close

10 Beautiful Rooms

green photo and styling by Henrik Nero
green photo and styling by Henrik Nero

Maybe it’s the time of year, maybe it’s the fact that Pantone did perhaps know what it was talking about when it named greenery as its colour of 2017 but I can’t get enough of it at the moment. It’s such a restful colour. Maybe I just need a holiday.

neutrals by henrik nero
neutrals by henrik nero

Whether you’re draping your walls in it or bringing in real life plants to your home, every room needs some green. As those of you familiar with my instagram will know, we have a rather battered pink chaise longue that has been taken over by our furry friend. It needs recovering.  I think we have decided to go green. Which will work perfectly with all the grey in the room.

by henrik nero for residencemagazine.se
by henrik nero for residencemagazine.se

The only problem is persuading her to treat it with a little more respect which won’t be easy possible so it may just have to stay in its shabby glory for the time being. And believe me it ain’t chic.

the new collection from day home
the new collection from day home via Residence.se to see more

Mind you if it’s not green it’s dark blue as this picture above shows. Also good with greenery, and brass as well as silver. I think it’s finally the arrival of the dark neutrals. We have been talking about it for a long time but this autumn it’s finally beginning to come through.

kastconcrete basins in blush pink styled by @elisabettabongiorni
kastconcrete basins in blush pink styled by @elisabettabongiorni

Not that we’ve finished with millennial pink as you can see from this image above of these rather fabulous pink basins. I would never have thought of shopping for pink basins but now that I’ve seen this it seems like an extraordinarily good idea.

dark and moody interiors by Jade from heavenlyhomesandgardens
dark and moody interiors by Jade from @heavenlyhomesandgardens

Mind you we’re not done with grey just yet. In its darker incarnations it will be around as part of this fresh wave of dark neutrals. The interiors fashionistas maybe proclaiming the death of grey but they’re premature. Pale and it’s the perfect neutral, dark and it’s still unusual and dramatic enough to show off your possessions perfectly. It ain’t over yet so don’t panic if you’re still trying to find the right shade. I believe there’s a book that can help you with that by the way…

hotel providence in paris shot by @kymgrimshaw
hotel providence in paris shot by @kymgrimshaw

But white will never be over either, especially if you throw in some black to add definition and some texture – in this case exposed brick but lots of wood works too.

black and white bathroom with exposed brick via shootfactory
black and white bathroom with exposed brick via shootfactory

Talking of bathrooms, I’m showing you this because the owners have really understood the importance of storage in a bathroom. Most of us just don’t include enough. Here there is. If you’re making an en suite out of a bedroom, as they may have done here, then you can bring the wall in slightly to allow for some proper storage. You can never have too much and you will never regret building in lots of it.

braxted location via shoot factory
braxted location via shoot factory

Finally this light and airy space is perfect for a summer day. The black cupboard stops it being too sweet and the plants add more interest. If anyone needs me today I’ll be sitting here typing away. The second book is nearly finished…

brook lodge via shoot factory
brook lodge via shoot factory
Kate Watson-Smyth

The author Kate Watson-Smyth

I’m a journalist who writes about interiors mainly for The Financial Times but I have also written regularly for The Independent and The Daily Mail. My house has been in Living Etc, HeartHome and featured in The Wall Street Journal & Corriere della Sera. I also run an interior styling consultancy Mad About Your House. Welcome to my Mad House.

9 Comments

  1. So many great ideas here. I have been umming and aaahing about my sitting room. A project to plan for next year, and this post has given me some ideas. Hurrah and thanks

  2. Great blog. Green is timeless, so soothing, relaxing calming. Although personally grey is not my colour, I really love the drama it gives these rooms. Mind you I wouldn’t be able to help myself and hang lots of art having the grey as a natural backdrop!

  3. Love the colours in the day home photo. Any idea where it is available to buy in the uk, preferably online? The collection used to be available to buy on the day home website itself, but that no longer seems to be the case and I have only found the odd thing for sale on uk websites.

      1. Yes, they shipped to the uk directly from their own site in the past but the site doesn’t seem to have an e-shop anymore, just information about the brand. I will have to contact and ask, it is one of my favourites.

  4. Hi Kate,
    The last photo looks just like my breakfast room. I have added Windsor chairs in natural wood and am thinking of painting the two narrow cupboards and a console in black-do you think it might be too much?

Comments are closed.