Brit Decor: Five pink bathrooms to make you think

Despite the bleakness of Winter, the Festive period is brimming with colour - from Christmas decorations cards & wrapping, cheery knits, to sparkling lights, and maybe some rich festive drinks too...it's all there in technicolour realness. 

However, many of our homes are now telling a different story, with increasingly less colour & depth, maybe even 'soul' if I wanted to get spiritual about it, and I'm not just talking about Christmas time.

A dear friend recently reminded me of the importance of simply looking around ourselves for inspiration, and to do this every single day - Amen to that! With a fair few driving miles under my belt this week I've taken a lot of inspiration from the stormy December skies, with watery grey clouds filtering rationed glimmers of sunlight to create a whole array of pinks - there were also a couple of awesome rainbows too!

Whilst there's no doubt that a neutral home is both on-trend and promotes calm, pink is a great choice for dipping your toe into the colour spectrum. Here, I've given things a little twist by moving the interiors chat to the bathroom with five deliciously pink Bathroom designs to inspire, including Subtle Luxe / Muted Minimal / Deco Detail / Softly Softly & Punctuated.

I've also included my own curated collection of goodies to recreate the 'look', with some pretty affordable pieces - perfect for a pink makeover!

Images (from top) 1/ Realestate.comAU 2/ Fill your home with love 

3/ edebiyyat.info 4/ Behance 5/ visiteiffel 6/ Behance

1/ Futurism tile / Fired Earth £0.92 2/ Sleek Edison wall light / Industville £29

3/ Dorchester Pink Deep emulsion / Little Greene from £48.50

4/ Joss pedal bin / Made.com £14 5/ Jo Malone London limited edition 

Michael Angove red roses soap / John Lewis £15 6/ Ted Baker 

Stepped Up wall & floor tile / Bathstore £50 7/ Blomus large Fig scented 

candle / Trouva £20 8/ Pink marble soap dish / Amara £35 9/ 2 pack guest towels

 / H&M home £4.99

Brit Decor: On Form with

Those cosy candlelit evenings wouldn't be complete without some tactile textiles to complete the whole Hygge experience, well, maybe some indulgent chocolate too...and some mulled wine?? Cue my latest #cushioncrush via the lovingly crafted wares of London-based textile designer and weaver, Charlotte Wakefield, who founded Woven Form back in 2016.

As an avid photographer, Charlotte draws inspiration from the buildings she photographs around the capital, focussing on their many textures and patterns, and she then combines this with a rich palette of colour to create these striking hand-woven cushions and scarves via her two looms.

Simply beautiful don't you think?

Brit Decor: Festive Focals/ How to streamline your festive decor

There's no looking back now, we've taken what seems to be a hurried step into December, don't you think? For those of you who have already prepped for the big day, I take my hat off and bow to your unwavering commitment to Christmas. I always seem to find myself playing catch-up with the hunt for those elusive gifts and this year it feels like I'm going to struggle to earn my Santa stripes before the 25th December!

Whilst I can almost smell oven-baked mince pies, taste the heartwarming spices of mulled wine, and smell fresh Nordic pine scents, I am not one for 'maximal' festive frills when it comes to decorating my home for the holidays, perhaps more so this year after a manic past few month, I'm looking for a slower Season.

Instead I prefer to adopt an easier pace during this period, where our home remains a sanctuary whilst gently nodding to the spirit of Christmas with some subtle decs, but with a bigger focus on friends and family and, crucially, chill-axing with my beau. 

If like me, you are yearning for a Christmas style that is a little 'slower' this year, then you have come to the right place today. Join me on a leisurely stroll through some pared down festive decor ideas, with an emphasis on a considered style where less is more.

I've also perused some of the more natural and Scandinavian inspired Christmas decor available this year to curate my top 'picks' for pared down purchases (see below) including shop-able links.

I don't think it's too early to wish you all a very special 'slow' Christmas...

Festive Focals / 1 Nuance dark bauble £5.80 Design Vintage / 2 Peace cushion cover £3.99 H&M /

3 Tindra black star £32 ALSO Home / 4 Sno scented candle £29 Osmology / 

5 Grey felt Christmas tree decoration £5.70 Trouva / 6 Pine cone garland £11.99 Maisons Du Monde /

7 Mini dressed Nordic star £12 The White Company 8 Ferm Living Winterland tree £22 Connox /

9 Ferm Living marble trees £45 Nunido

Images (from top) 1/ Lykkefryd 2/ Pinterest UK 3/ NordicDesign

4/ Elisabeth Heier 5/ Miimman 6/ H&M 7/ Scandinavianhome.ee

Desk Divine: 8 Surprisingly simple desk decor situations

Our faithful IKEA Lisabo desk with its compact dimensions and classic blonde tones has moved between houses and, at some point, has lived in almost every room in our current home until finally settling in our blue guest room (pictured above).

With my consultation and interior styling work taking me out on the road more than ever before, our desk has taken on the dual function of a weekend and evening work space, which doubles as a casual dressing table for our guests, but in both capacities - calm is key.

With a new debate here in the UK about a future potential four day working week (yes please), I'm sensing a new and growing school of thought which is embracing a simpler approach to the form and function of our workplaces as flexible working becomes a genuine 'thing'.

Thankfully many of our homes are already streets ahead of the politicians as we increasingly embrace slow living and a slower style with an emphasis toward nordic neutrals, heavenly hues, tactile 'softer' materials, and space savvy furniture, as many of us balance family life with working from home.

So here are eight workspace interiors to inspire and to elevate us to a new level of calm working...

Images (from top): 1/ Mike Ahern 2/ Cate St Hill 3/ Coco Lapine 4/ Liljencrantz Design

5/ Only Deco Love 6/ Planete Deco 7/ Pressbilder Norrgravel 8/ Krone Kern

Preview Peek! Edgy Autumnal vibes with the Habitat AW18 Collection

With this insanely hot Summer we've been experiencing here in the UK, not only have I been unable to stomach a fully cooked hot meal for an age now, but I have also found it nearly impossible to entertain the prospect of Autumn and even less so, Winter. 

However, the reality is that change is on the way and currently we do still have Seasons, (even if they do get a little jumbled and out of sync from time to time!) and it won't be long before those chillier, shorter days become the norm, cue a shift of focus to the great indoors.

Habitat - long-term devotee - glad I've got that out of the way! It's always a 'heart skips a beat' moment when a favourite brand launches a new collection, right?

As always with Habitat, I found myself greeted with an impeccably styled and curated gathering of furniture and accessories for their AW18 launch. With a consistent thread of happier hues skipping hand-in-hand with modern folk, cool artisanal craft and a laid back luxe, the design team has delivered a comprehensive collection of 'goodies' for the design loving home.

The key elements to the Autumn collection are: Modern Folk Pattern / Natural Cool / Industrial Edge / Japanese Influence / Curves / Luxe Layering / Eccentric Glamour / Silhouette. So there's a lot to get your design-savvy teeth into!

It felt right to see a reference to bold 1970s hues such as the mustard yellow and burnt orange Rex dinnerware, and not forgetting the on-point tan leather Elkin 4-seater chaise sofa - a new future classic perhaps? 

But for those who are still very much in love with all the dreamy shades of neutral, fear not, classic Oaks sit with raw organic & untreated jutes and wools to deliver a subtle natural Nordic home style, and the Isaure and Popcorn cushions (to name but a few) will be fuelling my #cushioncrush this Autumn. 

Images / Habitat UK / Graphics & Editorial / Mike Ahern

Brit Decor: Simple Things / Made+Good / Rebecca Williams

I do love a good 'ceramic swoon', don't you? 

My latest fix of stoneware style comes from Made+Good, supporter and supplier of hand-crafted goodies direct from the UK studios of incredibly talented designers and makers, and I'm all for supporting British design.

Today I'm honing in on the work of one particular ceramic designer/maker, Rebecca Williams, and her dreamy new collection of stoneware pieces. The simple charm of Rebecca's creations is inspired by her love of the coast, with speckled sandy colours and textures, reminiscent of a chilled out walk along a beach.

Stoneware is the perfect choice for adding a softer, more relaxed and natural 'look' to your kitchen and dining spaces, whilst the handmade element adds to a sense of a considered home, which will have house guests queueing up for a piece of slow living!

I've included my top picks (scroll down) and you can also peruse Rebecca's full collection of works as well as the creations of many other makers & designers at the Made+Good online store by clicking here.