Interiors – Page 33 – Apartment Apothecary

katy 29th July 2015

Ask Apartment Apothecary – decorating a blank canvas

You’re probably thinking what on earth has the image above got to do with decorating a room. Don’t worry, all will become clear. Tia recently asked me over on my Facebook page whether I had any advice on how and where to start when decorating a completely blank canvas. At the time I told her that I usually begin with one object that I really love, like a print, a particular fabric or a piece of furntire to help me plan a colour scheme. However, that can be tricky when you pop down to the paint shop and end up with what you think is a perfect match for the colours that you love but they actually end up being way off. I have found a solution to that problem!

A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to be invited by the Amara Interior Blog Awards team to their first blogger masterclass at the KLC School of Design. When I was still teaching I used to look at Interior Design courses on offer at KLC and dream about what could be so it was a real treat to be given this opportunity.

Established over 30 years ago by Jenny Gibbs, one of the 2015 IBA expert judges, KLC is one of the most highly acclaimed design schools in the UK and the masterclass was held by the school’s Deputy Director of Studies, Julia Begbie, focusing on colour and pattern.

Julia did a great presentation for us and then we did a hands on task that I thought would be a really useful thing to share with you here as it is an invaluable tool for building up a colour scheme for a room.

Julia gave us a range of ‘concept images’ and she had used the software Color Explorer to draw out the constituent colours from these images. So, for example, I was really drawn to the image below from my Pinterest account but if I were to think about creating a colour scheme using that image as inspiration I would only identify light pink and mint green. However, this programme is much cleverer than that and extracts a range of colours and their RGB and Hex codes (the way computers display colours).

You can then use this rgb.to programme to convert the RGB number or Hex code to a RAL number, which you can take to paint shops and have paint mixed to that specific colour. Colour scheme created!

You can then begin to think about where you would like to use those colours – walls, wood work, floors, fabrics, furniture and so on. Julia gave us a black and white copy of a room that we stuck in the middle of a large piece of paper. We then cut out the colours from our concept image and placed them around the picture to help us work out where to use the colours.

Hope you find this useful. If you are interested in doing a one day class or even a full course at KLC yourself, pop over and take a look at the courses they offer.

Thank you again to KLC and the IBA team for such a great day.

Katy x

katy 27th July 2015

Shibori dyeing technique

One of the crafts I have enjoyed most was taught to me in a brilliant workshop run by Bethan of Decorator’s Notebook and Heather of Growing Spaces. We spent such a lovely morning together at Sisterhood Camp creating something out of nothing using the Japanese dyeing technique of Shibori. I took along an old white cotton pillowcase and managed to completely transform it with a few elastic bands and a bit of Dylon. If you would like to give Shibori a try there is a great tutorial here.

I really love the variety of colours created using the Shibori technique and I’ve been thinking about incorporating these colours into my home more. Here’s a Shoibori inspired collection of homewares that you can buy right here, including the dark blue plates featured in this post…

When I got home from Sisterhood camp I decided to turn my Shibori dyed pillowcase into a set of unique napkins. I just had to cut the case into four equal pieces and hem the edges on the sewing machine. And here are my hand dyed napkins in all their glory complimenting these gorgeous deep blue plates from Minor Goods and some ceramics from Bring The Outside In…

DIY Shibori napkins | Apartment Apothecary

Our Shibori dyed fabric hanging out to dry.

It was so exciting to untie the fabric after the dyeing process to reveal the pattern that I had created. I’m quite in love with the dark blue of these plates with the blue dyed napkins.

The ceramic bowl and beakers have a really interesting glaze that complement the napkins perfectly.

If you give Shibori a go I’d love to see some pics! I would like to make a quilt next – perhaps that could be a project for the Autumn.

Katy x

katy 24th July 2015

Simple Shape

I am so pleased to share Simple Shape with you today; the best of British and Irish crafted products for the home. You know you have found something special when everything is either woven, knitted, plaited, sewn, thrown or shaped by established craftspeople and emerging makers. As Helen Ogersby, who founded Simple Shape just a few weeks ago, says: “This first collection is conceived to live alongside the things you already own, they are things with integrity that stand the test of time, heirloom pieces that will age gracefully, wear in, not wear out, and that will be passed to children and grandchildren.”

Just take a look for yourselves…

Simple Shape - the best of British and Irish design carefully crafted things for the home | Apartment Apothecary

Elliott Ceramics collection made from porcelain. Stain is worked into the body of the clay and thrown on the wheel generating a marbling pattern unique to each vessel.

Baskets woven by Jenny Pearce using willow grown in her garden in Herefordshire.

Shetland Herringbone Throw. These throws are made in a mill that was established in 1837.

Irish Linen Tea Towel. 31 Chapel Lane specialise in the finest Irish cloth and source all raw material from a handful of Irish Linen Guild approved mills.

Hand carved spoons. Roanna Wells began by learning the basics of greenwood carving and has adapted these skills to produce hand carved simple, functional spoons.

There is so much more to see and appreciate over on the Simple Shape site so do take a look (and you could even treat yourselves!).

Katy x

katy 22nd July 2015

Houzz feature

I’m delighted that my flat has been featured on Houzz this week! In the first of a brand new series visiting interiors bloggers at home, I opened up my London flat and discussed my blogging journey as well as a bit more about me with beautiful photos of my home by Katharine Peachey. Houzz is a hub for home renovation and design, bringing homeowners and home professionals together so it is full to brim with interiors inspiration. I can’t wait to see the other homes that will be featured in this series!

The Houzz team also asked me to pick a piece from my home as a prize for leaving a comment on the feature. I chose this brass hanging planter from Out There Interiors that hangs in my bedroom.

Houzz feature - win this brass hanging planter | Apartment Apothecary

Win your own Bloomingville brass hanging planter that hangs in my bedroom.

Pop over to have a look at the feature and leave a comment to be in with a chance of winning the hanging planter!

Katy x

Houzz Tour: At Home With… Katy Orme of Apartment Apothecary

katy 17th July 2015

Tongue and groove panelling

I have always had a thing for tongue and groove wall panelling. I love the texture, the warmth and how much character it brings to a room. Having lived in new build flats since I bought my first flat at the age of 25, ten years down the line I am craving period features. Therefore, I am more and more drawn to this simple way of injecting character into any room. All that being said I am definitely not about to knock up some wall panelling in my flat as it would look totally ridiculous in such modern surroundings but it would be one of the first things I would do when moving somewhere new.

Not only do I like the way tongue and groove panelling looks but it is also a very practical way of covering up bad plasterwork and it can be a wipe clean hardy surface to withstand a lot of wear and tear. Have a look at these examples of where it has been used for a bit of inspiration…

Kitchen

Whether you create a splash back or panel a whole wall I love how much more personal this panelling makes a kitchen feel.

Tongue and groove wall panelling | Apartment Apothecary

Image via Skonahem

Dining room

Laying the panelling horizontally gives it a completely different feel.

Image via Julias Vita Drommer

Panelling half way up the wall is a very practical way of protecting the bottom half of a wall from scuffing – especially useful when you have chair being pulled out against a wall on a regular basis.

Image via Stadshem

Painting the panelling a bold colour that ties in with the rest of the woodwork is a good way of bringing colour into a room.

Hallway

A very practical way of protecting walls in your hallway is using tongue and groove panelling. Adding shaker peg hooks along the top of the panelling looks great, too.