In episode 6 of Series one of The Great Indoors Podcast we discuss if we think designer paint is worth the money, we share our pick of new book launches to inspire you and finally how to plan the hallway. You can find out where to listen to the Great Indoors here.

Is designer paint worth the money?

First of all what does it cost…

Designer paint like Farrow & Ball and Little Greene: 2.5 litres of emulsion paint £40-45

Mass manufactured paint like Dulux and Crown: 2.5ltrs of emulsion paint from around £15- £18

Key points:

• Paint is the one of most transformative things you can do to a room so worth investing in.
• We agreed that picking the right colour is key to the success of a room
• Designer paint brands give you a great edit. UK designer paint brands are great at palettes that suit the Northern hemisphere and our blue light. Dulux has over 3,000 colours on offer
• Designer paints have natural pigments that increase the quality and depth of colour
• Designer paint has a softer chalkier feel, although this can mark more easily and needs repainting more frequently so consider the traffic in the room before picking the paint finish.
• Use a large piece of paper to paint your tester pot onto – check out my video here
• Mylands have a finish called marble matt, which has a matt finish, and scrubbable. Crushed Italian Carrara marble is added making it the most durable premium paint on the market (class 1 scrub test).

• Decorators are generally happy with the performance of Dulux
• It’s often hard to successfully match designer paints to the Dulux mixing system, as they can only match a Dulux colour closest on their 3,000 swatch list
• Valspar claim that they will colour match to a colour you bring in however, again the pigments used and finish will be different.
• Farrow & Ball is reputably (word from professional decorators I’ve spoken to)  thinner than many other paint brands and therefore requires more coats, which should be taken into account when budgeting time and money.
• In summary use more affordable paint where the wall colour isn’t so important to the overall scheme and invest in designer paint when a particular colour nuance is critically important.
• If you are on a very tight budget, then it’s not necessary, as the colour choice and performance from the trade brands is good.

 

Our book launch recommendations

Love Colour: Choosing colours to live with by Anna Starmer.

Beautiful musings on colour, great pictures and inspirational colour palettes to kick-start your room schemes.

Sophie says “ The book that I wished I’d written”

Instagram @luminary_colour Website luminarycolour.com Buy the book here

Be Bold: Interiors for the brave at heart by Emily Henson.

Interior stylist Emily Henson shares practical ideas and advises how to use bold colour and maximalist styling in your home. How to mix pattern and colour as well as plenty of unusual styling ideas.

Instagram @lifeunstyled Website emilyhensonstudio.com Buy the book here

Conscience creativity: Look. Connect. Create by Philippa Stanton

Inspirational and practical guide on how to untap your creativity by big hit instagrammer 5ftinf. An essential book to have in your library for anyone needing to remotely tap into their creativity.

Instagram @5ftinf  Website 5ftinf.com Buy the book here

Design Crimes

Sophie declares an armistice on design crimes this month, as Christmas is the one time of year to embrace all the design crimes. Tinsel, flashing Santas and poinsettias are all allowed in wild abandon. Bring on the naff-ness!

 

How to plan the hallway

• Make a big statement in your hallway with bold design statements to create an impactful first impression
• Paint your hallway a dark colour to make the rooms off it appear lighter
• Consider a bright or bold patterned stair runner to draw your eye up the stairs.
• Go bolder than you dare in the hallway as you only have to walk through it
• When renovating your home, decorate the hallway last when all the builders have left
• Hallways are a great place to display artwork
• Consider feature wallpaper up the double height wall and accentuate the height of this wall
• Hang a stunning piece of artwork or wallpaper on the landing at the top of the stairs to draw the light up
• In dark hallways hang a large mirror. If it can be positioned opposite an open doorway this can increase the sense of light and space.
• Don’t store all your coats in a small hallway if it chokes up the space
• Consider shoe storage. A basket and/or a shoe bench works well
• Plenty of sturdy hooks at heights for bags, and coats. You can even give each member of the family their own hook.
• Chose practical finishes like hard flooring and scrubbable paint.
• The inside of your front door is an opportunity to add an accent colour, don’t just leave it white!

Thanks so much to Dfs for sponsoring the series and to Kate Taylor our producer. This is the end of series 1 of the Great Indoors. We will be back in the new year on January 10th with series 2! Make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss out. All the available places to listen and subscribe are linked on my Podcast page here.