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…
Pin It Now!

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.
Pin It Now!

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.
Pin It Now!

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.
Pin It Now!

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.
Pin It Now!

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.
Pin It Now!

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.
Pin It Now!

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.
Pin It Now!