“How to be Bolder in your Interiors without the Fear Factor – Step 2; How to Choose the Right Furniture”
Welcome back my bold & beautiful friends…..so, if last week’s blog / rant on how you NEED colour in your life wasn’t enough, here’s some brash advice on how to bring the boldness in to your home through your furniture choices!
Brightly coloured sofas, chairs, chaises, ottomans, even beds are EVERYWHERE these days but taking the plunge to go for that shocking pink sofa can be a daunting prospect, and not one, you may be surprised to read that I would always recommend. WHOAAAAHHHHH, hold the phone…..but you love bright colours, you said it in last week’s post you hypocrite…I can hear you saying it now and yes, granted it would seem that I am offering conflicting advice. Back up Buttercup, we’re only 2 paragraphs in, give me a chance!
Furniture that is used daily, as opposed to paint or a couple of the framed prints we talked about last week) is, hopefully, unless you’re getting a job lot of knock off gear from overseas, (good luck with those delivery lead times btw ;)) a way bigger investment so it really does need to be right. And when I say “right”, I mean suitable, for YOU & your family, the way you live your life & the creatures that share your abode; how many grubby little paws will be clambering all over your velveteen dream and I’m not just talking about the four legged kind! Sometimes, being practical has to overtake being whimsical but that doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice the boldness in every room & there are ways of getting around it.
The iconic 3 piece suite that defined pretty much all suburban living rooms throughout the 20th Century, has pretty much died a death, although I wouldn’t mind seeing a resurgence of this, shall we start a trend? Anyway, soz, it’s not about me, this is about YOU and how to be bolder through your furniture choices, my bad. Mixing it up with contrasting colours, patterns or fabrics is a really great way of getting on the bus to Boldsville. Sticking with a relatively practical colour and fabric for your main sofa, the one that’s used the most, is essential really if you’ve got kids and pets. If you haven't or your minions are super well behaved then go bold all the way, there's so many amazing choices out there to move away from black, grey, beige or brown. Blast from the past memory – my brother and I would quite happily wipe our greasy little mitts on our respective arms of our childhood sofas after we’d stuffed the crisp packet down the side of the cushion and I doubt times have changed much. I also remember the cat being sick on the chair…oh the hilarity for my poor Mum. There are some suppliers out there that offer “family friendly” fabrics, such as the Smart Velvet range from https://www.sofa.com/gb/sofas where spillages can just be wiped down!) But even so, the range is limited and you may want something a bit bolder in terms of pattern for example and you really don’t want to be investing in something that has to be professionally cleaned every few months. However, fear not my lovelies, there is a wonderful piece of furniture that has made a MASSIVE comeback in recent years, waiting in the wings, to provide solace, comfort and beauty as an antidote to Mr Practical. I give you….The Occasional or Statement Chair
Oooh, bit of an anti-climax huh? You know about them, you’ve even got one. Ok, ok, I hear ya….but is it bold baby? Does it go matchy matchy with Mr Practical the Sofa King? I’m here to tell you it doesn’t need to. This is where you can let your bold bravery run amok, try your favourite colour here, try a different fabric, a different pattern – if you love leopard print, invest in a leopard print chair, I guarantee you it will make you smile every time you see it. If you love red, but a red sofa just won’t work for either your family / kid / pet mashup or your husband’s not really in to the Bordello vibe (Why not?), then try a red chair or two. Think about different & unusual shapes; there’s egg swivel chairs, scalloped, shell styles, animal designs, oversized hands…you’ll have the style icons quite literally eating out of your palm with these choices! The other thing is, it doesn’t even have to be in the sitting room, it doesn’t even need to be near Mr PS (Practical Sofa). The clue is in the name, “Occasional” – there’s none of the everyday about these little beauties. Try one in a hallway, in your bedroom, at the top of the stairs etc. I’m often asked by clients what to “fill this space with” and the occasional / statement chairs are regularly my response. Take a look at https://www.boldmonkey.com/ for some insanely fabulous items.
Ottomans & footstools (I cannot stand the word pouffe so this is the last time you’ll see it here, like, how do you even say it, is it offensive, is it pronounced "poofay", reminds me of toupee, I just dunno) can also really liven the colour palette up as well as providing comfort for putting your feet up, double up your coffee table space and give you more storage for all that crap we don’t need and forget we have once it’s out of sight! Again here, you can test things out to see where you’re coming in on the boldometer without making any mistakes that hit the pocket too hard or destroy your reputation lol.
Another great thing to come out of the colour revolution of late is boldly coloured beds and well, I just LOVE them. I also love the fact that they are reasonably priced and choosing a statement bed gives you a fabulous starting point for the rest of the interior décor in your bedroom. There’s loads around these days, check out https://www.danetti.com/ and https://www.made.com/ and if you’ve got a bit more to spend, the amazing https://www.sohohome.com/us/products/manette-bed/75788290 has a divine emerald green beauty I’m in love with. These beds are often Ottoman style, providing some oh so useful storage solutions if you’re short on space too…win win! Statement headboards are also making a huge comeback and are another way of changing things up without having to go the whole hog and purchase a new bed! Tonnes of options around.
So, that’s bed, sofas, chairs & ottomans covered and really we’ve only just touched the surface of how to be bolder with your furniture choices, concentrating on using colours or patterns. Another way to do this is to get stuck in to the vintage /retro / antique furniture vibe. In my opinion, a bold home is one in which the new and modern is mixed up with some funky, weird and wonderful pieces from all eras of history, they create talking points for you (nothing wrong with having convos in your own head ya know, it ignites the imagination!) & any visitors that drop by….just think of the sights those little pieces have seen! But that’s a blog for another day…..
This should give you some food for thought if you’re still on the bold journey with me and if you’re looking for a more detailed analysis of how to be fabulously fearless of furniture, get in touch to set up an online interiors consultation, I’d love to help!
Kate x
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