40 tips for great interior style
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40 Tips for great interior style from http://pennygregoryinteriors.co.ukTRANSCRIPT
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Over the past 15 years Penny Gregory
Interiors has worked with hundreds of
clients, from all walks of life helping them
to furnish their homes to suit their needs
and lifestyles, creating truly unique and
beautiful interiors.
We specialise in making hand-made soft
f u r n i s h i n g s t o o u r c l i e n ts ’ e x a c t
spec i f icat ions . Our expert ise and
knowledge of interior design is not limited
to window dressing alone, we are often
asked to advise on other aspects of
decorating and furnishing a home.
There is a plethora of books and courses
available on interior design and somehow
the whole subject has become too
confusing, and so in this short and simple
guide we have brought together our top 40
tips for great interior style.
This guide is not intended to cover interior
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
Introduction
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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fashion trends, but rather to be used as a
template for any future home interior
project. These tips are timeless.
We hope that by sharing our knowledge
with you, you too will learn how to develop
your own interior style and enjoy turning a
house into your home.
Should you need our help along the way,
please don’t hesitate to contact us on
01489 788178 or via the website.
Penny GregoryPenny GregoryPenny GregoryPenny Gregory
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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1. Ensure that your rooms suit your
lifestyle. All too often we see beautiful
interiors in magazines or show homes
which catch our eye but which in
reality would be nigh on impossible for
some of us to live in. Whilst plush,
cream carpets, glass coffee tables and
elegant figurines might look fabulous
in a photo shoot, if you have children
or pets this look could be hard to live
with.
2. Your room should be functional.
Before you rush out to buy paint, floor
coverings and furniture, consider what
you will be using the room for and
what you will need in there. For
example, if you plan to entertain in
y o u r l i v i n g r o o m , a s w e l l a s
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
“Plush, cream carpets, glass coffee tables and elegant figurines might look fabulous…”
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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comfortable seating, you’ll need a
coffee table for people to put their
dr inks on and perhaps a music
system.
3. Whilst interiors magazines can be
great sources of inspiration, remember
that month in, month out these
magazines are looking for new and
different stories to publish. They are
not always as concerned with good
style and functionality as they are
fashion. This season’s interiors trend
may be no easier to live with or last
any longer than last season’s killer
heels!
4. Always buy the best possible quality
that you can afford. As the saying
goes, if you buy cheap, you will buy
twice. So true with interior furnishings,
where even a cheap option can often
amount to hundreds of pounds.
5. Make a to-scale plan of your room
before you purchase new furniture.
Using squared paper, map out your
room and then on a separate piece of
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
“always buy the best possible quality to can afford”
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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paper map out the dimensions of any
furniture you plan to put in the room.
Look at the spaces between items. Is
there enough room for people to move
with ease through doorways? Is
sea t i ng a r ranged so as to a id
conversation?
6. Aim for a focal point for your room.
This could be a fireplace, a beautiful
window treatment or an eye catching
painting, for example. Remember that
whilst too many details scattered
around the room will detract from your
chosen focal point, opposite walls can
have their own points of interest since
they cannot be seen together.
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
“Aim for a focal point for your room. This could be a fireplace, a beautiful window treatment or an eye catching painting”
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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7. Consider the atmosphere or feel you
would like to create in your room.
Interior designers refer to this as
“mood”. The mood of a room can be
influenced by a number of factors
including light, colour and texture and
is key to good interior style. The most
successful interiors are those where
the mood re f lec ts the owner ’s
personality.
8. To help you to define the mood for
your particular room, begin with a list
of adjectives that describe what you’d
like this room to become, for example,
refreshing, st imulat ing, calming,
s e d a t e , h a rm o n i o u s , t r a n q u i l ,
pass ionate, opu lent , decadent ,
mysterious, oriental, inviting, happy,
inspiring, creative or positive.
9. Different rooms will require different
moods. For example, a hallway might
be warm and inviting, and a dining
room perhaps intimate and relaxed.
The most obvious way to affect the
mood of a room is with colour, but
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
“The most successful interiors are those where the mood reflects the owner’s personality”
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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light, smell, texture and even sound
also play their part. Mood is all about
stimulation our senses.
10. Develop a mood board. Refer back to
your list of adjectives of how you’d like
your room to feel. Now gather cuttings
from magazines etc. of rooms that
inspire you, or examples taken from
nature of colours and textures you like,
as well as samples of fabrics and
paints.
11. Thinking especially about colour and
texture, begin to play around with your
samples as you lay them out on a
large piece of board as a visual aid to
designing your room.
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
“gather cuttings from magazines etc. of rooms that inspire you”
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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12. Combining what’s on your mood board
with your list of what you need in your
room, consider how the elements of
your mood board can be incorporated
in the room. Develop your final board
by placing your chosen floor covering
at the bottom, wall colour in the centre
and curtain fabrics towards the top,
with any trimmings or accessories
placed where they will end up in
re la t i on to the who le scheme.
Try to get the proportion of floor area
to that of the walls and windows on
your final board to match that of the
room so your finished board reflects
how the end result will look.
13. Choose colour carefully. Tonal colour
schemes, where the colours chosen
are all variations of the same hue may
seem easy to put together, but without
a variety of textures and patterns can
quickly become boring.
14. A harmonious scheme is one where
the colours used lie close to each
o ther on the co lour whee l , fo r
“Tonal colour schemes, may seem easy to put together, but without a variety of textures and patterns can quickly become boring”
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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“It’s best to have just a small amount of your complement-ary colour otherwise the colours will compete with each other.”
example, blue and aqua or red and
terracotta.
15. Complementary colours are those
which lie opposite one another on the
colour wheel. These colours naturally
enhance each other and so make
excellent partners. Think of red and
green or rich, golden yellow and blue.
These schemes are often lively and
dramatic. It’s best to have just a small
amount of your complementary colour
otherwise the colours will compete
with each other.
tonal scheme
complementary
scheme
harmoniou
s
scheme
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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16. Choose red for a feeling of energy,
passion or adventure. Red is an
excellent choice for the Dining room,
as it stimulates the appetite and
encourages people to socialise.
17. Soft or light pinks are excellent for
bedrooms as they are perceived as
restful colours, but for a little passion
in the bedroom, go for full on fuchsia!
The obvious feminine association with
pink may be a little too much for some,
in which case, try teaming it with
charcoal or black.
18. Orange, including peaches and
ter racot tas are very welcoming
colours, which imply warmth and
hospitality, so are excellent choices for
dining rooms and living rooms. Take
care with the brighter shades in dark
r o o m s . B e c a u s e o r a ng e i s a
stimulating colour, it’s not the best
choice for a bedroom.
19. Choose yellows to create a warm,
welcoming mood. Yellows from warm
creams to rich golds are the obvious
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
“Choose red for a feeling of energy, passion or adventure...Choose yellows to create a warm, welcoming mood”
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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choice in hallways.
20. G r e e n d e n o t e s we l l b e i n g a n d
tranquillity, so is a great choice in
bedrooms and living rooms. If the
mood becomes too laid back though,
try adding accents of red or orange.
21. Blue is a colour which denotes trust,
intelligence and calm. A great colour
for studies, bedrooms and bathrooms.
22. Lilac evokes calm and sincerity. Use
in bedrooms and bathrooms to create
peaceful havens, but take care not to
over do it. A great partner to lilac is
silver.
23. Purple is for opulence and passion.
Best used to make a bold statement
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
“Green denotes wellbeing and tranquillity...Purple is for opulence and passion”
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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as purple is never understated.
24. Brown is associated with all things
practical, secure and stable. Use in
varying tones as neutrals throughout
your home, but take care not to restrict
your pallet to brown alone add greens,
reds or blues for interest.
25. Black. The ultimate colour for impact.
Black is great when teamed with
white, red, pink or purple for a truly
dramatic look. Too much though and
you could end up feeling like an angst
ridden teenager!
26. Use light and colour tricks to develop
your mood. Opt for lighter colours for
a brighter, lighter look, and to add a
lighter feel to rooms that do not get
lots of sun.
27. Use richer, deeper shades where
natural daylight is at a premium or
where you are looking for a more cosy,
intimate atmosphere.
28. Depth of colour can also enhance the
scale or proportions of your room.
Dark colours will make an area seem
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
“Use richer, deeper shades ... where you are looking for a more cosy, intimate atmosphere”
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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smaller whereas light colours will
make it appear larger. If your room is
long and narrow, for example, painting
the two narrow end walls a lighter
shade than the main walls will help to
balance out the shape of the room.
29. Consider the impact of artificial light in
your room. As the day goes on and
natural daylight ebbs away, colours in
your home will take on a new look
under the artificial evening light. Bear
this in mind when selecting fabrics,
floor covering and wall colours.
30. Warm up cooler, often north facing
rooms with warm colours. The
warmest colours are those which lie
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
“.As the day goes on and natural daylight ebbs away, colours in your home will take on a new look under the artificial evening light”
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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between pure red and yellow on the
colour wheel, but any colour can be
warmed slightly with a hint of yellow.
31. Cool down warmer rooms with cool
colours, which have an undertone of
blue in them, blue and green being
obvious choices.
32. Horizontal lines will create an illusion
of width, whereas vert ical l ines
emphasise height. These basic
principles can help to redress the
proportions of your room.
33. Choose fu rn i tu re tha t i s o f an
appropriate scale to your room. A
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
“Horizontal lines will create an illusion of width, whereas vertical lines emphasise height”
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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huge Victorian dresser will look out of
place in a small dining room even if it
seems to fit on your room plan.
34. Create an illusion of width at a narrow
window with curtains that hang so that
they reveal as much of the window as
possible. Do this by fitting a longer
pole or track.
35. An illusion of height and elegance can
be added to a window by opting for
floor length rather than sill length
drapes.
36. Hang curtains as high up above the
window as possible to balance a wide
window.
37. Choose large patterns in fabrics and
papers for larger windows and rooms
whereas smaller windows will look
better dressed with small patterns.
Avoid patterned wall coverings in
small rooms all together.
38. Avoid clutter. Don’t hold onto things
you don’t use. Sell, donate or recycle
a l l t hose p i c tu res , vases , and
accessories that no longer fit with your
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
“An illusion of height and elegance can be added to a window by opting for floor length rather than sill length drapes”
40 Tips For Great Interior Style
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scheme.
39. Ensure that you have good storage
solutions for everything you use.
Remember the old adage “a place for
everything, and everything in its place”
40. Group smaller pictures together on
one wall rather than dotting them
around the room. Likewise, interesting
collections, of glass or pottery will
have far more impact if they are given
a space of their own somewhere.
Copyright © Penny Gregory 2008 www.pennygregoryinteriors.co.uk
“Remember the old adage “a place for everything, and everything in its place””
40 Tips For Great Interior Style