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My Top Ten Interior Design Tips #10


YOUR HOME YOUR STORY

mad-about-the-house-sitting-room-dark-grey-walls

This may sound completely obvious but this really is the key to turning every house into a home. It’s also the one thing that many of us don’t do. We have been so conditioned (by estate agents) to neutralising our homes for sale that we often forget those personal details.

Now that we are buying our houses to live in them (rather than for a quick sale) we are staying in them for longer and it’s time to really think about displaying objects that we love; things that will make your heart sing every time you walk through your front door.

Yes we do have to be practical and buy sensibly for financial reasons, but don’t choose a neutral carpet because you think you should. Choose it because it will really show off your furniture to its best advantage. And if it won’t? Buy another colour.

Fill your walls with artwork that you love, with photos of your family, your collection of Moomin mugs and pieces of furniture that you have inherited or acquired. Your home should tell your story. Let it be free to do that. When your friends walk into your house they should instantly get a sense of you and your style.

So if you are known for always wearing pink, then use some in your home. From a bright pink wall, to painting the edges of the doors so that you only see it when they are open, there are a million ways to reflect your personality in your place.

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.

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