Beverly Road

Maria & Sebastiaan

I want to urge you both to be brave and continue the colour palette you have begun to showcase in your home. Without realising it explicitly you have been drawn towards colours from opposite sides of the colour wheel, this is known as a complementary colour scheme. I see lots of tones of blue - from the deeper blue downstairs, the green/blue of your built in wardrobes and a softer tone in Sofia’s bedroom decor, and you have often teamed this with orange, warm wood tones and pinks. I’d love to see this develop further and create a truly cohesive look to your home but varying the depth and intensity of these colours. You go easy on pattern so include textures as much as possible in place of this, but do try to add in pattern when you see something you like.

Below I have outlined my suggestions for the decor as a guide to how you can continue making your home unique to you as a family.

Ella

Living Room

For the living room it would give a cohesive look to continue your dining room colour through across the fireplace wall. A built in unit will look more polished and finished than a free standing one but I have shown the built in unit in a very similar format to the Habitat shelving you liked, with the irregular sections.

Having a custom unit built in means there’s no wasted space and you can build it in proportion to the height of the room. I have shown the unit with a cupboard included for storage and to conceal the cables in this area.

I have continued the shelving level across to the neighbouring alcove for cohesion.

When sourcing armchairs I was finding that the alcove is quite narrow to fit a comfortable armchair in as you wanted, so I have designed a built in nook that would make best use of the space and provide storage underneath.

A comfortable cushion pad in burnt orange continues your colour palette.

An Anglepoise wall light makes the nook a perfect reading spot.

An irregular shaped mirror on the chimney breast keeps the room on trend and contemporary.

I think your sofa selection in the turquoise is a good colour to add another tone within the same palette - It doesn’t have to be over powering to do this but rather creates a layered effect and a more sophisticated look. I have included it on the visual to help you to decide if it’s right for you.

A set of round coffee tables instead of square is useful in improving the traffic flow in a room and gives flexibility when relaxing in the room.

A good sized rug for the room would be around 160cm x 230cm.

These rugs are a selection from La Redoute, Heals and Made. They would all work with the scheme because they use blue-grey tones and some complementary shades from the opposite side of the colour wheel. The patterns are muted and I hope reflect the sort of styles that will appeal to you.

To accessories the room I suggest trailing and hanging plants from the shelves and a large floor plant. The colour of the plants will stand out against the dark walls and give a finished, cohesive look.

Product List for Living Room

Irregular Mirror - laredoute.co.uk

Anglepoise Wall Light - Heals.com

Custom Cabinetry - Try jrobertsfurniture.co.uk

Coffee Table - furnwise.co.uk

Rug - Gasipur Rug from laredoute.co.uk

Office / Guest Bedroom

I have kept the layout you currently have of the sofa bed under the window, due to the limited width of the room the sofa bed you have already is one of the best options. You can get fresh new covers made to update the look. If you were looking to change it made.com do a similar size that would work well, called Haru in a Marine Green and Burnt Orange, both of which would work well with your palette.

I suggest you maximise the use of space with a longer, more generous work space with shelving and drawers for storage. A bespoke solution like this will be ideal for the room as you won’t be wasting valuable space with gaps between units. I have shown waterfall style ends but it would also work very well to have the desk fully wall mounted by a professional so there is no floor space taken up with legs, this would physically give more space and visually feel much more spacious.

Mounting the monitor on the wall frees up desk space and looks much smarter and more streamlined.

A high shelf provides lots of storage for books, magazines and paperwork but keeps it out of the way, whilst visually pleasing.

Make use of the height by using a bold dark colour, including the ceiling. It will make the small room feel cocooned, a calm space in which to work and a restful space for guests.

My suggestion is to choose a darker shade of the colours in your current palette, so perhaps a very dark inky blue/green.

I recommend you change the curtains to recessed blinds - this will de-clutter the area visually and prevent unnecessary heat loss from the radiator. I have shown double roller blinds, a sheer for privacy and a solid blind for light control for when you have guests. Within the window frame recess I have chosen a mustard accent colour which tints the light coming in and is an on-trend technique for adding modern character and a playful element.

I have clad this end wall in timber, adding texture and interest to the room and subtly zoning the relaxing space from the work space. A large, bright piece of art here will dress the room and ‘finish’ the space. Add some trailing plants on the shelves, such as Golden Pothos, to complete the look.

I suggest you use one of the specialist under-stairs storage companies who will be able to create a bespoke solution for the old coal cupboard, a large pull out drawer would be useful to make the most of the storage potential.