A very Happy New Year to you. I hope you had a restful and peaceful Christmas. As is the blog’s tradition, this is the day that I share patterns of interior design directions that have caught my eye for 2025. This year, heritage design, along with bucolic evocations of the countryside, are top stories for interiors. From designer high street collaborations to independent designers and a burgeoning wealth of influential vintage and antique dealers, 2025 is shaping up nicely.
Continue reading “Interior design directions 2025”Category: Interior design
Vintage Christmas decorating ideas 2024
There’s still just about enough time left to decorate before Christmas! From wallpapering or at least using some leftover pieces for wrapping presents to selecting a piece of gorgeous interiors fabric for a tablecloth. To inspire you, here are some vintage Christmas decorating ideas from Christmas present, but also a few favourites from this blog’s Christmas past.
Continue reading “Vintage Christmas decorating ideas 2024”West Dean College, house and garden
If the idea of staying in a centuries old English manor house appeals, then look no further than the bucolic West Sussex parkland of West Dean College of Arts, Design, Crafts and Conservation. Edward James (1907-1984), a 20th century socialite and patron to Salvador Dali, set up a foundation to ensure his family home became a centre for teaching conservation and the creative arts. The Grade II Listed gardens are now open to the public and visitors can stay in the house.
Continue reading “West Dean College, house and garden”Modern Country Style
Every Autumn, my desire to move to a country cottage deepens and with it comes thoughts on how best to decorate. I had every intention of sharing with you some of the country-inspired earth tones and textural burgundy browns that are emerging for interiors. But, the power of the colour palette I mentioned in Interior Design Directions for 2024 has, rather like an irresistible Lewis & Wood vine, taken hold here at blog HQ.
Continue reading “Modern Country Style”Grand Tour, A La Ronde
From every angle, A La Ronde is an 18th-century circular home that thrills. Its 16-sided exterior belies a theatrical 8-sided interior complete with shell grotto and sea views beyond. To describe it as a cottage doesn’t quite cover it and although it shares some of the decorative DNA of a folly, this doesn’t entirely do it justice either. Quirky it most certainly is, and therefore very much my kind of wonderful. So here are a few highlights from my tour of this National Trust treasure …
Continue reading “Grand Tour, A La Ronde”Coastal interior style 2024
It’s that time of year when beachcombing for coastal interior style is in full swing on the blog. With winter’s storms behind us, this year’s surf rolls in with a colour palette where thundery North Sea greys meet the balmier tones of Atlantic and Cornish coastal blues. A sea spray of sepia tones wash over 2024 coastal styling, highlighting the textures of antique and vintage treasures along with wavy scallop shapes and the magic of artisan-made shell decoration.
Continue reading “Coastal interior style 2024”Borders giving designers the edge
Borders are back. In paper form for walls, but also as textiles for upholstery and soft furnishings. They are increasingly becoming a focal point in schemes, giving interior designers the edge in more ways than one. Knowing how much to use and where is a matter of interpretation, but knowing where to source is key. Adored by interior designers worldwide, top British textile designer Pink House by Rebecca Cole has become the go-to name for bespoke and vintage textile borders.
Continue reading “Borders giving designers the edge”Interior design directions 2024
A very Happy New Year to you. I hope you had a peaceful and happy Christmas. As is tradition, the blog is looking forward to some of the interior design directions that have been catching my eye for 2024. On the list are some sweet feel-good colourways, new designers, bespoke muralists and antiques. And just when we need it most, high street stores have arrived like the cavalry with some terrific design to layer up our homes.
Continue reading “Interior design directions 2024”Whimsical interior style
Whimsical interior design ideas as mooted on my Interior Design Directions 2023 post have now well and truly arrived. This quirky, interior design style that transcends the generations is what some might consider a much needed, mood-boosting tonic. With a playful sense of humour, design companies are putting us back in touch with our inner child, suggesting that decorating with cartoon and storybook designs isn’t just for the nursery.
Continue reading “Whimsical interior style”A New Age of Elegance
Not since the 1970s when Laura Ashley’s love affair with all things Victorian/Edwardian has there been quite so much interest in this decorative era. Ruth Eaton, Coco Conran, Anna Mason and Sarah Vanrenen are in the vanguard of fashion and interior designers creating a new age of elegance for the 21st Century. To find out what is so appealing about late 19th/early 20th Century design, the blog invites you to visit The National Trust’s Lanhydrock House in Cornwall.
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