All posts tagged: habitat

The Drawing Room – Shopping List

Published by Karen Knox

As promised, the last time I wrote about the Drawing Room, I mentioned there’d be a blog post coming soon enough, with the shopping list for this room. I think it’s time you guys got to see what we’ve been busy finding (and buying) whilst we’ve been waiting for the new sash windows to go in. Ferm Living Lines Wallpaper from Cloudberry Living I’m sure you all remember this, but just incase you missed the last few posts about this project, this wallpaper is going around the whole room becoming the backdrop to everything inside. It’s going to be sooo good. As soon as the windows are in, it’s time for the wallpaper. Eeee! **does little dance** Euan Floor Lamp from Habitat There’s a yellow/brass theme going on in this room. Lots of little pops of “bright” to contrast against the dark blue wallpaper. Stockholm Glass Door Cabinet from Ikea This will become the drinks cabinet. Crystal glasses galore and obscure spirits are awaiting their new home. Glass and metallics will be used to bounce the light …

Bah Humbug

Published by Karen Knox

So yeah, it’s December. Which for me is a bit stressful. Apparently, we have to have loads of random stuff hanging up in and around our houses? Kept that quiet everyone, i’ve barely heard anyone mention Christmas at all…. Being a bit of a minimalist, clean lines, no faff etc, means the festive season leaves me torn. In a slightly Natalie Imbruglia-esque way. We all like a nice carol don’t we? A bit of mulled wine and a mince pie. But, my memories of Christmas, as a child at home are giving me flashbacks. Flashbacks of tinsel, shiny plastic bells, flashing lights in every window, angels, more angels, nativity scenes, candles, tinsel on banisters, hanging from the ceiling, wrapped around anything that was wrap worthy, blu tac, yellowing sellotape and these bloody things that we systematically had to fix back to the ceiling. Every morning. I’ve managed to get away with not really doing the full on Christmas thing so far, despite OH wanting shiny stuff and twinklies so bad. I’ve gotten away with keeping it …

Love Lighting

Published by Karen Knox

I want to show you the new ceiling lights that made the cut for the Sherwood Forest project. I love them. The clients love them. Everybody loves them! I chose three large feature lights to hang in this large open plan living/dining room. All for less than £150. I’ve been doing round trips to B&Q for endless pots of Valspar paint. So I had a quick peek at the lighting whilst waiting for my 46th pot to be mixed. B&Q = Winning! Melito Light Shades from B&Q For the living room, I needed two large ceiling lights, nothing heavy, nothing too structured but something that gave a soft, diffused light. The Melito feather light shades were perfect. The client’s love of taxidermy and Africana made these an absolute must. It’s like having two rather large bird nests hanging down from the ceiling and the light is just gorgeous. I also picked up a couple of Pendel ceiling lights from Habitat so I could get rid of the old white plastic ceiling roses (bloomin hate those). …

The Million Dollar Floor Lamp

Published by Karen Knox

A couple of posts ago, I introduced you to my latest project, Sherwood Forest. Today is just a quickie to show you how something from that project has gone from “meh” to “sshwing!” In less than an hour might I add. See that lamp? Well, it needed some love. And what better way to love it than to take off that old shade and make it all warm, shiny and coppery. Luckily my clients love copper nearly as much as I do. Whoop! So with some sandpaper and can of Valspar’s Metallic Copper spray paint I got to work. Pic from B&Q After one coat. After two coats. And so with our new rather glamorous lamp base which in total had three coats for good measure, it needed a new shade. Initally I opted for the Grande shade from Habitat. A simple tapered drum in matt black with a copper interior to reflect the light beautifully. But the shape and dimensions were all wrong. The client also felt it needed a little pattern, so off I went searching …

In Real Life…

Published by Karen Knox

When designing a room, inspiration can be found everywhere, but especially online. I’m always spotting, bookmarking, Pinteresting things that would be bob on for clients (and sometimes for me). It’s not always possible to see everything in person before buying, so online shopping is the only way to get your mitts on the goodies. And whilst virtual shopping is THE best thing since sliced bread, it can also be a right pain if things are not as they appeared when arriving. Most items for The Blue Room were bought by my own fair hand, in person. So I could see what I was getting straight off the bat. But there were a couple of online purchases where I clicked “Buy” and kept my fingers crossed. Let’s see how I got on… Swoon Editions Sydney Stool – £59 The Sydney stool from Swoon Editions is gorgeous. Industrial, yet chic and delicate. The metal work is much brighter than the online photo made it appear, which in this instance will actually work to this room’s advantage. The warm …

My MCM Geometric Desk

Published by Karen Knox

Behold. My new delicious work space. I have managed to design and produce this space with a few left over items from my capacious loft space, coupled in with a new lamp and Eames Eiffel chair as a treat from me to me. Thank you me! See that crazy mid-century modern inspired geometric desk top? “Yes, Karen we see it. It’s hard not to” Well that was about to get kicked to the kerb **finger snap**. A bit of old furniture board from a super ugly old flat pack desk. It’s actually the perfect size for my tiny office space. I don’t have clients visit at home and i’m only little. So for me, this space is pretty much bob on. Here is how it looked before: The offending piece of furniture board. There were bits of the “birch effect” foil surface missing. Some idiot had done their Christmas selotaping and used the edge of the desk as a tape holder. Face-palm! It all started when I wanted a rug. A black and white geometric …

Habitat Paint

Published by Karen Knox

I’ve become a little obsessed with Habitat paints. I do a lot of decorating. You can pretty much guarantee there’ll be a roller or a brush in the sink 94% of the time. Am getting to know my paints quite well now, depth of colour, finish, ease of application. Habitat paint is actually really good. And their range is simple too. A good overall range and family of colours without being bombarded with 19 options of grey. One finish. A matt finish, but not that super chalky matt that shows marks if you even look at it funny. The finish is matt but durable and can take a bit of a wipe. Perfik. Habitat 30 colours. Some neutral. Some pop. But all completely workable into most spaces. Habitat say their paints are suitable for walls, wood and metal. Nice. So far, i’ve used it on walls, woodwork and what I like to call “a bit of furniture rescuing.” Here are some of my projects where Habitat paint has featured. Habitat Slate – A lovely simple grey, with hardly any …