Design ideas/tips – Page 6 – Apartment Apothecary

katy 24th March 2016

Floral Easter decoration

I love, love, love Easter so as soon as I saw this hanging candle holder from Out There Interiors I knew I wanted to add a Spring touch so I could hang it over the Easter table. Hanging decorations over dining tables are always a good thing as they leave more space for hot cross buns, chocolate eggs and more hot cross buns.

We always used to spend Easter at my grandparents’ house down in Devon and my Grandma would decorate the table so beautifully so I decided to channel my Grandma today and go back to good old oasis. I will always remember watching her flower arranging at her church and squidging my fingers into the oasis and probably getting told off for doing so. I’ve never used it myself but it seemed like the perfect way to add flowers to this candle holder. Plus, it holds a dinner candle in place perfectly.

Hanging candle holder for a Spring easter table | Easter table decoration | Out There Interiors | Apartment Apothecary

I cut out a piece of oasis the size and shape of the candle holder and soaked it in water for a minute or so. I then placed it into the holder.

I stuck a dinner candle into the centre of the oasis (otherwise a big pillar candle would stand up by itself).

I cut some blooms from my balcony (freesias, grape hyacinths, lavender leaves, rosemary) and added a couple that I had bought. It couldn’t be easier to stick them into the oasis – just make sure you are arranging it to look good from below as it will be hanging above you.

Cute, isn’t it? Just make sure you keep a close eye and don’t let the candle burn all the way down. Happy easter everyone, hope you all have the most wondrous long weekend.

Katy x

*Written in collaboration with Out There Interiors.

katy 16th March 2016

My Houseology

Sharing a bit of linen cushion love with you today. These beauties are actually destined for my new sofa when it arrives but at the moment they are sitting pretty on my bed. I chose linen pillows as I love the texture and they always look so welcoming to me, especially good for a bit of sofa lounging (also these cushions have a ruffled frill that make me swoon!).

The cushions are from Houseology who have recently set up a new platform that allows customers to share photos of their purchases once they are in their new homes. My Houseology will give useful interior inspiration and the images will also feature on the individual product pages, which I think is really helpful as I don’t know about you, but when I am choosing a product to buy online I want to see as many photos of it as possible, especially in the context of a real home. On top of that a panel of Houseologists will choose a winning image each month and the winner will receive £500 to spend with them!

My Houseology | Linen pillows | Apartment Apothecary

House In Style HS Bari cushions in anthracite and white.

I think I am a bit obsessed with soft pinks and greys at the moment.

Love the pretty ruffled edge of these cushions that give them a feminine touch.

I’m off to upload my pics onto My Houseology – hope to see you over there!

Katy x

*This post is written in collaboration with Houseology.

katy 10th March 2016

Besta Ikea hacks

Yesterday evening I begged Jules to drive me to Ikea (I’ve never learnt to drive – shameful, I know) to buy a set of BESTA cupboards. I managed to persuade him with the promise of meatballs followed by a hotdog (seriously, that’s all it takes with him) so off we went at 7pm to miss rush hour and the crowds and we were home by 10pm because there is no browsing time allowed with my husband-type in toe.

Between us we really don’t have that much stuff but we also only have one built in storage cupboard in the whole flat so we are quite desperate for some extra ‘hidden’ storage i.e. a cupboard that I can stuff full of crap that no one can see. I always try to avoid large pieces of furniture that take up a lot of floor space and could potentially make our rooms feel cramped so I’m constantly on the lookout for wall cupboards that are not too deep, as this can eat into the space too. In short, I don’t want cupboards that touch the floor or stick out from the wall too much but I do want to store quite a lot of stuff – kinda tricky.

I’m pretty sure BESTA is the answer to my prayers (for now, until I find a beautiful vintage version – obvs). They come in a range of depths, can be wall mounted and they are white so they fade into the background. Perfect. The other great thing is that lots of clever people have come up with creative hacks to make these plain cabinets a bit more interesting. What do you think?

For a window seat just add a mattress and cushions. Yes, please. Image via Elizabeth Heier

Wall mount slim cabinets with a DIY concrete top for a smart hallway table. Very clever. Image via Plantete Deco

If I could afford a marble top I would do this in a flash! Image via Designville

By adding a single wooden top to this collection of cabinets it unifies the look and gives it a bit more character. I’d like to do this with mine with some old scaffolding planks perhaps. Image via Vidanullvier

Try my leather handle tutorial to give a plain piece of furniture a completely new look. Image via Apartment Diet

I have chosen three cabinets this size and I will mount them slightly raised off the floor, which will help to keep the room feeling spacious. I like the idea of hanging a light over it too.

I will bring you a little storage cupboard update once it is installed and stuffed to the brim!

Katy x

katy 26th February 2016

Shutter love

It is with a bit of sadness that I write this post. You see, I had plans of installing plantation-style shutters into my home during this bout of re-decoration but it turns out that my stupid windows are not suitable – gutted, totally gutted. However, it didn’t seem fair to keep all this shutter love to myself so I wanted to share some of it with you today.

I always think that window treatments are one of the things that people get stuck on most when it comes to decorating. It can feel like a bit of a minefield – do you go with curtains (black out, full length, triple pleat…) or blinds (roller, venetian, roman…) or shutters (full height, solid panel, cafe-style…)? Not only is the choice a bit overwhelming but because everyone’s windows are different it can be difficult to know how to measure them and then how to install them. That’s why I think it is important to turn over the job to the experts and in fact that was the first thing I did before I moved into my current flat; I got custom made curtains for my bedroom.

I really wanted shutters from Luxaflex for my office and kitchen as I love the character and style that they can bring to a room. They are also very practical as you can easily control the amount of light coming into the room. Just look at how dreamy they are…

I love the idea of throwing open the shutters in the kitchen in the morning to let the light pour in. I love how fresh and modern they look, whilst still reminding me of old characterful French houses.

Shutters in a sitting room would work really well as there are often times that I want to block some light out, whether I am reading the papers at the weekend or guiltily watching a matinee movie, and they are great for privacy too, especially if your sitting room looks on to the street (or over at other apartment blocks like mine does).

This cafe-style shutter on a bathroom window is the perfect solution to achieving privacy yet not blocking out too much light.

Luxaflex will provide a made to measure service from start to finish to help you figure out what will work best for your windows. If you do get shutters, please don’t rub it in my face!

By the way, Luxaflex are running a brilliant competition at the moment to win a trip to Milan (err, yes please!). All you have to do is snap something which says ‘interior style’ to you (it could be anything…a pattern, a small detail or a big interior design statement) and upload the picture to Instagram remembering to tag @luxaflexuk and use the #MyStyleEye hash tag. Alternatively, if you don’t use Instagram you can upload your pic here.

Katy x

*Written in collaboration with Luxaflex and all images from their website.

katy 16th February 2016

Shades of Grey by Kate Watson-Smyth

A while ago I decided to join the craze for grey and painted my hallway in Little Greene’s French Grey Mid. The only problem was that it was brown in my flat – massive error. I just wish I had had the insight of journalist and blogger Kate Watson-Smyth at the time and her brilliant new book, Shades of Grey.

I’m thrilled to be the second stop on Kate’s book blog tour because I fell in love with her style and AH-MAZING home a while ago so I knew her book would be filled with brilliant advice, inspiring images and Kate’s witty writing style is the cherry on the top. I particularly enjoyed the practical advice in the book, which makes it a really useful design resource: which shade to choose, advice on paint finishes, what works well with grey.

Here are a few of my favourite interiors and pieces of advice from the book to give you a quick sneak peek…

Shades of Grey by Kate Watson-Smyth | Interior design advice | How to use grey paint in your home | Book review by Apartment Apothecary

I have always wanted to find a pale neutral grey like the colour in the bedroom above. There is in depth advice in the book about specific paint colours, which is always useful.

Kate advises using a very dark grey, similar to the image above, to give small objects or pieces of art great impact – isn’t that bedroom beautiful?

There are also ideas in the book for different ways to use grey, whether it be painting kitchen cabinets or pieces of furniture. I love the kitchen above and the way grey has been used to give greater impact to the shelving.

My current favourite combination of dusky pink and grey works perfectly in the bedroom above. I really like the idea of painting half the wall, too.

Kate also explores how grey can be use in modern settings as well as more traditional rural settings like the dining hall above.

As the grey bandwagon looks set to continue rolling for a long while if you would like to use it in your home, this is the book for you.

Katy x