Decorating Your Home

Want to know one of the problems many of my clients face when decorating their home?

Too much oak

They've chosen oak flooring, oak kitchens, oak doors and skirting,  you see where I'm coming from?  They find it's just too much and  are sickened by it and want a solution.

Here are a couple of solutions tried and tested.

Living Room

Problem: Oak flooring, doors, architraves, skirting, staircase and furnitureSolution:  Use a large floor area rug, and I mean large.  You are going to place all the furniture on to this rug so it needs to be as large as possible (a good rule of thumb is to have an 8" border around skirting boards).  This can be in a colour of your choice (choose something you love and won't tire of) textured or patterned.

Kitchen

Problem: Oak kitchen.  If a new kitchen is not on the agenda and still  caters for all your needs and just looks a bit dated, then why not paint it.  I would recommend a professional to do this and I can help you with colours and recommending an excellent decorator.Solution:  Paint your kitchen cupboards.  You can have a brand new updated kitchen.  Choose tonal shades, or highlight a trim.  If you really want to push the boat out, change the door handles and worktops.

Furniture

Problem:  Oak everything.  Flooring, occasional furniture, skirting and doors.  You aren't alone, this is a problem most clients have.  They choose oak furniture to go with everything else i.e the floors, skirting and doors are all oak so it seems logical to match the furniture too.  The result is oak overload.Solution:  Wood is a natural product so try mixing other woods with it. Walnut sits beautifully with oak or how about trying some of the gorgeous metals around at the moment in burnished brass or an antique mirror finish.   Alternatively if  they cost too much and you just can't justify  changing them, add some statement lighting to steal the show!So now you know how to tackle a few problems, it's time to put it all into action.Happy decorating!