Last week, we were joined by the fabulously talented and colour obsessed, TV stylist, Sophie Robinson, in our Islington showroom for an evening of inspiring talks and creative chat. Sophie created three key looks focusing on the use of colour and accessories in the home, using items from our Spring/ Summer ’18 collection – ‘New Naturals’, ‘Colour Popping’ and ‘Bedroom Glamour’.
If you weren’t able to join us for the night, here is everything you need to know about Sophie’s stylish rooms sets, her expert tips and the products used to create the fabulous looks.
Look 1: New Naturals
For Sophie’s first look, she focused on using natural elements and textures, with our Saturday sofa in Olive pure cotton matt velvet as the focal point of colour. Using plenty of foliage, natural materials, such as wicker baskets, and layering accessories, Sophie’s created a look featuring lots of textural interest in a room with a feel-good vibe! To elevate the natural look for this room, Sophie added subtle touches of colour in light creams, with our Casablanca rug, and soft pink tones with the Felix footstool in Blush brushed linen cotton and scatter cushions from our Design Lab partner, Tamasyn Gambell.
Sophie’s top tips for her ‘New Naturals’ home:
- Add interest to the room by building textures – such as using a variety of fabrics, velvets and cotton for example, and adding wooden features
- Use plants to create a feel-good feeling in your home. If you’re not particularly green fingered, succulent plants are an excellent choice!
- Layer rugs with complementing colours to add further texture
- If you’re unsure which colours work well together – start with the wallpaper! We opted for bold motif depicting cheese plant leaves accented by soft chalky tones and metallic accents, created by Harlequin.
- The designer of the wallpaper has already done the work for you and created a colour palette that you can draw accent colours from for your room.
Look 2: Colour Popping
It wouldn’t be an evening with Sophie without learning a thing or two about using complementing bright colours that you may usually shy away from! For her second room set, our Jasper corner sofa in Cyan smart linen took centre stage as Sophie used spring tones of coral and turquoise and home accessories to bring the look together.
Sophie’s top tips for her Colour Popping room design:
- Use home accessories to create symmetry – such as the lamps here for example. Home accessories can make sometimes leave the room feeling disjointed as their position is not considered. Think carefully how your accessories pair with other items, such as wall art, to create a concise looking living space.
- Playing with pattern doesn’t necessarily mean you have to overwhelm the room. Our Minnie accent chair in Gail Bryson’s Soni fabric adds just enough interest and character without feeling out of place.
- If you want to make space look bigger – opt for a sofa on legs to see as much space around the sofa as possible
- Create a point of interest by layering items on a console table such as lamps, books and ornaments at different heights to capture attention.
How to hang your art like an interior designer
Many people will just hang one picture in their home and it can appear a little lost on the wall and can lend to the room looking disjointed, as mentioned before when placing other home accessories. Sophie advises thinking about how all the pieces work together in harmony in the room. So, when you look at the room layout, all the pieces look a part of a complete collection not of individual pieces. Try hanging your artwork, or mirror, only a foot above the sofa to bring the items together.
Look 3: Bedroom Glamour
Create a bedroom that you love to wake up to every morning. Sophie’s luxurious take on bedroom glamour features deep navy, rich blues, touches of soft pink hues and gold accents to create a relaxing atmosphere that’ll help you drift off to sleep each evening. The focal point of our bedroom is the beautiful Rosalie headboard in our best-selling Prussian Blue pure cotton matt velvet that instantly draws your eyes to the centre of the room. Its captivating colour makes an impact without being too bold or energetic for a setting in which you’ll be relaxing in. The expressive geometric inspired wallpaper, by Dufrene Cameo from Designers Guild, adds a stylish and modern look to the overall appearance of the room with metallic accents.
Sophie’s tips for her ‘Bedroom Glamour’ look:
- Used mirror furniture to make the room look bigger, such as our Sinatra console table. However, do be clever when choosing mirrored furniture, as it is not always ideal for certain areas in the house such as the living room in a family home where there may be little, sticky fingers about. The bedroom is ideal, as it helps create the feeling of a sanctuary.
- Use luxurious textures to add character and warmth, such as velvets, silks and sheepskin.
- Add rugs to the side of the bed, when you step out onto it in the morning, it feels beautiful underfoot
- Opt for clever storage solutions, such as our Valentin storage bench, that not only offers practically but also adds another element of style
