Innehållsförteckning för February 2024 från Ideal Home

EDITOR’S LETTER I made a rookie decorating error recently. We’ve been giving the downstairs WC a much-needed makeover, adding wall panelling and built-in shelving and it was finally time to paint it. I knew I wanted a bold colour, and decided on red. I threw a few testers on the wall, but rushed my decision because I was impatient to get the room finished. After the first coat the colour didn’t feel right at all, and put me instantly on edge. I left it for a while, thinking I’d get used to it, but it was still a no-go, so we had to buy new paint and try again. Luckily, this time I love the colour – more of a warm terracotta – and the room feels fun and cosy…

LOOKS THAT LAST MINIMALIST PANELLING Contemporary vertical battens bring interest to a large area of plain colour, making a high-ceilinged room feel more cosy STYLE DIRECTION“Earthy terracotta on both walls and ceiling will sit well with wood flooring and create a relaxed mood"HEATHER YOUNG, EDITOR IN CHIEF NATURAL CONTRAST Use furniture in lighter wood tones to create a softer accent, with lots of grainy texture to offset the flat paint finish STYLE DIRECTION“Rich, chocolate brown is the perfect dark and dramatic shade for a dining room – setting the scene for intimate evenings"GINEVRA BENEDETTI, DEPUTY EDITOR ON DISPLAY Use dark walls as a backdrop for a collection of plates or black-and-white photos in white frames CHOOSE THE RIGHT SHADE Colour drenching works brilliantly with rich, dark colours to create a…

What the experts say... Designers and stylists share their views ‘Pale yet earthy with warm undertones, plaster pink creates a calming and serene atmosphere. Its soft, versatile nature means it can acts as either a neutral or an accent colour in an interior.’ ANNA HILL, BRAND DIRECTOR AND COLOUR CONSULTANT, FENWICK & TILBROOK ‘A warm, red-based colour, plaster pink has been toned down to remove some of its sweetness, making it more compatible with other colours. Try it with subdued mossy green and blue, especially inky indigo, or teal. Because it is such a pale shade it can act as a neutral against stronger colours.’ SIMON TEMPRELL, INTERIOR DESIGN MANAGER, NEPTUNE‘A plaster-pink wall in a kitchen looks contemporary and sophisticated, and works well with accents of black, as well as…

1 GET ORGANISED WITH STORAGE The start of a new year is a great time to have a declutter and put some good storage options in place. Start by looking at how you can make the best of an under stairs area, with hooks for coats and bags, baskets for shoes and a handy bench seat. Make it more attractive by wallpapering or painting the back wall, giving this mini space its own identity and turning it into an area you’ll want to show off. 2 UPDATE AN OFFICE Whether it’s wallpaper or a mural, give your home office a new on-trend backdrop and set up a creative space. 1970s-style patterns are set to be big news this year, as are nature-inspired designs and bold, curvy shapes. STYLE TIP Tape…

PROJECT DETAILS WHO LIVES HERE? Eleanor Bowmer, a designer (Instagram @eleanorbowmer), her husband, Ollie, and two children, Norie and Ted. THE PROJECT Refit of an en suite in a six-bed 1930s house in Worsley, as part of a bigger extension project. TOTAL COST £11,000 THE PROBLEM As part of a single-storey extension, the main en suite needed a complete refit THE SOLUTION ‘I wanted to create a luxury hotel vibe in our en suite, so I kept it sleek with marble and added gold fixtures to give it an expensive feel. My husband, Ollie, is a builder and knows some great subcontractors, so the project went really smoothly. Plus I was lucky that any changes along the way could be incorporated relatively easily. We also had an architect who we’d…

BEFORE YOU BUY ■ Compressor (also called refrigerant or condenser) dehumidifiers tend to be the most common design available in the UK. They work by drawing air into the dehumidifier via a fan, and then running the air over cold coils to condense the moisture from it, whereby the condensed water is collected in a water tank. The coils are kept cool by refrigerant which means the unit also needs a compressor built in. The only downside of compressor dehumidifiers is that they need the air to be warm for this process to work. Most will work above 5°C, but they’re most efficient at an ambient temperature of around 20°C (depending on the individual model). ■ Desiccant dehumidifiers differ in that they use an absorbent material or chemical desiccant to…

VOICE ASSISTANTS Discover how you can make your smart or virtual voice assistant work harder to make your life easier WHAT IS A VOICE ASSISTANT? In a nutshell, a smart or virtual assistant is an AI programme integrated into a device in your home that is designed to perform tasks or answer questions. It could be built into a smart speaker or hub, a kettle, coffee machine, smartphone, TV and so on. There are numerous assistants available but the three that dominate the market are Alexa (Amazon), Google Assistant (Google) and Siri (Apple). They’re controlled by your voice and are usually alerted by their specific ‘wake’ words, e.g. ‘OK (or Hey) Google’, ‘Alexa’ or ‘Hey Siri’. Order it to do a task or ask it a question and it will…

Everyone’s ‘happy’ colour is going to be different, depending on personal experience and the feelings you associate with different colours. According to Carl Jung, the founder of analytical psychology, ‘colours are the mother tongue of the subconscious’. The link between colour and mood has been universally established, but let’s not oversimplify it. Colour isn’t a magic pill to fix a low mood. If only it were that easy! Dr Domicele Jonauskaite, an experimental psychologist specialising in colour, explains, ‘For instance, we might ask participants in a study to associate emotion words with the colour red and find that it is associated with love and anger, passion and hate – all high power, strong emotions. Does this mean that when we look at the colour red we feel these emotions? Probably…

HAPPY HOME UPCYCLE PROJECT YOU WILL NEED ● Chest of drawers ● Roll of wallpaper ● Craft knife ● PVA glue ● Matt varnish ● Pot of matching paint Start by measuring the drawers (and edges) then mark out each piece on the wallpaper. Cut out each section with a craft knife. Brush the chest with a thin layer of PVA then smooth on the wallpaper, flattening it with care. Leave to dry. Paint the top surface, knobs and legs of the chest for a coordinated look. Once dry, finish the wallpaper with two coats of matt varnish.…

COLLAB ALERT Coat X Colours of Arley We’ve seen a shift away from cooler neutrals, with much warmer colours of biscuity stone and terracotta guaranteed to be on-trend this season. The new Northern Stone collection, a collab between Coat and Colours of Arley, has two such sunbaked neutrals that will bring a cocooning and restful feel to your living space. Inspired by Colours of Arley’s Manchester roots, both Alderley Edge, a warm sandstone with pink undertones, and Northern Quarter, an earthy red, are a nod to the area’s famed landmarks. IH LOVES... Scalloped edges Laguna side plate in Green, £150 for four; Laguna bowl in Green, £140 for four, both Tavola by Skye McAlpine What to do this month... LISTEN In her podcast They Don’t Teach This At School, Myleene…

Our homes are very much an outward reflection of ourselves, but can also reflect back onto us. I do try to avoid exaggeration, but everything in our homes has an impact on our wellness in one way or another, physically and mentally. If this makes you lift your head out of this magazine and look around the room, don’t panic! There are few things a quick tidy can’t fix. I’ve previously mentioned the brilliant storage solutions I’ve seen Pinterest users searching for – good storage will also help to put your mind at ease. Tidiness is the foundation of wellness in your home, and people flock to Pinterest to discover, save and shop practical solutions to boost their home mood. It could be as easy as a living room rejig,…

ON POINT Fez porcelain Star Cotto tile, £179.48sq m, Ca’ Pietra SIMPLY CHIC Fireclay Light Hex tile, £81.90sq m, Porcelain Superstore…

1. TWO-TONE CABINETS In a small kitchen, it’s easy to play it safe with neutral cabinetry, but by using a two-tone design you can shift the focus from how compact the space is and create interest instead. Keep really dark colours to the base cabinets, where possible, so the upper half of your scheme feels light and airy. Tavole kitchen, from £8,036, LochAnna Kitchens 2. FEATURE FLOORING A patterned tile design can create a focal point that detracts from a low ceiling or narrow layout. Choose a grout that complements the tiles you use, making it less noticeable and helping to trick the eye into thinking the area is larger than it really is – or use a vinyl, which will do the job for you. Eclipse 596 Emilia vinyl,…

HOME NOTES WHO LIVES HERE? Holly Lamont, founder of interior design studio Holla Design, lives here with her husband Tommy, along with their labrador, Juno. THE PROPERTY A three-bedroom Victorian terrace house in Tarporley, Cheshire. 1 “I like to create a happy, welcoming environment” ‘There must be a comfy sofa and every room flows to the next. The dining room felt gloomy, so it made sense to knock through to the living room. The walls are painted in a pink tone to work with the existing flooring and kitchen worktop. It’s an easy colour to work with that’s also fun.’ BUY THE KEY PIECES Walls painted in Jonquil emulsion, £60 for 2.5ltr, Edward Bulmer. Strawberry rug, £320, Sunday and Story, is similar. Haverhill chair in Neutral (left), £798, Anthropologie 2…

“We wanted to ACHIEVE a balance of fun and COMFORT, while showcasing the property’s VICTORIAN charm. It’s a lovely BLEND of industrial meets boho”AMY COPE, HOMEOWNER HOME NOTES WHO LIVES HERE? Amy Cope, 45, a nurse, lives here with her children, Evie, 17, and Sonny, 15, plus dogs, Alfie and Bo. THE PROPERTY A five-bedroom Victorian townhouse in Darlington, County Durham. Faced with an awkward layout that didn’t make the best use of space, Amy and her then husband Phil reconfigured the ground floor of their Victorian family home and converted the basement to create a much better connection with the garden. WHY DID YOU BUY THIS HOUSE? ‘We needed a garage for our camper van but didn’t want to move far, so we found a Victorian house with a…

Conservatories are one of the most popular ways to add space to your home, creating a natural, free-flowing link between inside and out. The all-glazed walls, doors and roof mean that you can be surrounded by nature while being sheltered indoors, yet it still allows light to reach the rooms in the centre of your home. The very best conservatories are perfect for use as a versatile garden room, playroom or dining space. Our love for this traditional extension shows no sign of abating; nearly two million conservatories are installed on homes in the UK each year, according to Orangeries UK (orangeries-uk.co.uk). In order to be called a conservatory, a building must have ‘at least 50% of its side wall area glazed and at least 75% of its roof glazed…

BEFORE YOU BUY ■ When shopping for bath towels, you’ll notice that the term GSM is mentioned a lot, which stands for ‘grams per square metre’. Put simply, it’s the way weight is measured for towels. Typically speaking, the higher the GSM, the thicker the towel and the more luxurious it is considered to be. Aim for a GSM of at least 500 or above. ‘The GSM is a good indication of how heavy and dense a towel is,’ explains Lucy Comer, partner & bath shop buyer at John Lewis & Partners. ‘Generally, the higher the GSM, the thicker and more absorbent the towel will be. Lightweight towels dry quicker, but heavyweight towels have a more luxurious feel.’ ■ Next is the construction. ‘The yarns that make up the pile…

6 things that could invalidate your insurance Whether you’re renting or you’re a homeowner, home insurance is important – while it is not a legal requirement, it is essential protection for your home and the goods in it. But, it’s important to understand what could invalidate your home insurance. This month, our money expert, Kalpana Fitzpatrick, highlights some of the common mistakes that could leave you unprotected and out of pocket. CAT FLAPS While a cat flap conveniently lets your pet in and out of the house, it can also give easy access to a burglar. They are known as cat flap burglars, who could use the flap to access your home by reaching out for keys or using a tool through it to open an unlocked door. It means…

We love the weekend, but wouldn’t yours be even better if what you did on a Sunday could set you up for a happier home and an organised, calm week ahead? Whether you slouch into Monday after a super-relaxed weekend or you’re a victim of the ‘Sunday scaries’ (defined by the prestigious Cleveland Clinic as ‘feelings of intense anxiety and dread that occur every Sunday’), there’s no doubt that a ‘Sunday reset’ can help you get ready for the week to come. ‘Finding and maintaining healthy rituals can be a really soothing way to prepare for the week ahead and stave off that “Sunday night fear”. The repetition helps them to become habits, performed almost automatically after a few weeks or months,’ explains life coach Helen Jane Campbell (coachingbyhelen.com). ‘Deciding…

Crispy sticky harissa lamb SERVES 3-4 READY IN 25 MINS ● 6tbsp cornflour ● 350g lamb leg steaks, cut into strips ● vegetable oil, for frying ● 1 large onion, thinly sliced ● 1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into thin strips ● 5 spring onions, thinly sliced ● Steamed white rice, to serve FOR THE SAUCE ● 5tbsp clear honey ● 4tbsp rose harissa ● 3tbsp rice vinegar ● 2tbsp light soy sauce ● 2tbsp cornflour 1 Mix the cornflour with salt and pepper in a mixing bowl, add the lamb and work the cornflour into the lamb for a minute. 2 Heat a large frying pan over a medium-high heat, pour in about 2.5cm vegetable oil and bring to frying temperature (add a lamb strip – if it…

The Dragons’ Den star and businesswoman lives in Somerset with her husband, Paul, and their five dogs. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU DO WHEN YOU GET HOME? I get completely jumped on by our dogs. It’s like they haven’t seen me for months. After I’ve fought my way through the front door, I take off my shoes. WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE TIME? I love the evenings, especially in summer. I can work until midnight if I need to, but I’ll take a break in the evening, grab myself a cup of coffee, take my shoes off and wander around the garden, just to get my feet on the ground, fresh air in my lungs and remember what’s important in life. I start every day barefoot in the garden, whether…

WHERE TO BUY I’m available in four other lush colours…

CLEVER DECORATING Create a noticeboard wall Self-adhesive cork tiles are a cheap way to create a modular pinboard, while a row of three nails above your desk will give you a place for clipboards you can reach up and grab. Give it a twist... Tile the whole wall behind the desk and use it for display as well as work memos. Set up a dressing station Make getting ready quicker with a trio of chests topped by a length of plywood. Use the drawers to hold essentials, while accessories can be laid out on top for the coming week. Give it a twist... Elevate basic Ikea chests by painting them boudoir pink. Sort the cleaning cupboard Consolidate your cleaning kit into one cupboard for easier household management. This way, everyone…

As we enter a new year, how will our homes change? From hybrid living and working to meaningful design and ‘cradle-to-cradle’ sustainable choices that eliminate waste, we asked three interiors industry experts to share their 2024 home thoughts… NEW YEAR, NEW LIFE AT HOME ‘In 2024, we will want home to comfort and nourish us,’ says Naomi, ‘but we will recognise a desire to be satisfied with less, as we embrace the “age of frugality”, where limited natural resources encourage us to find more meaningful minimalism.’ Sara agrees: ‘Sustainability and eco-friendly living will be a dominating trend. We’re already seeing those earthy hues rise in popularity as we look for a connection with nature and the organic.’ Helena believes that these ‘warmer tones are a natural progression following the grounding,…

Chests of drawers Not just practical, make a style statement too WHERE TO BUY I’m available in four other finishes storage jars A kitchen must-have for a smart shelf You can pair me with my smaller self WHERE TO BUY Baskets Stash all sorts with this quick-tidy solution WHERE TO BUY I’m handmade from poplar plywood wardrobes Keep hangers in line with these freestanding styles WHERE TO BUY I’m a slimline style ideal for alcoves…

PROJECT DETAILS WHO LIVES HERE? Claire Totman lives here with her husband Dan and their children, Georgie, five, and Freddie, two. THE PROJECT An L-shaped kitchen extension in a four-bedroom Edwardian terrace in Surrey. TOTAL COST £130,000 THE PROBLEM We lived with a makeshift kitchen and no heating for two years after moving in THE SOLUTION ‘The Edwardian terrace had been empty for four years and it didn’t have a proper kitchen or any heating. I own an architectural and interior design studio (clairetotmandesigns.co.uk) so I handled the drawings and planning permission. My goal was for the north-west facing room to be as bright and open as possible with full height doors and large roof lights. Style wise I wanted a traditional design in warm neutrals with a few modern…

Radiators have been the go-to choice for heating our homes for decades. However, in recent years, we’ve seen underfloor heating (UFH) rise through the ranks as a popular option, resulting in some stiff competition. This poses the question of underfloor heating vs radiators – which is better? Which is more affordable? And which option will make our lives easier and homes warmer? In the battle between the two options, there are a number of important considerations to make. Cost is the most notable factor, but the ease of installation, design practicalities and upkeep all factor into the decision making. Plus, it’s important to understand that there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach – what is right for you might not be best for another home. ‘There’s a whole raft…

A couple of months ago I was reading an article about misophonia – also catchily known as ‘sound rage’ – and as a result I’ve ended up self-diagnosing myself with a mild case of this disorder. Misophonia sufferers find certain sounds unbearable, triggering feelings of anxiety, stress, anger and frustration. These are closely followed by a sense of guilt, as you end up feeling bad about getting so wound up by the sounds in the first place. It was a term I’d never heard of before, but it really struck a chord with me, and goes a long way to explain some personal intolerances I have about some noises. I’m super sensitive to the tick of a clock, even if it’s not in the same room as me. I have…

“Find Roman blinds and curtains, a low VOC paint range, plus cushions, bedding and furniture at The Pure Edit” Homeware with a sustainable heart There’s a new fabric and wallpaper kid on the block and not only is its range keenly priced, but it has all been created with sustainability in mind. Named The Pure Edit, the range includes 77 fabrics to choose between, made from either responsibly sourced cotton, recycled polyester or cotton or yarn made from recycled plastic bottles, while the wallpapers – all 56 of them – have been printed on PVC-free paper from FSC managed forests. See more at thepureedit.com. BASICS, BORN AGAIN Many simple household items, such as coat hangers and washing-up bowls, are made in the Far East using virgin plastic and then shipped…

When you’re feeling overwhelmed, tidying the house can seem an impossible task. Maybe it’s the mess itself that all seems too much – it’s hard to know where to begin when every room is the definition of chaos. Maybe burnout or personal challenges mean gathering the emotional and physical energy to get on with chores seems beyond your capabilities right now. ‘When we’re overwhelmed, we stop seeing our possessions as individual items, and can only see “clutter” as a huge indistinct mass. And that feels like an insurmountable challenge to deal with,’ suggests Kate Yiannacou, a member of the Association of Professional Declutters & Organisers (APDO) and founder of Tidy Happy Calm. This guide will give you tips to keep on top of chores – you don’t need to try…