Revealed: Interior design secrets to a fast home makeover
This selection of faux flowers in a glass vase from Penneys, €8, top left; weatherproof Elements Soleil outdoor cushions from €260, Hill House Interiors, top right; Marks & Spencer striped jug vase, €28, below right.
You might apply every interior design rule to your house, but until the personal touches are added, it’s not home.
This applies whether we are renting or owning our living space.
Accessories are the tried and tested way our personalities show up, adding those final layers to make the space home. But styling them is a learned skill which often starts with the maxim that objects ought to be displayed in uneven numbers. This is fine up to a point, although doing too much of it in a given space looks contrived.
Like anything, finding what works together takes practice, but over time with growing confidence and developing your eye, you’ll be styling like a pro. The pros tells us just a simple trio of objects can work wonders indoors and outdoors.
No project is ready without accessories, according to Jenny Weiss, co-founder of London and Dubai-based interior design studio Hill House Interiors. “They’re the finishing touches which complete the look and tie everything together,” she says. “It’s like putting together an outfit which is never quite right without the correct jewellery, shoes and handbag.”
But getting the variety of accessories right is a skill on its own. Building a collection which looks most authentic when your pieces are acquired over time will have a natural effortless look in the way they’re displayed.
“We find it devalues the work that has gone into the rest of the project if poor quality accessories are seemingly randomly added once the renovation is finished,” says Jenny. “The same applies inside and out, layering is key.”
Focusing on the outdoors, she looks to combine different planting and accessories and lighting levels as you would indoors. “This helps create a flow between the interior and exterior design, enhancing the whole scheme,” she says. “For the finishing touches, we like to add outdoor rugs, something that brings the space to life with pattern and colour that ties in nicely with the surrounding nature; a scattering of plump cushions to inject both comfort and style, and I think citronella candles are a must to create ambient lighting and, of course, to keep those pesky mosquitoes at bay.”
Asked what she considers must-have accessory, Jenny cites business partner Helen Bygraves’ choice of crystals for their holistic properties: “Citrine for joy, abundance and creativity, quartz for positive energy, purification and deep healing, and amethyst, for anti-anxiety, relaxation and serenity.”
Jessica Cunningham’s Peonies and Poodles Instagram account charts developments in her Irish house which embraces the cottagecore look. Close observers will notice how she moves her accessories around frequently to refresh different rooms.
“A space can gain dimension and become more appealing with the addition of a few nice things,” says Jessica, from Killeagh, Co Cork. “Accessories add versatility and can give an insight into your personality. Accessories also give you the option to add and take away, to mix things up and create a different interior look very easily.”
First up in her list is our favourite accessory, the cushion. “It’s ok to have countless cushions but maybe you don’t need them all at once,” she says. “I like to style my home with the seasons, changing things up every now and again to reflect what’s going on outside. Cushion combinations are a simple and affordable way to add vibrant colour and bring a seasonal decorative refresh to a room, and are a valued staple in my home.”
Now gardens are getting to the full bloom stage, Jessica suggests a vase or two of fresh flowers to update any room in the home: “They’re my go-to for adding a burst of colour, texture and natural beauty to interior spaces, as well as adding a great focal point. I love adding greenery or seasonal flowers to pretty vases and jugs and displaying them all around my home.”
Her personal favourite, though, are decorative trays: "I use them all over my home to display and style my accessories."
Jessica, who features one on her ottoman, adds: "They’re the perfect way to show off objects you love to collect such as pottery, candlesticks, books and flowers. A tray can also make a space look organised, display your favourite books and magazines by stacking them in tray and displaying on a sideboard or a coffee table.”
- Instagram.com/hillhouseinteriors
- Instagram.com/peoniesandpoodles
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