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Melissa Penfold’s 17 ways to get the designer look at home without spending a fortune

July 25, 2014

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Want a quick lesson in how to decorate like a top designer? Style queen Melissa Penfold shares her top tips onย which colours look good together, how to work with texture, the way things should be displayed, and how to learn the difference between a classic and a fad. This is great, practical, no nonsense advice which really fits with Interiors Addict’s ‘style without the snobbery’ ethos. Make yourself comfortable and take note!

MelissaPenfold - Portrait-web
Photo by Denise Braki for Temple & Webster

1. Functional furnitureย 

Furniture should be useful and work hard. Your interiors should be based on a few timeless pieces that mix and match. The staples are a dining table that is at the heart of the home, a great sofa, some decent chairs, pretty side tables, a good mirror and elegant table lamps. These are the things you will take through life so they have to be good quality, fad-free classics. There is a place for personality pieces and fun updates but they need to be layered lightly on top of the foundation pieces.

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2. When in doubt, toss it outย 

The biggest single thing you can do to improve the look of your house, and get the designer look, is to take things out of it. Your interior will instantly look better if you simplify what you own and keep only what is useful and beautiful. If you don’t use something, remove it from your life. Bin, bin, bin! That means those witty fridge magnets, (your refrigerator is not a decision-pending tray), and that mouldy old Balinese daybed. Now find a proper place for everything that’s left, and be on constant patrol to keep clutter out of your house!

3. Use colour carefully

People think about colour too much and forget how lovely its absence is. Strong bright colours on walls and ceilings can dramatically shrink a space and tend to date quickly. Instead, try neutral shades for the background areas, then feature one or two strong colours in accessories that can be easily changed.

ย 4. Get flooring right

Fabulous flooring sets the tone for everything else. It has a big impact on aesthetics, practicality and budget. Remember, floors outlive paintwork, so it’s best to have something natural and muted that will work with successive colour schemes, which fits in with the way you live. Try a combo of hard floors (the widest timber floors, paver-size tiles and slabs of stone) with faded cotton, woollen or oriental rugs. Rush or sisal matting is another great option loved by designers, that’s cheap but doesn’t look it.

5. Keep it down

Don’t underestimate the power of simplicity. Real style is restrained. Most people overdo things. They overdo patterns. They overdo statement pieces. They own so much, their rooms become obstacle courses. To get the designer look, quieten everything down, particularly colours and clutter. Remember it’s as much about knowing what not to use. You’ll make life easier if you keep the basics neutral and introduce strong statements with rugs, paintings, cushions — things that are potent but portable. Keep ideas like less is more in your mind. You’ll save money and be less likely to repeat mistakes.

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6. Beware of patterns, work with textureย 

True style is based on texture. Patterns draw your eye. They dominate. They date. And they can ruin everything. When people fall in love with a pattern, they tend to go overboard. Instead, top designers use loads of texture to build up a room’s character: smooth surfaces like mirror, lacquer or satin create a formal environment, while heavier, rougher ones like wood, stone or linen, lend themselves to a more relaxed look.

7. A few display ideasย 

Stick to one or two hero pieces in a room and allow them space to shine. Even highly decorative items or disparate collections can look simple when displayed in the right way. A French gilt mirror and ornate antique Gustavian bookcase, for example, will feel contemporary when placed in a sparsely decorated room.

8. Don’t follow fads

Be true to yourself. Unless you want to change your interior as often as your hemline, avoid all the ‘next big things’ and focus on creating an interior that works for all its inhabitants, both practically and visually. Only buy pieces that will serve you like a loyal dog and that you love, and it will work. Quality distinguishes style from fashion.

9. The secrets of upholstery

Big name designers know soft furnishings, fabrics, curtains, and cushions are the key to comfort: they determine quality, durability, function and make an interior feel right. You can opt for anything, from a cheap cotton to an over-the-top silk, just as long as it feels good and is suitable. Be realistic about the way you live. If you’re on a budget, use special fabrics on small pieces that make a big impact, and cheaper fabrics for curtains. But always use the best quality fabrics you can afford. It’s money well spent.

10. Throw in something unexpectedย 

Once you’ve made the big choices, the rest is about how you put it together. It takes a lifetime of collecting to finish a room. Pair the unexpected, mix up your genres, contrast textures: cotton with silk, cashmere with canvas. A lot of style comes from throwing a spanner in the works, mixing incongruous elements such as a chainstore round pedestal table teamed with vintage leather wingback chairs.

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11. It’s theย little things

Style is imagination, balance, an ability to judge proportions and knowing how to finish things. That might be buying a second-hand baroque mirror at a junk shop and painting it whiteย or raiding the auction houses for one-offs — commodes, chairs, stools, mirrors — that give your house soul. Nothing has to cost a lot but they need scale and proportion. Buy less, but buy better. And don’t throw out your old coats, boots and hats. They can be better than art, more natural, less try-hard, and make your home look like a Ralph Lauren ad.

12. Thinkย comfort

Luxury is not about having mod cons, marble bathrooms and a boat at the bottom of the garden. Your home has to be a sanctuary — as soon as you walk through the door, your spirits should lift. If it feels that way to you, everyone that visits will feel the same. Style endures because it works. Surround yourself with the best you can afford. Even if you live in a shoebox, honour your presence in it. Legendary designers know luxury is a comfortable chair with a good reading lamp and a handy table to pop a drink on. You can have that wherever you live.

13. Become a curator

What you collect is entirely up to you, but don’t just amass things, be discriminating and follow your heart: the more individual your tastes, the more interesting your collections will be. And remember if it’s worth collecting, it’s worth displaying well. Don’t separate the pieces of a collection — keep them together. Copy the world’s best designers and hang them on the wall, line them along shelves, group on tabletops. Anything en masse looks good.

14.ย Developย your eyeย 

Even if you’re not sure of your taste, start learning. If you can’t afford to buy at the best places in town, window-shop there to see what it’s all about. Develop your sense of what looks great, good proportions, fabrics, finishes. Hit the best hotels, bars and restaurants in town when you go travelling: they’re a lesson in how to pull things together. You may not be able to afford the big name designers that have created the looks, but you’ll pick up the ideas, and then be able to imitate them at home. And it’s free.

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15. Don’t have good and everyday thingsย 

Good glasses and plates should be your everyday stuff. A good glass (or plate) is one that has great proportions and is well balanced and a joy to use: and is just as likely to be made from plain glass as lead crystal (or stoneware as bone china). Get one set of china that is good enough for the smartest dinner party but tough enough for every day. Choose a low maintenance classic that will make food look great.

16. Don’t forget the bedheadsย 

Installing a bedhead is the most cost-effective thing you can do in a bedroom. For the shape, you can go high-square, French, humpback, gothic, or elliptical, and they can be detailed in all sorts of ways, but buttoning and studding are good looks that won’t date.

17. Maintain everythingย 

Maintenance gives a room form, structure and visual appeal. Keep your chrome polished, your glassware gleaming and your flowers fresh. It takes 10 minutes to whip around each morning and put things straight. And it’s such a great way to live.

— Melissa Penfold is a journalist and author, whose career includes working as the interiors editor at Belle, two shoppingย columns in the Sydney Morning Herald and two-best selling books. To inject some of Melissaโ€™s elegance and style into your home, visit the Melissa Penfold Collectionย on Temple & Webster, starting today (25 July 2014).ย 

Photo credit:ย Thomas Hamel & Associates

 

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Those finishing touches make ALL the difference! Those finishing touches make ALL the difference! 

@kethy.australia, whose cabinet hardware I've used in my own kitchen, laundry and on my recent sideboard glow up, are passionate about bringing you the latest design and finishes from around the world!ย 

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Whether you're embarking on a new build, renovating an existing kitchen, bathroom or laundry or updating a piece of furniture, Kethy have something for you in their huge range.

See it all online and find your local re-seller at their website via link in @kethy.australia bio.

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Before & after: Renovating a kitchen while keeping Before & after: Renovating a kitchen while keeping ALL the character!

What a great example this is by @huntingforgeorge 

See all the details, and the laundry, on the blog now, via link in bio.
The patient has very much bounced back! Letterbox The patient has very much bounced back!

Letterbox kinder egg deliveries from a friend, dressing changes without a flinch and refusing to nap despite all the bribes (check the face on him in pic 3!).

Thanks for all your care and messages/comments for this tired and shaken up mama! Now very relieved and grateful ๐Ÿ™
Before & after It's not just the award winning de Before & after

It's not just the award winning designer houses that get us excited here. It's also the beloved family homes which are renovated and extended to make them fit for purpose so people can continue to live where they love ๐Ÿค—

@inspiredspacesaus helped her clients with teenage kids transform this house in Sydney's Hills District inside and out, making it their forever home. 

Due to the nature of the block they could only extend sideways and then gave it street appeal with render, new windows and doors.

See inside on the blog now, via link in bio. It was completely overhauled!
Charlie doesn't recommend running head first into Charlie doesn't recommend running head first into tiled steps ๐Ÿค•

Oh what a night. Thankfully Hornsby Hospital were as amazing as always and we avoided stitches. All taped and glued  back together and now to keep him calm for the next few days (๐Ÿคช) and watch for signs of concussion. 

Bravest little patient ever. Yes I've had a ๐Ÿท

Funny how we go into super organised mama mode in times like these. Grabbed dinosaurs, textas and scrapbook on the way out in case we had a long wait!

UPDATE: thanks for all the love! Charlie is so well this morning after a big sleep!
Australian made bathroomware is seriously impressi Australian made bathroomware is seriously impressive!

The new @studio.xox ONLY sells Australian brands. Like @nood_co coloured basins, lead-free eco brass from @faucetstrommen and @lindseywherrett's  ceramic basins made by hand in Tassie.

And as for their Sydney showroom (they also sell online): WOW.

See and read more on the blog now via link in bio.

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I'm THRILLED to be an ambassador for the brand new I'm THRILLED to be an ambassador for the brand new @madeinaustshow in Sydney this August.

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It's the first business to business trade event connecting retailers with Australian made products to champion our local makers๐Ÿ™

Apply to exhibit or find out more at their website, via their bio, now!

Are YOU buying more Australian made post covid?

#madeinaustralia #australianmade #aussiemade #aussiedesign
Do I recommend a timber vanity top? A big fat NOP Do I recommend a timber vanity top?

A big fat NOPE! ๐Ÿ’ง 

Which is why we have recently covered ours with a Caesarstone top (thanks to @justinplace_sydney for the advice and supply) and the sweet RELIEF of not having to worry about this high traffic area anymore, I'm telling you!๐Ÿค—

Doesn't matter what they tell you or how many times it's sealed, I'm not sure it's a great idea in a room which is so, well, wet!

I love having the warmth of timber in the bathroom and it's a beautiful piece, but timber on the top? Never again.

Ours probably lasted a year (if that) before it started to go downhill (and we want a good decade out of a bathroom, right?!). 2.5 years on, everything else in this bathroom looks virtually brand new and the water marked vanity top was really letting the side down and making me sad!

But I'm so pleased with this solution, I have to say! Took the plumber less than an hour to remove the sink, install the top and connect the sink back up. We didn't need to move the tap and it isn't too close to the basin.

The kids are allowed to brush their teeth and wash their hands (liquid soap ๐Ÿฅด) in here again and I can leave my hair straightener on there with gay abandon ๐Ÿ˜†

The reflective surface (which I can clean with whatever I like!๐Ÿ’ช๐Ÿป) brightens the room up too!

Next week I'll tell you what I really think of my brass tile trim too ๐Ÿ˜‰

#interiorsaddictbathroomreno2 #interiorsaddictfamilyhomereno #timbervanity
Is there a more decadent and delicious soup than F Is there a more decadent and delicious soup than French onion?

I think not!

Grab the recipe on the blog this morning via link in bio.
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. AvatarCassie says

    July 28, 2014 at 10:54 pm

    I like your tips… Never thought about patterns vs texture like that before. Thanks keep it coming!

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