Top tips for sprucing up your home this summer

Zoe Hewlett, multi-award-winning interior design studio Stylemongers of Bristol, a designer on BBC 2 programme My Unique B&B and the interior designer behind the 3-bedroom apartments at Wapping Wharf Living, shares some simple yet effective home styling tips, perfect for that summer refresh.

Wapping Wharf Living is part of Wapping Wharf, Bristol’s much-loved new neighbourhood, with the area recently named the best address on Bristol’s harbourside by the Sunday Times’ Best Places to Live guide. Over 95% of the Wapping Wharf Living homes for sale in phase 2 have already been snapped up (some subject to contract), so get in touch if you don’t want to miss out!

Pick a mood or feeling

When starting a decor project, think about some words that describe the mood or feeling that you want to create first. Then, when you start thinking about colours and textures, you’ll automatically be drawn to things that suit that mood.

Be practical

To start planning any room it is always best to think about how it is going to be used first. I always ask what activities will be happening in the space and imagine doing them. This helps find the best position for larger furniture items like a sofa or bed. In an ideal world, you’d live in a place for a time first before making big decisions. Considering windows and power points is important at this stage too. Colours and patterns come afterwards!

Strike the right balance

If you want to use colour, but don’t feel very confident then try using The Colour Wheel to help you choose. A Complementary Colour scheme is the easiest type to get right as it uses only two main colours. These are always directly opposite each on the wheel and the result always looks balanced. To make a calm space, consider choosing just one main colour throughout but to keep it interesting use dark and light shades and everything in between. If you’re feeling brave enough to add pattern as well, choose one (or more) also in the same colour-way and you’ll have an interesting scheme that still feels comfortable.

The 1-bedroom show home at Wapping Wharf Living. Credit: Wapping Wharf

Window on the world

Choosing how to dress your windows can be tricky, curtains or blinds, and if blinds, what type? One welcome re-discovery I’ve made recently is double tracks, allowing a top layer of fabric and a sheer voile underneath. Whether for privacy purposes, or to control intense sunlight, it’s worth considering.

Picture perfect

Hanging pictures on the wall has to be one of the quickest ways to personalise a new place and make it feel like home. One mistake people often make is to hastily hang frames up on hooks left in the wall by previous occupants, leaving them in often very strange and disparate positions. However, there is an art to placing pictures to make the most out of them.

Large prints and canvases are perfect for creating a dramatic focal point. Rather than placing one on an empty blank wall, where it can look a little ‘lost’, consider using the space behind a bed, sofa or sideboard, ideally in a room where you can get far enough away from the picture to see it in all its glory.

Medium size prints, A2 or A3, look fantastic in pairs or threes. Avoid positioning them too high up on the wall though, as this is a common mistake. Think about your eye level and try to line up the centre of the picture with it for a comfortable gazing position. For smaller sized pictures like postcards or even a mixed selection of sizes then creating a gallery wall is a brilliant way to turn them into a real design feature, a curated collection.

It is worth aligning some of the frame edges with architectural features such as architraves, window frames, sills, shelves or furniture to keep it looking neat and the less space around and between each frame the better.

An internal courtyard at Wapping Wharf Living Phase 2. Credit: Wapping Wharf.

Try a range of textures

Introducing a variety of textures is key to making a space feel lively, particularly if it has a neutral palette. A mixture of hard surfaces like stone, glass, metal and wood with soft floaty fabrics like muslin voiles and silk to textiles like sumptuous velvets and bouclé upholstery and everything in between – there are no hard and fast rules but having a combination is a delight for the senses. And if you fancy a rug, I’d suggest having your sofa legs touching it, or close to it. You want to create a cosy vibe and it can risk looking a little disparate if your rug is floating off into space.

Own it!

At the end of the day though, it’s your home so put your stamp on it, love it and own it. If it’s not to others’ tastes, it really doesn’t matter, as long as it makes you happy.

Enquiries about the homes for sale as part of Wapping Wharf Living phase 2 can be made to sales@wappingwharfliving.co.uk  or by calling 0117 363 7839, or you can register your interest at www.wappingwharfliving.co.uk

Wapping Wharf Living is a joint venture between developers Umberslade and Muse Developments.

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Main photo: Wapping Wharf

Read more: 24 hours in Wapping Wharf