Revamp your home this spring with just a few simple touches

Article Added: 08/05/2009 10:35:01
It is getting to that time of year again when we are all thinking of spring cleaning our homes and redecorating ready for the summer. HotHive Textiles has been speaking to some of the soft furnishing and interior design experts listed on the site to see why you may not need to completely redecorate your home to give it a new look.

We began by talking with directory member Jan Merryweather of Sunflower Soft Furnishings to find out what colours and patterns were going to be popular for the next few months. “I think the two big things this spring and summer will be black and white vintage and geometric prints and silver and shimmering finishes for added pizzazz. Think checkerboard flooring in black and white marble or zebra print rugs,” she says. “I would also suggest adding hints of colour – scarlets and purples with charcoals and greys. Use accessories such as throws, rugs or wall art to inject this colour into a monochrome scheme.” HotHive Textiles is full of artists and designers who specialise in making these items if you want something bespoke to suit your current décor, but for the really adventurous why not have a go at making something yourself We have some great books to help you, which we will look at in more detail later in the article.

As well as helping to make sure that all our houses are right on trend in terms of the colours of our accessories, Jan also has some advice about the patterns we should be looking for. She says, “Don’t be afraid to mix and match florals with tartan, spots with stripes, silks with Hessian. Ensure you use a neutral colour on the walls to let the fabrics and colours speak for themselves – otherwise it could overwhelm the room!”

Jan has some great tips for how you can revamp a room with just a few small touches, catering for any budget. We decided to take her through a house, room by room, to get her top tips to give them a new look. We started with the living room, where she had some great ideas. “If your budget is low you can change the look of a room simply by adding a few scatter cushions, a rug and a vase in an accent colour,” she explains. “If you have a medium budget you could revamp a pair of old curtains, or even swap them for a roman blind to give a sleek modern feel. And of course if you have a high budget the list is endless – redecorate, recover the sofa, etc.”

One of the most noticeable parts of any room is the curtains, but you needn’t rush out to buy a new pair in order to make them look new again. Jan says, “Sometimes it is just how the curtains are dressed. Obviously more expensive fabric makes a difference but even with ‘cheap’ curtains you can dress them by adding expensive-looking tiebacks.” The cream curtains pictured at the bottom of the article were a cheap pair that Jan picked up in Ikea, but she dressed them with some classy and on trend! black tiebacks and completely changed their look. Why not try something similar with your curtains

The type of flooring you choose for the living room is also important. Wooden floors can look sleek and classic, but there are also disadvantages as it can be difficult to make the room feel warm and cosy. Jan gave us some advice of how we can make the most of a wooden floor: “The obvious thing is to get a luxurious, plush rug, but if you didn’t want to hide the flooring you could always stencil around the edges, or in front of the fireplace. Floor length curtains always add a sense of cosiness to any room even if carpeted.”

You also need to think of the accessories you choose as wooden flooring will be prone to scratching. Accessories such as the feet of the sofa and doorstops need to be considered carefully. If you have a wooden floor, or are thinking of getting one, Sunflower Soft Furnishings sell a range of fabulous leather and fabric doorstops ideal for hard floors. Take a look at the cat designs at the bottom of the article to get an idea of what they have available.

The next room that we asked for Jan’s advice on was the bedroom.  Scatter cushions were Jan’s main accessory of choice here too, as they are perfect for adding some colour into a room. She went on, “You could also look at repainting one of the walls in a matching colour to the new cushions to give an instant new look. If you’re budget is higher then why not go for a new fabric covered headboard or a swag above the bed instead of the cushions” or as well as if you’re feeling really adventurous!

We completed our tour of the house with a look at the dining room. If you have a low budget then Jan’s top tip was to use an old but clean! white sheet on the table and add a brightly coloured table runner on top for instant elegance. If you have more money to spend then Jan suggests recovering the dining chairs to give them a fresh new look. She says, “If it is only the seats that are worn you could just cover the existing fabric in a new fabric to wow them up! This could cost from as little as £20 per seat, plus the fabric you select. If the wood is tired then a loose cover could change the look completely. The cost of this would be approximately £80, plus the cost of your chosen fabric. If you are looking to keep costs at a minimal then you could re-cover the two carvers and just replace the seat pads in the other four chairs and instantly revamp the look of your dining room!”

If you would like to talk to Jan about this or any of other services she offers then she will be very happy to help. For a free consultation appointment Jan can be contacted using the details at the bottom of this article.

The only thing missing from your beautiful new house now is the lighting, which is where lampshade artist Sarah Walker comes in. Sarah says, “The importance of lighting in a room is often underestimated. The colours, textures, ambience and function of a room are all affected by how and where the light falls. For those rooms where we relax and socialise ambience is the key. We want to create pools of light that highlight favourite areas of the room such as the comfy chair where we sit and read, a collection of precious artefacts or a special painting. In such rooms the light fittings should be seen as decorative pieces in their own right and add to the whole scheme.”

So what is Sarah’s top tip for those of us looking at new lighting “When buying shades try to avoid going for a matching set of plain single-colour shades and view each lamp as an individual within the scheme. It will reward you two-fold, as an attractive light source by night and a pleasure to look at by day.”

Once you have made your lighting selections it is important to ensure that you keep them clean to ensure they have longevity. Sarah explains, “My number one tip is not to allow your shade to become too dirty before cleaning it; regular routine cleaning is more successful than remedial cleaning. This will improve its appearance, ensure maximum light passes through and prolong its life.” Sarah has written a comprehensive guide to the care and cleaning of lampshades, which you can read here.

Small rooms are one of the trickiest to make the best of, so we asked both Sarah and Jan their top tips. Jan suggests, “If the room also has narrow windows the curtains need to be wider than the window frame so that they hang either side when they’re drawn back. You can also make a short window appear longer by setting the blind or pole nearer to the ceiling, giving the illusion of height. A sheer curtain draped to one side and tied back also gives an elegant feel.”

Sarah told us, “The first thing I would suggest is getting rid of the centre light to clear the ceiling and open up the room. When choosing table lamps for a small room I would be inclined to go for fewer lamps but in bolder styles. I’d recommend choosing unfussy fittings with clean lines and distinctive shades, which will have impact and earn their place in a limited space. Half-lamps would be ideal as they are slim and thus take up less space while providing more light than a full shade by bouncing it off the wall behind.”

Half-lamps are a product unique to Sarah, which were inspired by the half-shades used on bedside tables in French hotels. She tried to buy some similar shades in the UK but found that they didn’t exist over here, which surprised Sarah as “they are so practical and take up very little space.” So Sarah decided to create her own. She uses reverse appliqué to create her lampshades, layering different coloured papers and then stitching the design into them, before using embroidery scissors to cut layers away from the front and back of the panel to reveal areas of colour through which the light will pass.

Sarah enjoys working on commissions for customers and there is one in particular that stands out. She explains, “One interesting commission was from a furniture maker for a pair of lamps to compliment his ‘Sun Suite’ – a bed and side cabinets. One of the lamps was a sun design and the other a moon, and the finished set was published in the book Bespoke by Betty Norbury. The whole piece was short listed for the Turner Prize and the set was eventually purchased by a customer in its entirety, lamps and all.”

If you would like to talk to Sarah about your own lampshade requirements then she will be very happy to discuss them with you though she can’t guarantee they will all be short-listed for prestigious art prizes! Sarah is offering all HotHive Textiles visitors 10% off new lampshades throughout April. To take advantage of the offer, simply mention this article when you contact her.

For those of you who have been inspired by the experts in this article and would like to have a go at creating some simple accessories for yourself then we recommend you drop by HotHive Textiles Bookstore for some books that will guide you. Here you will find some great books that will arm you with great design tips and teach you how to make some of the products featured.

We have selected a couple of our favourites to look at more closely – Sew Fabulous Fabric and Sew Pretty Homestyle. Sew Fabulous Fabric features 25 practical yet pretty projects for your home, including cosy cushions, colourful curtains and beautiful table linen. It is packed with ideas and opportunities to make the most of every last scrap of fabric, whether it’s a luscious new fabric, a pair of old pyjamas or a thrift store bargain. Our reviewer, Sara Millis, was particularly impressed with the recycling theme that runs through this book. She wrote, “The recycling undertone makes this book a home sewing bible not only for modern sustainable living, but it also harks back to a time where our mothers’ and grandmothers’ ‘make-do-and-mend’ skills were not just a craft, but a home budgetary asset. Finances being what they are for most of us now, it is again a time where we start to turn to home crafting as a way to reinvigorate our surroundings.”

The book takes you through simple embroidery skills, and patchwork and appliqué techniques are all fully explained with simple step-by-step photography and easy-to-follow artworks, so you will be armed with everything you need to get creative. For more information about the book or to purchase your copy please click here.

The second book we recommend is Sew Pretty Homestyle, which will show you how to create beautiful accessories to enhance your home using simple but effective techniques. Sew Pretty Homestyle includes ideas for every room in the house, including the kitchen, bathroom, children’s bedrooms and even the garden. Step-by-step instructions and actual size templates ensure wonderful results, along with some different colour and fabric options to change the look of the pieces. Our reviewer, Sue Rankine, said of the book: “It is filled with so many projects and ideas for each room at home. I really appreciated the photos showing various projects made up in alternative fabrics and want to get started straight away!” For more information about the book or to purchase your copy please click here.

To see a complete list of home and interior books available please visit HotHive Textiles Bookstore here.

We hope you have found the tips and advice shared in this article useful and we would love to hear yours too. So if you have been inspired to try any of the suggestions we have given you or want to share your own ideas then sign up it’s free! and leave your comments below.


Contact Details

Sunflower Soft Furnishings – Jan Merryweather
143 Blake Road
West Bridgford
Nottingham
NG2 5LA

07800 546428
jan@sunflowersoftfurnishings.co.uk
www.sunflowersoftfurnishings.co.uk

Sarah Walker Artshades
Selsdon House
80 Wells Road
Malvern Wells
Worcestershire
WR14 4PA

01684 575756
sarah@artshades.co.uk
www.artshades.co.uk

HotHive Textiles Bookstore
8 King Charles Court
Evesham
Worcestershire
WR11 4RF

01386 760406
textiles@thehothive.com
www.thetextiledirectorybookstore.com