel and will hold up well through the summer months too. The key to spring decor is to bring as much nature indoors as possible, there are endless options as long as one keeps in mind the essential feel of Spring: light, bright, growing, and natural.

Oslo colourful

Dagny Thurmann-Hoelseth is the creative director of Colourful, a Norwegian chain of stores selling their own brand of paints and wallpaper. Dagny is sitting by her kitchen table in her detached house in the heights just outside Oslo, where she lives with her husband Pål and her two lovely girls Stella and Indie. They just finished the house this spring, and moved in with all their colourful clothes and objects. The glamorous blogger, spokeswoman, TV personality and professional, refuses to accept BORING interiors. Some would describe that as a very un-Norwegian, rather unconventional thing to do in Norway; possibly even slightly American - but there you go, that’s Dagny! She has even given her own taste, or outlook on interior design, her very own term 'Scandinavian maximalism'. This is the way she has always preferred it. She cannot think of anything more depressing than grey, and wants people to feel happy upon entering her home... View interior feature

In perfect isolation

Sitting at a table on the sun-bleached deck outside her home on the Norwegian island of Asmaløy, designer Ragnhild Wik is the picture of contentment. Her happy demeanour says it all, but it wasn’t always so – once she was a harried commuter in metropolitan Oslo. “For 14 years I worked in fashion design. My friend Linda Walsøe, whom I have known since we were students, and I would fantasise about starting our own business. Then the time was finally right, and we decided to create a range of porcelain that captured the style and nature of Norway.” When the pair launched Wik & Walsøe in 2007, it took only three years for them to become established as an international brand. But Wik found that she was still spending too long commuting from Oslo to the studio 60 miles south in Kråkerøy, so in 2009 with husband Vegard Øie and their son Lauritz, she set about finding a home in the area, part of a national park dominated by huge boulders sculpted smooth during the Ice Age... View interior feature

On display

Intoxicated by the light and the magical evening glow in Hornbæk fishing village. Pia Dalgaard Saabye loves bright colours and great patterns - both in her work, textile printing and in her family home. "The best is when the apple tree outside our living room window pops out in May you see the light in the different rooms," says Pia, adding: "When the sun goes down the whole room takes on that very special evening glow - you are close to happiness and I'm really glad to have my textiles and art books on display." View interior feature

Unique and ornate style

The Irish interior designer Orla Collins is justifiably well known for the richness and classical quality of her interiors, and this apartment in Kensington is a great example of her unique and ornate style. The dark, rich tones of the mahogany floor in the living area serve as a backdrop to the bright and colourful furniture, arranged around the fireplace. Mixing modern styles with vintage designs, the retro look is further enhanced by the 1960s style mirror on the mantelpiece and the bright red tulip design of the floor standing lamp. Luscious purple flowers – a trademark colour of Orla whose company is called Purple Designs – adorn the coffee table and dining tables. The private rooms are shamelessly opulent; with the rich dark tones of granite offsetting the lustrous steel and glass in the bathrooms, and luxurious bedspreads and sumptuous headboards dominating in the bedrooms. The kitchen is more modern and functional, yet still retaining a sleek and stylish look... View interior feature

Riant Chateau

Riant Château is a luxury residence located in a unique setting facing Lake Geneva and the Alps, built by the famous architects Polak and Piollenc in 1912-1913 on the eve of the First World War. During the Roaring Twenties this ultra-modern attracted personalities linked to the world of cinema and originally included several large apartments for wealthy families and a cosmopolitan clientele seeking discretion. A renovation turned this former 20th Century palace in Montreux-Territet into apartments that still attracts many foreign followers of anonymity. Former hosts include Charlie Chaplin, Alain Delon and Freddie Mercury. The mysterious and invisible entrepreneur who lives here with his in-laws, between sky and lake, turned to the talented decorators Lyon and Dominique Herve Giughese to add the finishing touches to his penthouse apartment. Throughout the day in this beautiful residence with its pure white décor, the changing light brings different contrasts to the pieces, giving an extra life to the choice of the simply furnished with tones of baroque. The light and shadows, sitting on a large roof terrace with the cry of gulls, the sound of the wind, the house offers a variety of environments outside of time... View interior feature

A choice of colours

The first thing they did when moving into their new Oslo apartment, was to paint it all white… ‘We were in such a great hurry with our move, as we were expecting our son Otto to be born any day, and so he arrived the day after we got our keys.’ says Synne Skjulstad. As soon as they had got used to their new arrival and their ever so ‘nice’ nest to bring him up in, they got out their paints and wanted to play… They started off with a bucket of glossy signal-red oil paint and dressed the hallway with built in storage solutions and shelves. Then they moved on to a patch of bright yellow in their Amish dove grey kitchen. These two colour choices and the dominant painting in the sitting room led them to an acute stop in their process. The solution came when trying to ‘’keep up with the Jones’s’’. When at the home of their architect-neighbours Andreas Joyce Nygaard and Heidi Pettersvold they started thinking of their home as having the look of a boring council office! So they asked their neighbours for help with the rest of the colour chart... View interior feature

City Limits

Living in the city may have its limits, but not its limitations. Whether you want to be centrally located nestled amongst cafes, restaurants and shops or you prefer to be up on high enjoying the amazing views of the thriving metropolis, there is a plethora of options for the city dweller.

In contrast to urban warehouse conversions with beams and exposed brick columns there are also small spaces where slick planning and concealed storage utilise every facet to maximise every square meter. Conversions include former banks, shops and even a laundry; the home environment becomes a shared workspace as an artist’s studio or the base for a fashion company. Each home allows the crafting of the minimal, contemporary or vintage, to the eclectic and shabby chic. We have a great range of features in our section Urban Living, here’s a slice of city life…

Renaissance Man

Pauric Sweeney masterminds his luxury bag empire from a buzzing Florentine Palazzo, then cycles to his minimalist family home. Although he is responsible for some of the fashion world’s most sensual and seriously lusted-after handbags, it when you discover that he originally trained as an architect that parts of the jigsaw start falling into place. For a man with such artistic bent, it’s not surprising his studio is in an ancient palazzo near Santa Croce. Parts of it date from the 14th century and the floors and frescoes are original. View interior feature.

Live-Work Space in Berlin

For Berlin-based artist and alternative musician found a former print works with a walled garden proved the perfect place in which to set up home and studio. I put a bathroom in what had been the chemical lab and painted the walls grey. Cezanne had grey walls in his studio…. The peeling paint and rusting metal balustrades at the entrance to the building serve as reminders of its past. View interior feature.

Bohemian Chic

With a mix of the poetic and strange, Tone Dalen’s created small still lifes which seem to move from here to there as the light travels around the room. And yet, she’s done nothing here except fill the place with herself, her things and her art. Not a single square meter has been designed, constructed or refurbished. Things have been placed intuitively as they’ve been accumulated, found, received as gifts or made by herself. 'For me the fun of owning your own apartment is that you can make as many holes as you like in the walls,..'. Tone says that, in summer, when the light fills the apartment nearly all of the time, she removes the visual white noise. However, when autumn has made its arrival and the long period of Nordic darkness is a fact, she wallpapers the walls with pictures again, mixing new purchases with earlier work ... For each season, she makes a new exhibition in her own private gallery at St. Paul’s Place. View interior feature.

Stephan's Loft

Stephan Schulte – an American TV consultant – bought this loft in a former industrial building after seeing it advertised as offering “the largest lofts in London”. Space is, according to Stephan, the ultimate luxury in life. Being a highly methodical and organized person, he naturally laid out the former industrial space in a clear, orderly manner in order to accentuate the open plan style, with the layout of the cavernous space designed around a centrally located kitchen, utilizing the least number of different materials and colours possible in tribute to his inspiration Mies van der Rohe. The design is arranged as a series of ambiences flowing around the kitchen, including a couple of private areas that can be closed off, and there is a restrained variety of materials visible – slate, concrete, exposed bricks, pale oak flooring and glass walls, all brightly lit by the wide windows along each wall. A rigorously restrained yet surprisingly comfortable home! View interior feature.

Retro Fun / Homemade In the Old Town

On their way home from a long day of ‘doing the local flea markets’, Dag and Gjertrud decided to stop at a public viewing of an apartment which was up for sale in the ‘Old-town’ of Oslo’s east side. It was love at first sight for them both in this bright and airy apartment. Despite lowered ceilings, and a recent and fairly unbecoming modernization of the place, they instantly felt the urge to move in restore the apartment to its former glory. Their charming reworking of the interior has provided them both with a sunlit-flooded arena in which to work and live. There is no doubt that the proportions of the rooms in the apartment now back to their to their former stature. The generous space for two, large windows, original cornice detail and even the wood panelling have now been given a new lease of life. Not to mention the patchwork of an old kitchen they have created together… View interior feature.

Penthouse in Albert Dock

The novelist Chris Fowler bought this penthouse when he was looking for a bright and spacious space to live and work. Spending all day working at home, he wanted something which was open to the sky and nowhere could he have found a brighter, sunnier penthouse than this delightful, modern house built above a former industrial building by the Battle Basin in the King’s Cross area. The apartment has an overwhelming emphasis on the colour white – furniture, flooring and walls, apart from the few odd touches of steel grey in the kitchen, oak doors, brown cushions and the occasional bright splashes of colour in the artwork, flowers or fruit which punctuates the space. Undisputedly modern, this sleek apartment captures the essence of open plan, 21st century living. View interior feature.

Modern and sleek in Milan

On the first floor of a spacious and elegant fin-de-siècle apartment building in the well-heeled Corso Sempione in Milan is this stunning contemporary apartment recently refurbished by the architect Stefano Cellerino. Modern, sleek and designed with contemporary materials, art and styling, this apartment also features some recycled items such as the large bookcase in the lounge which was found in an architectural salvage warehouse, as well as in the construction of the dining table, made from old pieces of flooring. Oriental statues impart a particular flavour to the interior, as does the etched figures in the glass door leading to the bedroom area – where are located the master bedroom and open plan ensuite bathroom as well as guest room. View interior feature.

The King has now left the building...

"We've approached the work on our own apartment as a professional project, but one where we can experiment and take anything we like, 'all the way". By doing so, newlyweds Andreas Joyce Nygaard and his wife Heidi Pettersvold have been their own ideal clients. They both work for the prestigious Oslo and New York based architectural firm Snohetta, and this wonderfully orange, perfectly patched work of art is now their own home. The classical turn of the century apartment has been rehabilitated to show off their work, but more than that, it challenges how far interior design actually can be taken in a home environment. And it works!! On the wall in their bright kitchen thrones the King himself. Elvis has been reformatted and framed so everyone can catch a glimpse of him. In an adjacent corner hangs a lightbox fitted with an x-ray of Heidi's rib-cage. The apartment is testimony to the challenge they put to themselves: how to combine the apartments' original features with the constantly expanding framework of their main objective, which is treating spaces as rooms. Every single choice they've made concerning pallette, materials, tactility and form reflect their constant drive to push their own boundaries... View interior feature

Christmas hearth and home

As families gather round the hearth, relatives from distant shores and absent friends all come together to celebrate the joy of Christmas. The festive decorations whether antique heirlooms brought down from the attic, handmade ornaments or contemporary trimmings for a less traditional décor all create a focal point that gives life and colour to our home every season.

Choosing the right one is difficult especially when there is so much to choose from - beautiful wreathes made of fragrant greens, lights twinkling in a multitude of colours, ornaments glittering. A resplendent dining room, a glorious meal in a beautifully created décor are also part of the festive celebrations that add to the merriment, joy and cheer all around. From cookies to the Christmas tree, from the ornaments to the chocolates, there are a lot of ways to display your individual creativity.

Below is a selection of inspirational features, gorgeous homes from Mainstream Images and delicious recipes from Photo Cuisine UK. The extravagance of Christmas never needs justification!

Wearing White and Gold for Christmas

With the cold, but oh so festive season approaching, the owner of this snow-white apartment in Oslo is wishing all her beloved friends a very merry Christmas. However, she's sending neither Rudolf nor Santa a jolly rsvp card this year. Instead, any child in the neighbourhood or young family members may stop by for an improvised Christmas workshop or some homemade cookies at her table. Just about a year ago, Oddfrid, a young designer of cool costumes and accessories for films and theatre in Norway, found herself the owner of a slightly tired and well-worn apartment in the Oslo neighbourhood Adamstuen, painted in various shades of ice-cream. She set out to give the place a Christmas present the likes it had never seen before. Almost single-handedly, she has refurbished this bright and classic apartment so that now it almost seems like an extension of her; with a pure and gentle background allowing for cool vintage finds and stylish details. Given that her daytime job is as a designer and artist, the renovation of the apartment has just been one more outlet for her creativity and distinct style... view interior feature

It has to be white

The classic elegance and splendour of a beautifully presented meal in a timeless setting... view food feature

Homemade Christmas with a Bang

At the Bang family home, Carsten, Gitte, and their two girls, Cecilia 14 years and Sofie 10 had become weary of the stylish Christmas where everything must match. Instead, they have embraced a decor with all sorts of colourful Christmas decorations; which assumes that anything fits together. Now, they use as many different colours and keep things as fresh as possible. When the family prepare for Christmas, they start with gluing, cutting, knitting and sewing at the beginning of November. The Christmas cake, muffins and cake figurines are baked to really get into the Christmas mood and get the taste and feel of Christmas. Cake tasting happens while they make ornaments consisting of hearts, angels, banners, monsters and advent wreaths. Homemade Christmas gifts for themselves, each other and the rest of the family are created. Cecilia and Sofie also make brooches out of small pieces of fabric in various colours, patterns and decorate them with beads. With a lot of colourful homemade decorations, the family and their grandparents have a Christmas more exciting and full of fun... view interior feature

A-Z Perfect Christmas Party

Everything you need to make a Christmas a roaring success. From aperitif canapés, blinis with salmon to guinea fowl, panettone to zucchini bakes an offering of new Christmas dishes... view food feature

Christmas tree, handmade decorations...

Let your senses delight in the cosy rooms of the old Smakkegård where the scene is set with a family of four to celebrate the year's big event, Christmas. The pale wood flooring, white washed walls, the white-painted beam ceiling and small-paned windows provides the perfect setting for the imaginative theme for Christmas decorations from nature, for the Christmas tree, fireplace, cookie jar and not forgetting all the packages that can be found under the tree. The scent of pine and clementines tickles my nose wherever you are in the house and you can hardly wait to bite into the sweet smelling Christmas cookies. It rustles in the red embers in the fireplace and you feel the heat quickly, resulting in apple red cheeks. Let your eyes be captivated by the lush green fir, with its simple and exclusive ornaments that invite one to explore around the tree and investigate each hand made decoration... view interior feature

A chic little Christmas

Traditional dishes with modern accents: seafood dishes foie gras terrine and chocolate, almond and toffee cake YUM!.. view food feature

Christmas Special

This St Albans home of a couple who run a successful mail order business is shown in the throws of preparations for Christmas. Many of the decorations are hand painted or custom made including trees balls inscribed with their children’s names. The dining table is dressed with fine wire trees supporting groups of tiny robins and even the front door is wreathed in lights and festive holly... view interior feature

Christmas from distant lands

Nine recipes to tantalise your taste buds, mouthwatering dishes with an international flavour... view food feature

Tidings of Comfort and Joy

Driftwood decorations, a beach barbecue, gifts delivered by boat: the Biggs family’s festive traditions are inspired by their love of the coast. The family’s love of water brought them to Totnes, on the banks of the River Dart, but within easy reach of the sea and beaches. When it comes to Christmas water plays a big part in the festive celebrations. “On Christmas Eve, we take our rowing boat down river and drop off presents to friends who live along the bank”, says Penny. “On Boxing Day, we like to get out of the house and head to one of the many windswept beaches nearby”. The beach combed treasures that have been accumulated over the years have become a part of the family’s festive decorations... view interior feature

Christmas by the sea

Celebrate Christmas with delicious seafood: seafood filo parcels fish terrines, oysters, whole fresh food recipes and caviar... view food feature

Here's one I sold earlier

When you visit Kally Ellis’s North London home, you’re guaranteed to be impressed by the flowers. Given that she’s one of Britain’s best-known florists, and her company, McQueens, has styled the Vanity Fair post-Oscars party, you’d expect nothing less, but there’s much else to admire too. From the moment you walk through the door and into the hallway hung with convex mirrors, you sense there’s something different about the place. In the sitting room, on one mantel, huge vases are filled with branches from which glass teardrops are suspended. There are unexpected combinations and attention-grabbing glimpses of colour – a flash of green on the front panel of a coffee table and yellow buttons on the sofas... view interior feature

Tonight it's Christmas

An enchanting and festive lifestyle food feature amongst candle light and gold... view food feature

All the leaves are brown...

The leaves may not yet be turning shades of golden brown - and we don’t want to wish away a summer that hasn’t arrived yet - but the seasons do change and the gorgeous hues of nature will soon announce the advent of autumn. A dip in temperature, early morning frosts and that chilly feeling when you first get up in the morning are all signs that autumn is on its way. What better way to overcome any sense of impending gloom than to take a look around your home and celebrate this season rather than let the early dusks and diminished sunlight hours depress you.

The autumn season fills us with a bounty of decorating ideas for your home and these seasonal decors can give your home a charismatic charm. Bright colours and patterned textiles, geometric prints and vibrant accent walls leave us for more muted and understated palettes. If you love the warm and golden tones of orange, brown, beige and green you could re-decorate your whole home; alternatively you could choose to change just one room.

An effective way of producing a transformation in the home is to embellish your furniture, a statement piece such as a sofa or chair add impact or cushions and throws in sumptuous fabrics and contrasting colours to the overall décor will always look effective. New curtains or blinds, a change of lighting, a new rug or cosy blankets and throws, here are some ideas to get you started…

Coombe Lane

An arts and crafts gem dating to 1910, this beautiful house had not been worked on from the day it was built until the new owners called in Orla Collins, a specialist in dynamic and luxurious interiors. The owners wanted a house that “shocks and rocks”, whilst keeping an air of sexy sophistication; as the refurbishment went on they became increasingly adventurous, allowing the flamboyant redhead Orla free rein to unleash her style and imagination. “This house is all about detail”, she explained, “everything was about creating height and drama – dropping floors and expanding windows”. Each room is exotic, dramatic, opulent, and features a variety of strong, bold colours, textures, luxurious materials and details. The main living room with its decorative ceiling is finished in an extraordinarily luscious, deep red glow with in a golden bronze and old silver frottage, the intimate library has a snakeskin floor and craquelure gesso wall along with a dramatic handmade bronze chandelier, the kitchen is state of the art with ebony units and aubergine walls... view feature.

The Greatest B&B in Britain

Sumptuously decorated and embellished with eccentric touches, 40 Winks is designer David Carter’s East End homage to fin-de-siecle frivolity. The result is a glamorous hotel that belies its bijou size. The property, 40 Winks, is claimed to be “the smallest hotel in the world”. Whether this is true or not, the three-bedroom Queen Anne confection (two guest rooms, plus Carter’s “private boudoir”) must surely be one of the most seductive. The house is a fantastical melange of the terribly grand sprinkled with a soupcon of the voguishly shabby; it’s like a piece of living theatre, exuding wit, charm and glamour... view feature.

Adding a Personal Touch

Having bought this Georgian house in good condition some years back, the client now wanted to put her own stamp on it. The brief was to redesign the master bathroom, and redecorate and dress the master bedroom to create a room with plenty of texture, warmth and atmosphere. The children’s rooms were to be redecorated to see them through the next few years, and a family bathroom created for the children and guests. In addition, the client wanted a vow factor guest cloakroom. The double reception rooms on the ground floor were to be re-decorated and dressed to create a sophisticated formal area for receiving guests. Downstairs in the conservatory, the TV room needed changes to maximise its potential and to make it into a cosy family room... view feature.

High Flyers

When you buy an apartment in the Barbican, who better to help you restore it to its former glory than one of the original architects? The fortunes of the Barbican Estate, a huge, brutalist tangle of concrete high rises and walkways on the western fringe of the City of London, have gone up and down more than would seem decent in its brief 43-year history. But its recent refurbishment and a renewed appreciation of its Le Corbusier-inspired design ethos have driven its 2,014 apartments back to the very top of the property hot list. When Kathryn Williams and Craig Allen came to look for an apartment in the 35-acre estate in 1999, it was during one of the Barbican’s unfashionable lows, and there were plenty of places to choose from. These days they rarely come onto the market; when they do, they are fought over fiercely by architects, designers and artists. Williams is head of retail for the furniture company Knoll Studio, while Allen’s career has spanned the Conran Shop, Gucci, Linley and, most recently, Molton Brown, where he was creative director, so they are well aware of the Barbican’s design heritage... view feature.

Thread of History

By interweaving new features with old, designer Michael D’Souza has breathed new life into a 17th-century tapestry works on the banks of the Thames. There are those who say a real home is a place with a past, where memories are made and cherished. If this is so, Michael D’Souza’s South London flat qualifies easily, for it is steeped in history, some of it of D’Souza’s own making, the rest stretching back through the centuries. Once a tapestry works patronised by Charles I. The 17th-century bones of the building are visible in its dark wood, rib-like beams. D’Souza renovated and restored the place, realigning and refurbishing the wooden window frames and shutters and adding a contemporary Alno kitchen. When he asked about replacing the bowing beams in his bedroom, an architect advised, “Leave them be. They’ve been there for over 400 years and won’t be going anywhere fast.” view feature.

Home Art

Bellenden Road in Peckham, south-east London, is fast becoming artists' central. You can't pop out for a pint of milk without bumping into the Royal Academician Tom Phillips, Turner Prize-winner Antony Gormley, YBA Ian Davenport, sculptors John Latham and Sokari Douglas Camp or fine artist Jacqueline Poncelet, all of whom have studio space along the road. To describe Claire’s style of work is as difficult as trying to define the ocean. Her art has a spontaneity that comes straight from the heart and yet is equally concerned with the minutiae of intricate detail. Claire has an unmistakable style and visual language that is completely her own... view feature.

Clayworks Cornwall

Adam Weismann and Katy Bryce are based on the Lizard Peninsula of Cornwall. Their company Clayworks specialises in clay plasters for clients that seek the minimal embodied energy associated with unfired clay, its moisture-absorbing properties, its health credentials...or simply because clay plaster is about as beautiful as a wall can be. Adam, born and raised in the U.S and Katy have worked in the UK. Their inspirations for building with earth comes from living and gardening in Japan, designing and building water gardens and constructing neighbourhood skateboard ramps in his back garden! Katy says building with earth comes from a lifelong love of gardening and getting her hands dirty, and from the fact that cob is at once solid and enduring, yet also outstandingly flexible and forgiving. Having cut her teeth with a decade's experience in cob restoration and new build, they now sell their expertise well beyond Cornwall... view feature.

Beside the seaside, beside the sea...

When living near or right on the beach it is always tempting to bring the beauty of the coastline into your home décor. Beach decorating styles recapture that wonderful feeling of open air, carefree living, sunshine and crashing waves, the mysteries of the sea shore. Reminding you of happy, carefree afternoons spent combing the sea shore and soaking up the sun on a quiet beach…

However, it can be really difficult to implement a coastal theme throughout a room or your entire house, without crossing the line from stylish to tacky. Your use of colour is a really important basis for this style: the choice of colours will set the whole tone, atmosphere and feel for your room. So decide whether you want to go for a jolly, fun beach look or a relaxed, natural, romantic feel.

There are many other ideas to choose from, including rustic, nautical, or seaside pier, it all depends on the emotions that you want your new décor to evoke. Then, even when you come inside, your interior design will allow you to still experience the same feeling that you enjoy out on the beach or the water.

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The beach decorating style is a fantastic style to live with – it is very light, airy and relaxing – where you get a feel of unity with the outside environment. It is actually really easy to do, as well, so read on to find out more…

Flooring
Natural floor coverings really are your best bet when choosing a beach decorating style. White-washed, waxed or stained floorboards are ideal coupled with natural fibre matting. Choose rugs to warm up your look, and add interest and texture to your room. If you are going for the jolly, fun, seaside look, you are free to choose brighter colours and especially stripes for your rug. view images...

Furniture
Natural materials are ideal for beach style furniture; choose rustic-style, chunky wood in a weathered finish. Distressed leather or wood, white painted, or white washed, wood or waxed pine are all good seaside looks. For a lighter look, choose wicker and rattan styles. For upholstery choose neutral cottons and linens, or subtle navy and white stripes. view images...

Windows
A very simple look for windows is the best idea for beach decorating styles. Choose wooden shutters, slatted blinds or simple tab top panel curtains in a neutral cream or white. For a more romantic, light and airy feel, choose floaty white voiles or transparent fabrics at the windows. view images...

Ina's Summer House Retreat

When the experienced interior architect Ina Janine Johnsen created her very own summer retreat on the east coast of Norway after many years of living abroad, she brought some rather foreign ideas back with her to the Norwegian seaside. The family kept coming back to their homeland for their summer holidays. Then, after having spent two weeks at eight different locations during one of their trips back home, Ina realised that the family desperately needed a place of their own. At the time, they were living in London, and while they had just had two little ones, they decided to take back the Norwegian summer.. Since then, they have all moved back to Oslo, and the cottage is now being used as a second home. Today, the wooden buildings are painted in black, but the interiors look more like something out of a Cape Cod landscape, than a basic cabin from the fifties. Ina has also been inspired by American modernistic architecture while at the same time making use of the established Scandinavian tradition of building with wood. The active hostess, who is also a popular food blogger, has created a unique retreat which works on all levels for her family. And next to it, there is the little guest house of course. view feature...

Ocean Colour

This old house of La Flotte that was once a munitions depot has a page in the history of the island. It was the front post at sea, defending the interests of France against the English who had invaded La Rochelle... Since then, this barricade has been turned into a row of cabins, side by side like ramparts looking out on to the beautiful Ré Island. Completely redesigned, the house rises from its past; a monochromatic home with gentle shades of white and grey punctuated with red accents. Roland and Michele wanted to create a space that contrasted their surroundings with its own harmonious nuances; yet the atmosphere remains that of the ocean. The taste of beautiful things, noble materials and curtains, with subdued, light linens; the rooms all have a different charm. Small, they are no less comfortable in this holiday home with the ocean view and multiple nuances. view feature...

Balancine, Guest house at the edge of the sea

On the picturesque Ile De Re a marvellous 18th Century house, entirely renovated, opens its doors to reveal an interior full of charm with refined decoration. In the heart of vibrant St Martin, Balancine was purchased by Roland and his wife Michele who have a passion for interior decoration and adore hunting for antiques. As often in these small villages at the edge of sea, this guest house one of a series where they are all of the same appearance. “As much as possible we preserved the original materials of the beams and floors, but we increased some parts so that they are more luminous.” The interior pays homage to its location and is reminiscent of a boat; antique and shop bought finds live in harmony with rope and netting, as well as vintage fabrics and linens. Admittedly not very large, it is in spite of this very equipped and comfortable, keeping true the original style. view feature...

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