All posts filed under: Furniture

The Aquamarine Guest Bedroom – Final Reveal

Published by Karen Knox

Oh how i’m going to enjoy writing this post, firstly because I love a final reveal post. And secondly, this one will mostly be a cathartic rant about my self-titled “WORST CLIENT EVER”, with some tiny pieces of info about interiors in and amongst. This was the second bedroom of a generously proportioned 1930’s house. It was being used as a guest bedroom and home office, but as i’m sure you will agree, it needed some work. I’m going to skip the whole process which you can catch up on here and here and just get on with the before and after photos, interspersed with more cathartic ranting. The brief for this room was… let’s say, “fluid”. Needs to be a guest bedroom with double bed Bed needs to have drawers underneath for storage Bed needs to have a comfortable, upholstered headboard Needs a wardrobe for guest hanging space Needs a chest of drawers for storage and a TV on top Needs an office space with lots of storage and all cables hidden away Definitely plants …

SPÄNST collection – Ikea Collaborates with Chris Stamp

Published by Karen Knox

Ikea have released some rather impressive collaborations so far this year, with the SPANST collection due to land this May. So not long to wait. It’s a capsule collection of “lifestyle” influenced furniture, lighting and decor, where the fashion conscious are very much in mind. In collaboration with fashion designer, Chris Stamp, the founder of ‘Stampd‘ a brand known for its meticulous attention to detail with designs that embody modern youth culture. The Stampd brand focuses on quality and the minimal, urban aesthetic. Its flagship store based in the heart of LosAngeles, sells its line of clothes and accessories all over the world. A number of items from the collection were also designed by Maja Ganszyniec, a frequent IKEA collaborator since 2014. Together they explored the changes and needs of young homes today, with a special focus on active, urban lifestyles. Maja has collaborated on several Ikea designs, including the HJÄRTELIG collection which was released last month. Chris and Maja met for the first time in New York to find alot of their design ideas were …

Heard of Søstrene Grene?

Published by Karen Knox

I’m guessing most people won’t have. Design bloggers, journalists, design nuts and the like will most certainly be in the know, but Søstrene Grene is more than likely a new discovery for a lot of you reading. Which is kinda bonkers as they have stores all across Europe and over in Japan too. But the thing is, they only have two stores in the UK. Nottingham and Chester. Online? Nope. Which kinda sucks. So today’s post is a bit of a “look at what you could have won” situation. (If you have no idea what the image above means – you did not grow up in the 80’s. This is the kind of brilliance you missed out on). Founded by Inger Grene, Ruth Grene and Knud Cresten Vaupell Olsen in 1973, the first Søstrene Grene store opened in Denmark, and now, 45 years on they have nearly 200 stores across the the world. “Søstrene Grene offers you exciting products from near and far, attractively put out in a labyrinth of colors, shapes and smells. Our shops always have …

Office Chairs (you wouldn’t mind having at home)

Published by Karen Knox

As you may remember, i’ve been having some trouble with the ole home office set up. My cheap-y Eiffel inspired chair had outgrown its comfort levels for the sheer amount of time I was now finding myself sat at a desk. Thank you to everyone that left super helpful comments on where to find a decent chair that might float my boat, I really appreciate you taking the time to help me and my crook back out. Whilst I wasn’t averse to buying a decent office chair. Ya know, a really good quality one (the amount of physio i’m currently having would have paid for a set of 4 good office chairs, so one really good one would certainly be a very cost effective move), I was loathed to spend £300, £400, £500 upwards on a chair that I hated the look of. Like this guy… I know it’s shallow to choose form over function, but I can’t help it. The way something looks is as equally important to how something performs for me. And …

An Introduction to Project: Bedroom 4

Published by Karen Knox

I’m back with a new project to share with you guys this week, at a property you will have probably seen before a fair few times. The Drawing Room – December 2016 Directly above this room is this room: Upper Brook Street Project – May 2017 And directly above this room is this room: Yes, we’re now onto the top floor of this Edwardian home. The homeowners are tackling bedroom four and five, plus what will become the main family bathroom, with a bit of help from me again. Be rude not to eh? Bedroom five, as shown on the floorplan below is kind of done, except for lighting, window dressing and the final faff. So i’ve been asked to help with the finishing touches for that space. More on that room coming in another blog post soon. For today i’m focusing on bedroom four as that space has proved to be slightly more tricky to sort. It’s pretty large but there are plenty of angles in this space with the ceiling being pitched on …

My first trip to Ikea for 2018

Published by Karen Knox

It was a dark and dreary Sunday. I was up at 6am (stupid body clock) and I had a mission to complete: Operation ‘Charlie’s Big Boy Bed’ If you remember, we updated his room last autumn with some super sneaky bespoke joinery which not only solved the toy storage problem but also allowed us to fit a full sized single bed into his bedroom without re-wiring light switches or knocking out a chimney breast. S-weet! As we wanted to give Charlie the option of having little people over for sleepovers (when he’s capable of sleeping past 6am – does that happen?) we wanted to go for a bed that served that very purpose. Something white, without a footboard, something that didn’t have an ornate headboard, something that provided function of sleep and allowed the plywood storage wall to be the main feature of the room. Cue the Egzigu bed from La Redoute Two of these simple white bed-frames stacked on top of each other would solve everything and soon enough, courtesy of La Redoute they …

Bare Joinery

Published by Karen Knox

As you guys may already know, i’m the daughter of a woodwork (Design & Technology) teacher. My dad has been a big inspiration to me over the years and helped me on so many projects at home it’s unreal. He’s the kind of guy that can turn his hand to anything. Building, joinery, tiling, plumbing, landscaping… I even watched him build a two-storey scaffold on his own, in the pissing rain so he could fit new barge boards at my first house. He borrowed the scaffold from one of his mates (he’s always knows someone who knows someone) and drove it 100 miles up to Leeds on his roof rack. If my dad lived up here, it’s fair to say, i’d have enough work for him to give him a full time job working with me. My dad with a screwdriver, “in back pocket of Farah“ He’s made all of his own furniture at home, some of which as part of his Creative Design university course at Loughborough, back in the 70’s. They still have an …

Charlie’s bedroom – Part 2 – The Plywood Wall

Published by Karen Knox

Charlie’s room has ended up being a much larger project that originally planned (sorry Pete). The whole design process has been bubbling away in the background for a few months now and am so excited to finally share Part 2. (Part 1 here). This kid’s bedroom is all about the plywood!! There are still plenty of pieces left to go in (carpets and single bed) but it’s the joinery that’s really transformed this room. So let’s get on with the pics shall we? Before After Before | During After I absolutely love it. It’s so mental to see an idea in your head executed so accurately. The guys from Leeds and London based Bare Joinery are mega. Give them a follow, because i’ve been bullying them to set up a proper Instagram account for months and i’m going to look like a right numpty if it’s tumbleweed. The design is a perfect marriage of function and form. I’ve finally reclaimed the living room (and several other parts of the house) and have managed to get all …

Charlie’s Bedroom Re-design – Part 1

Published by Karen Knox

What a week! The Interior Design Collective launch completely blew my mind. It seems quite a few of you think it’s a rather good idea. Which is brilliant. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Karen Knox – Making Spaces (@makingspacesnet) Thank you so much again to everyone who sent their best wishes. It was an amazing day. So back to normality again. Whatever that means. I’m cracking on with the next project at home, which is Charlie’s room. Remember me introducing that one a few weeks ago? If not, you can pop over here for a brief catch up. The plan was to build a unit across the whole of the back wall so Charlie’s new single bed could sit right alongside. There wasn’t really anywhere else in the room it could go due to the door swing and the window/radiator situation. After toying with several different ideas about what material to use to build said unit, I had to rule out Valchromat on cost alone. This left us with MDF or …

The Red Room – During

Published by Karen Knox

I went to visit the Red Room project today. You know, the living room that was red and staying red, but then it wasn’t staying red and going black instead. Remember that one? If not, you can catch up here. Well we’ve been making progress, stripping all of the walls, painting the ceiling and woodwork in preparation for the new wallpaper. All of the furniture has now arrived too, including the gorgeous Ox Blood Chesterfield from Chesterfields at the Boathouse. And this solid oak wiring bureau in near perfect condition picked up from a local vintage dealer. How pretty is that? Remember the Welsh Dresser? Yes, the one here in the left hand alcove. Well that’s now been given the Annie Sloan treatment and repurposed as a fancy home bar. The power of black. It never fails to amaze me. I picked up these cute drawer pulls from Homesense last month to add a little touch of brass Only £6 for a set of 4. Love it. The doorway behind the sofa is getting boarded up …