Ah Christmas decorations! What are your Christmas decorations like? Are you someone who likes traditional combinations of gold and red, or gold and silver? Maybe you favour the Scandi style of decorations: raw wood and felt, and lots of white with red and green. Or are you one for total full on kitsch with an eclectic mix of bright and bold colours and humorous baubles. When Nick and I were first married we had new sets of Christmas tree decorations, different shapes and styles, but all gold and red. It was a classic look and very sophisticated. 17 Christmases later, we still have those original decorations, and use them each year, but our collection has grown and I have inflicted my more eclectic colour scheme on my family. I say colour scheme, but really there is no colour scheme! Each year the collection has grown as the children have made things and we’ve been gifted decorations. I also love scouring the charity shops in December to find second hand baubles. And then there’s the tradition of buying one new decoration each year….As you can imagine, we now have rather a lot of Christmas tree decorations and far from being sophisticated, our tree is a happy, eclectic mix of all sorts! I love it! Then there’s the lights. Cool white? Warm white? Coloured lights? Blue? (No thanks.) When I was growing up it was always warm white lights on the tree and coloured lights elsewhere in the house – round a doorway or going up the stairs. And we have maintained that tradition. The warm glow of Christmas lights brings cheer doesn’t it? Whether you’re inside cosying up with a film, or walking along the dark streets enjoying the lights in windows and on the outsides of houses. It makes us feel good. Whatever your style of Christmas décor – minimal or all out maximal, or somewhere in between, I hope you enjoy this opportunity to bring some colour joy into your home! Happy Christmas!

“Why are you so interested in paint colours? What’s so bad about just having white or grey everywhere?” This is the question that was recently put to me. And it’s a good question! Why all the obsession with choosing the right colours for our home interiors – what’s wrong with the neutrals? Well, the short answer is nothing! Nothing’s wrong with choosing whites or greys – if you like them and they really work for you in your home. But for many, we reach for those paint tins because of habit, or we don’t know where else to begin with choosing a different colour. I want to challenge that thinking. There is a whole world of colour out there! But it’s far from simple. I can’t just give you a magic formula and say that green works best in dining rooms, yellow in kitchens and blue in bedrooms. That’s because we all respond to colours in different ways. It is such a personal thing. So I might see a particular shade of green as cosy and relaxing, but someone else might find it much too dark and draining. That’s where really exploring your own personality and style comes in to play. I’m sure many will have heard of colour consultants who will advise you on the colours to wear to bring out the best of your skin tone, eye colour and hair colouring. Well, a similar principle applies when we think about using colour in our homes. Get it wrong and your home could leave you feeling flat, unmotivated and unable to relax, but get it right, and your home will support your personality and be a place where you can relax and feel cosy, or feel energised and motivated, depending on the room and its function.    So to go back to the original question, ‘Why use colour?’ The answer is because using colour makes us feel good! Picking different colours for different rooms and using them carefully and with consideration will make our homes feel  wonderful.