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personality
How to add personality to your kitchen
The kitchen is the engine room of the home and like many of you I’m sure, we spend most of our time as a family in the kitchen. In fact, that is one of the main reasons we wanted to switch the rooms around last year – it didn’t make sense us all cramming into […]
This is the final post in my series on the Seasonal personalities and the Psychology of colour. Time to take a look at Winter! Take a look at the winter landscape and it almost arresting in its starkness. From the sharpest bright white frosty morning to the eye-piercing blue skies the landscape is powerful and […]
The third post in my series on the Psychology of Colour and the seasonal personalities sees one of my personal favourites, Autumn. Ah, Autumn- one of the most triumphant times of the year when it comes to watching nature in all its colour splendour! From leaves turning into vibrant fiery russet reds and auburn golds […]
The Summer personality for interiors
Following on my series of the Seasonal personalities, next up we are taking a look at Summer. The colour Psychology for Interiors framework hinges on harnessing the energy and natural colour palette of the season and reflecting that in the style and colour palette for interiors. It’s all about creating spaces that evoke a mood, […]
The Spring personality for Interiors
At the very core of the Colour Psychology framework is creating rooms that feel as good as they look. If you are going to create schemes that have a deep emotional resonance- that are a pure delight to be in, then you need to know what works for you. Because we are all so different […]
Are you a Winter personality?
Winter is a season of extremes, from the sharpest frosty morning with piercing blue skies (the kind that makes it hard to drive on the school run) through to those foggish drab flat dull January afternoons which feel like they’ll drag on forever. There is also a real motionlessness to winter. Unlike the energetic styles […]
Are you an Autumn Personality?
When I did a poll on my recent Instagram Stories, the Habitat seasonal room set that got the most votes was Autumn, but only by a smidge! It was actually pretty evenly matched across the four seasons, which just goes to show this really works! No matter what the time of year or what paint […]
Are you a Summer Personality?
Following on from my previous blog post I’m continuing to explore the four seasonal personalities and how colour psychology can be used to help you make powerful design schemes. (If you’re new to colour psychology then you can catch up and read my post here.) So summer…. After all the energy and newness of spring […]
Are you a Spring personality?
As part of my month long collaboration with Habitat I’m going to share a little more about Colour Psychology and why I think its such a wonderful way to help you dig a little deeper and find out your own true authentic style. Its also a great framework to help you work out how you […]
The title of this blog post has the word Winter in it so I know I’m in danger of you skipping straight past it, since we are all clinging into this glorious summer sunshine- but hold on in there. In terms of Colour Psychology this is by far the most popular season with professional […]
Next in my series of blog posts about seasonal personalities is autumn. Now just to quickly recap, I’m exploring the psychology of colour because I think it’s an wonderful tool to streamline the design process. We are literally bombarded with visual stimulus, trends, latest looks, magazines, not to mention the rabbit hole that is Pinterest. […]
Kicking of my series of posts that explore the theory of Colour Psychology and how it can work to help define a cohesive interior design scheme, kicks off taking a look at the Spring personality. In my previous post I talk about what Colour Psychology is and how I’m collaborating with Fiona Humberstone, The Brand […]
So we have it! The winner of 2024 Interior Design Masters and a triumph for colour loving maximalists. It was the battle of the beige versus colour fuelled maximalism and colour won out in quite a kaleidoscopic way! When it comes to interior design, there’s a delicate dance between creativity, skill, and the ability to […]
Spring is upon us and at this time of year I find myself with a natural boost of energy and optimism, and ready to open my home to guests. After a long (and very wet) winter of hibernation the daffodils and birdsong signal the time to be a bit more sociable and with the Easter […]
Well now that January is half way gone (hooray!) , I’m finally getting into the full swing of work. It’s been a rip roaring start to the year and following my annual Vision Board process, I’m happy to report I’ve got my mojo back. Like many of you I work from home and creating an […]
When it comes to decorating your bedroom, this is a great opportunity to really dig in to how you want to feel in a room. It’s common opinion that you should decorate your bedroom in calm, soothing colours that will help you unwind at the end of the day. In order to achieve this you […]
Planning my dream kitchen with Magnet
The time had finally arrived to bring my dream kitchen to life. After dedicating 25 years to working as an interior designer, it was finally my chance to design for myself. Seven years ago, when we purchased our home, we always intended to expand it luxuriously towards the South, seamlessly connecting the house with the […]
How to do Maximalism
Maximalism is the interior design darling du jour. This flamboyant style which celebrates everything I love about interiors has been the darling of Instagram, style magazines, and blog posts for the last few years. I’m a fully signed-up member of the more-is-more club but must admit it’s a rather complex look to nail. How do […]
How to choose a wall mural
I love creating interiors that make a splash, that are bold, brave and head turning. One way to get instant impact is with a decorative wall mural. These are wallpaper designs that make up one complete image rather than the typical drop repeat pattern that you get with traditional wallpaper. Murals have a rich history […]
The best 12 decorating hacks for renters
With more people than ever wanting to bring the joy of pattern and colour to thier homes, i’m thrilled to drill into the creative DIY hack maestro that is Amara from @thepajaamahub Amara is a firm believer in the power of colour to uplift the mood and thinking outside the decorating box to transform magnolia […]
How does colour make you happy?
I’m so lucky that I’ve carved a career surrounded by colour! My own personal preference is a very saturated one which has helped me stand out from an otherwise beige crowd. I am looked upon as ‘The Colour Queen’ and someone who is brave and daring with colour, but it all comes from a very […]
The best statement armchairs
Time to confess that I have a bit of a fetish for a statement chair. They are the one piece of furniture that can sum up your style and state what exactly your look is in one piece of furniture. I think (hope) you will have all got the memo by now that the three-piece […]
It was an absolute pleasure to work with Julie and help bring her tired and dated Victorian cottage by the sea up to speed with her personality which is full of va-va-voom! Inspired by Julies love of her courtyard garden and the Victorian Architecture of her garden, I proposed blending Moroccan Riad with Victorian Orangery. […]
So here we are at the nearing the end of the twelfth series of The Great Indoors and do we have a treat in store. But first, a huge thank you to Geberit for supporting the series and do head on over to geberit.co.uk for oodles of bathroom inspiration and planning tips. On today’s show, […]
The end of another series of the Great Indoors podcast is here and to celebrate we recorded this episode at Kate’s house, which I haven’t visited in over a year! I think the excitement got to us a little – lots of giddy laughter to be heard on this one. We are also, so delighted […]
What is Colour psychology for interiors?
Colour causes emotion. It’s energy light waves that hit our retina, send signals to the brain and boom. We feel it. But…and here’s the exciting part, we don’t all feel it in the same way. So, it follows that understanding your own unique relationship to colour is fundamental in creating a home that supports you […]
We have a rather special episode of the Great Indoors this week and here you will find my show notes and gorgeous pics to support the show and don’t forget you can listen to the full episode here. We just managed to squeeze this recording in before lockdown no.2 and I’m so pleased we did […]
This is a very exciting episode, not only does it kick off series 9 of the Podcast but Kate escaped London to visit me in the country for a tour of my newly decorated abode. It was so lovely to be able to record in person and not confined to our duvet dens, struggling with […]
Hello and welcome to my show notes for the penultimate episode in the 8th series of the Great Indoors podcast. We’re still recording remotely via our duvet dens but there is a promise to get out soon! A huge thank you to our sponsors Neptune and our producer Kate Taylor for making a wonderful episode […]
Hello and welcome to my show notes for the latest episode of the Great Indoors podcast and a huge thanks to Neptune for sponsoring the series. On this episode we are talking all things kitchens and bathrooms, with some great insights from Living etc’s Busola Evans. You can catch the full episode here. The bathroom […]
When our podcast sponsor Geberit asked Kate Watson-Smyth and me to design a bathroom in our signature style, to celebrate their Inspiring Bathrooms campaign, we jumped at the chance! For all of you who listen to the show, you will already know that Kate and I don’t always agree on colour schemes, and this no-holes-barred […]
Welcome to the new series of the Great Indoors podcast and at this time we are so relieved that we have managed to work out a way to record this remotely during this time of self isolation. I’m not going to lie, Kate and I struggle with the technicalities of recording under our duvet’s (it’s […]
DIY SOS Bromsgrove reveal
DIY SOS: The Big Build is the BBC’s flagship home renovation programme and I’m so thrilled whenever I get invited to design for them. The show has been running for 20 years, and attracts up to 5 million viewers per episode in its prime time slot on BBC One. It’s won a stash of TV […]
Whenever everyone’s colour card favourite, Farrow & Ball, launch new paint colours I’m always keen to find out what’s in store as I know it will be a treat. Their ability to make colours that look effortlessly chic in British homes is simply breathtaking and I take my hat off to them. They deeply research […]
So here we are at the penultimate episode of the fourth series of The Great Indoors and a big thank you to Topps Tiles for sponsoring this latest series, it’s been the best yet! If you haven’t already (ahem), you can listen to the full show here and here’s the snivelling bit that Kate hates […]
Last weekend I was invited to host a workshop at Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place festival in Chiswick House in London. It was a glorious weekend, the sun shone down on the yoga mats and everyone there gathered to feel the happy vibes. And they were there in abundance! The main talk stage hosted motivational speakers […]
Colourful kitchens
I think we are all agreed that the kitchen is the heart of the home. Just consider how much time we spend it and how no matter how lovely all the other rooms in your home are, whenever you have people over, they always flock around the kitchen like bee’s around a honey pot! However, […]
What makes a happy home?
Happiness… it’s what life is all about isn’t it? When we really get down to the nitty gritty and ask ourselves what we are doing all this for, it’s basically for that feeling of contentment and wellbeing, not only for us but the people around us too. I’m particularly interested in how our homes affect […]
How to introduce colour in your home
If I have one mission in life it’s to get people to invest in making their homes more colourful because I know it unlocks a happy home. While I appreciate for some people, grey or beige is indeed Nirvana, I refuse to believe that for the majority of people this is true. The swathes of […]
So while Sophie has a well earned holiday in Morocco she has left this post in my capable hands (I hope) I’m Luisa, Sophie’s Interiors Editor. First off, a huge thank you to DFS for their continued support and sponsorship of the Great Indoors, we are all very excited that it’s back for the third […]
My colour crush for this month has been inspired by the spring daffodils that are popping up everywhere in my garden. I’m enjoying bringing armfuls in the house right now and popping them on jugs to brighten up all the corners in my home. This very bright yellow that slices through any colour scheme with […]
Colour crush: Ultramarine
I’m not just currently crushing on this hue; I’ve been having a yearlong love affair with this all things Ultra marine, Lapis, Lazuli and Cobalt. It was the basis of my bed linen collection for The Secret Linen Store, that I launched earlier this year, it’s popping up everywhere in my home. The good news […]
The kitchen is often described as the heart of the home; it’s a place where we can spend the most amount of time so creating an environment you enjoy being in is important. But if your home is anything like mine, it’s more like a war zone! Having your kitchen fully kitted out and renovated […]
Conscious shopping for your home
Buckle up folks! With the biggest festival of consumerism on our doorstep I’m swooping in with a very timely topic; Conscious consumerism. I was recently invited to host a panel debate at an Etsy pop up shop in central London in Covent Garden on this subject and it was fantastic. Now while this isn’t an […]
Even though I protest so much about the dictatorship of trends, and how we shouldn’t feel pressurised to have our homes look any certain way, I must admit that at this time of year I always feel rather thrilled to see what’s been heralded as the next big thing that we are all going to […]
Picking the perfect colour palette for any room is often a daunting task but crucial when scheming a bedroom. As with every room in your home you need to start thinking of the feeling you want to create as undoubtedly this will affect what colour palette you choose. In this post I take you through a […]
It’s Easter and with all things springs it’s a time to celebrate the change of season. I love this time of year, the sunshine comes out of hiding to warm up the soil (and hopefully dry out the mud!) But above everything its an exciting time of rebirth and new beginnings. I love the new […]
How to design an open plan living room
Here’s the latest room reveal from the show house I designed at the current Ideal Home Show. Open plan spaces are often one of the hardest rooms to decorate. How to make the whole space work as one while still honoring the different zones is not straightforward. For example the vibe you want in the […]
This week see’s the launch of a very exciting collaboration between me and one of my all time favourite high street brands habitat. I’ll do everything humanly possible to spread my love of colour and passion for original and authentic interior design, so I almost fell over myself when their PR team reached out and […]
Style your home using Colour Psychology
So how are the new year intentions going! I’ve been overwhelmed with work not to mention the house renovations. What a new years fail already as my main intention this year was not to feel too busy! But with lots of exciting projects on the go I’m not grumbling though. The next few weeks see’s […]
Another wonderful Colour workshop with a room full of colour thirsty creatives was held earlier this month. I was thrilled to host my second Colour Psychology workshop for interiors with the immensely talented and inspirational Fiona Humberstone aka The Brand Stylist. Fiona and I put a huge amount of love and effort into these workshops […]
I want that style: The design process
So drilling down your own look and getting your into your own style groove is something I’m really passionate about. God forbid we all follow trends and become little design auto-bots so I’m always up for helping people get in touch with their inner design guru. So when I was contacted by Hillarys earlier this […]
Last weekend I did a 14 hour round trip to deliver a talk at the Essential Edinburgh Life and Style event. The organisers asked me if I’d talk about what I consider the worst design crimes and well, I had a lot of time to think about it! Here’s my top 13 (because I couldn’t […]
I’m still on a high after launching our maiden event ‘Colour Psychology for Interior Design’ last week, co-hosted with the amazing Fiona Humberstone from The Brand Stylist. It was in London, during a heatwave, in a glass ceiling building, but we made it without totally expiring from the heat. That alone was a minor triumph. […]
This is the second in the series of blog posts about the Seasonal personalities in terms of Colour Psychology. Next up, Summer. The cliché images that spring to mind might be deck chairs, ice cream and a bright pair of Bermuda shorts but when you look at the English countryside in summer it’s a lot […]
DIY SOS The Big Reveal
Gary and Kyle Ratcliffe and their gorgeous kids were my dream family to design for, for my first ever DIY SOS. After they found out that I had been appointed as their designer, they found me on facebook and messaged me to say “GO FOR IT!!!!!!!”. Like I said, my dream clients in every way. […]
It’s no surprise that I’m absolutely fascinated by the rich and diverse world of colour and I’m fascinated how the psychology can provide a framework to pull together colours, textures, pattern and styles that will work together. As a designer it’s something I get to indulge in every day, and after twenty years in the […]
It takes extreme talent and tenacity to make it to the final of BBC2’s The Great Interior Design challenge and finalist Oliver Thomas has it oozing out of his every pore. I first met Oliver at the final of GIDC and while he didn’t take home the trophy he certainly won the hearts and admiration […]
So the new season of The Great Interior Design Challenge has kicked off its fourth season this week and Episode one saw the three amateur interior designers tackle bedrooms in beautiful Regency town houses in Cheltenham. I am totally loving being on the other side of the screen and find myself shouting at the telly. […]
One of the questions I get asked A LOT is how to get a career in interiors. Lots of folk who watch or take part in The Great Interior Design Challenge think that there is only one career path in Interior Design and that that is to become a professional interior designer. But I’m going […]
Most common interior design crimes
One thing that I’ve just loved about The Great Interior Design Challenge has been the opportunity to traipse up and down the country having a jolly good nose into other people’s houses. While we have been to some lovely locations and met the most charming people, but I’ve also seen a fair quota of design […]
I’m totally ditzy about pattern and so wallpaper is my go to when I want a room to rock some serious power dressing. My innate feeling is to always pull towards the bold designs. A really powerful print instantly injects some style and personality into a room and there are so many amazing designs on […]
Ways to display and the Law of Grouping
There’s no better way to add a punch of personality to your room than creating a feature from a personal collection. The one thing to avoid at all costs is a home that looks like it’s ripped from a page in a catalogue. Make your house a home by adding a dash of individuality, a […]
Injecting colour into a room scheme is my all time favourite way to decorate. In my view, an all-neutral scheme is just desperate for a bolt of colour to breath life into it. Take this view to the extreme and your looking at decorating in bright bold colours. ‘Colour blocking’ was a big catwalk trend […]
