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Our homes reflect our personalties. What do you want yours to say about you?

November 6, 2013

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By Amy Cunningham

Do you ever feel like your home doesn’t quite feel the way you want it to? Are your spaces communicating your taste and who you are? Or are they just missing the mark?ย As an interior designer and stylist I love to work with clients to create spaces that not only look beautiful but feel good, places that connect on that emotional level to those who live there. Here are some of my top tips to create a home that both looks and feels amazing!

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First impressions

First impressions count. Have you ever considered painting your front door a vibrant or contrasting colour? Guaranteed to make you smile every time you arrive home and impress visitors with your confident style. Or replacing your front door with a new modern style can be a wonderful way to liven up a tired entry space and set the tone for the interior spaces.

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To have and to hold

We all have those objects in our home that we feel a strong connection to, that stay with us as we move, renovate, redecorate and grow in our style. There are often strong narratives behind these pieces, family linage, wonderful holidays, milestones in your life. The positive memories that these elements remind us of bring life to our homes, giving our spaces meaning and personality unique to us. Sometimes the most precious items are not of the greatest value, or might need a new lease on life. Try mixing them up with newer homewares to create arrangements of eclectic joy. These objects have a pull on your emotional heart. Why not make them centre stage in your home?

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Personal space

From my experience, master bedrooms are often a forgotten space in the home. A lot of time and effort is spent on the public spaces and the children’s rooms with little energy left to make the ultimate resting place for yourself to unwind and relax. A few simple subtractions and additions can transform your personal space into one that makes your heart sing when you retire for the day.

Consider removing all electronic devices from this room and having a technology-free zone. It is incredible how much of an effect this one simple move can have on your ability to relax and really truly switch off. So lose the phone as an alarm clock and invest in a cute bedside table clock. This is a wonderful space to be playful with colour pattern and texture. Try hanging a bold print, multicoloured artwork or headboard behind the bed that can be used as a reference point for colour. Then by simply mixing and matching your linen, you can pull a variety of colours out in your cushions and accessories to reflect your style.

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Bring the quirky out of hiding

Are there things you have tucked away in a cupboard for fear of them not co-ordinating with this season’s trend? Or are you worried that they just don’t match? These are the things that bring uniqueness to your home, those truly personal touches that are your signature. We are sometimes connected to things others may find unusual, quirky or downright ugly but we love them just the same. Do you collect certain things, drawn to particular colours, motifs or themes? Let these shine in your interiors and show them with pride. I like to think of these elements as the seasoning added to the space that truly makes it yours. When mixed with classic or seasonal items they can be the finishing touch to add your signature style!

Mixing colour & layering pattern

Don’t be afraid to mix up your colours and layer patterns to create truly unique looks. Look for colours that compliment each other in tone for relaxing spaces or provide high contrast if you are after an energising effect. For patterns, play with ones that vary in scale and size but maintain some commonality in style or colour range. But most of all be playful, try things out and move elements around your home. Experimentation is one of the best ways to develop your personal style.

Relationships

Your home can truly affect your mood and the dynamics of the relationships of those living with you. Consider the taste and needs of others in your home and how they can be represented and included in your decorating choices. Of course you need to curate all of these ideas to develop a cohesive space but having little unusual or unexpected touches can do wonders to enhance the space and make those you live with feel at home and included in the process.

Nature as a finishing touch

There is nothing like the energy that cut flowers and plants can bring to a space. This is about placing these in areas that are feeling a little tired or in need some vibrance. This can be a simple as a couple of blooms in jam jars or some green cuttings from the garden, they all bring life and freshness to your interior. The beauty of fresh flowers is they’re a quick and inexpensive update that can be changed regularly, so get creative, use a variety of vessels and most of all have fun and let your personality shine!

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Now all you have to do is sit back and enjoy the new energy of your space with your loved ones. How does your home make you feel? How do you like to show your personality in your interiors?

Amy Cunningham is an interior designer at Amaze by Amy.

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Want to try a different tipple this weekend? Toda Want to try a different tipple this weekend?

Today's #iafoodiefriday recipe is a lemon and pink peppercorn spritz by our friends at @thewholefoodsrefillery ๐Ÿธ 

They'll give you 20% off your first order with our code. Find everything you need on the blog now via link in bio.

Cheers! 

#pinkpeppercorn #spritzlife
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 

Their stunning timber knobs and handles from Denmark add texture, warmth and an organic feel to yourย projectsย that can only be achieved by using natural materials.

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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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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
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. AvatarEdwardcarolin says

    November 6, 2013 at 6:03 pm

    Yes this is really a fact. our home reflects our personality. Now I feel so proud of my new home renovate by Silverado Custom Homes at toronto. Share your ideas and opinions directly to the builders.

  2. AvatarMadeleine says

    November 7, 2013 at 12:45 pm

    Amy I totally agree that the home reflects your personality. Photography is a big part of my personality… Yet I hang no photos! Is there anything you would recommend for an easily up dateable large format photo display in a rental property? (ie.. no hooks) …ha ha that is a very precise request, but I think you would probably have a perfect solution up your sleeve.

  3. AvatarCrystal says

    November 7, 2013 at 7:49 pm

    I love this post! I think the hard part of creating your home is separating the trends and what you think you should have with ‘you’

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