Layering is a core part of your style – what advice do you have for getting it right?
Do it with confidence. The more you layer, the better it looks. We’ll always try and make sure there is a mix of both patterns and plains, but also a variety of textures, to ensure that a room has real depth to it. A thick cotton velvet that absorbs light is going to offset a light reflecting chintz for example. It’s important to remember layering isn’t just about using lots of different fabrics (sometimes we’ll just repeat the same fabric throughout a room), but it’s about considering all the different layers that make up a room – from the flooring to the lighting, the art on the walls, the books on the shelves, the different tones and finishes of paint on the woodwork. There are so many layers to a well-crafted room. It doesn’t have to be fussy, just considered.
What about antiques – is there a way to use them that feels fresh rather than formal?
Antiques are essential for grounding a room and helping it feel authentic but that doesn’t mean you need to be surrounded by old fashioned pieces. Go for items with sleek lines and perfect proportions – that could be a striking 1970s glass lamp but it could also be a classic Georgian centre table that looks fantastic with a modern pendant light hanging above it. Keep things simple. Don’t fill your house with antiques. Take it slowly and keep adding until you find your own personal tipping point.
How do you approach colour in your projects?
If we want to add a splash of colour in a traditional space, then we’ll do it in unexpected places e.g. inside a larder cupboard or, at the end of a corridor when you just catch a glimpse if a door is open. We live in a very conservative time where colour in the home is concerned. Most of our predecessors were much more comfortable with colour – think about the pastel-coloured confections that are Robert Adam interiors or the rich reds and greens of the Victorians. We’ll often start with a favourite patterned fabric, and take our colour inspiration from there, pulling different colours out and using them in differing strengths to give a room an identity.
Are there any design ‘rules’ you break in your own spaces that you might hesitate to try in a client’s home?
We are pretty good and practicing what we preach. We definitely disregard advice on things like heating requirements in a home as we find specialists are always telling our clients that they need large radiators everywhere – we’d rather put on extra jumper but have a more attractive room. There are also a lot of rules about the height of wall lights, or the distance required between furniture, but we are pretty laissez faire about that. So much of it is about comfort and what feels right, rather than what sounds good on paper.
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