3 Striking Colour Combinations for Your Interior

Choosing cohesive interiors can be tricky…

Here’s a cool, warm and vibrant scheme to get you on your way.

1. Cool Colour Scheme.

How to pull together a successful cool colour scheme.

So you love the thought of some cool vibes for your home?

Here’s some tips on what to consider to make this scheme work.

• Paint Colours - Choose blue, green, greys and whites with cool undertones to set the foundation. Steer away from warm neutrals.

• Bench Tops - Look for any bench top material with cool greys, blues or whites. Here I picked a subtle cool grey marble benchtop to bring some visual contrast to the bolder wall colours.

• Tapware - Gravitate towards chrome, brushed nickel, power-coated white or black fixtures. Mix your metals within this parameter throughout your kitchen and other wet areas.

• Handles - Include textural materials in choices such as handles, so things still feel cosy and welcoming. You may want to consider leather pulls in a deep olive or muddier grey to sneak in a hint of warmth without the obvious reds/pinks.

• Tile - Consider muted or pastel blues, greens, whites, greys for tile. Choose at least 2 different cool tiles for within all your wet areas for interest (e.g. I chose the dark grey kit kat tile for a kitchen splash back, and the muted blue squares for the bathroom).

• Grout - Stick to a white or any gradient of cool grey. Here I went with a light and medium toned grey. Again choose different grout for different areas in your home for interest.

• Cabinetry - Investigate cooler stain colours in wood veneers to pull as much texture as you can into your space. Remember to contrast your tile with your cabinetry (e.g. a lighter tile choices with darker cabinets).

• Fabrics - Mix block colours with pattern to create balance in your scheme. Here I’ve chosen a mint green, along with a charcoal/crisp white stripe and a mustard to warm things up a little.

Enjoy your pulling together your cool colour scheme!

2. Warm Colour Scheme.

How to pull together a successful warm colour scheme.

More of a warm palette person?

Here’s some tips on what to consider to make this scheme work.

• Paint Colours - Choose from pinks, oranges, reds and warm yellows. Look for any warm neutrals such as biscuit, warm greiges, taupes and beiges and whites with warm undertones. Put all your paint swatches together to ensure they all look ‘warm’ together as a whole.

• Bench Tops - If you’re choosing a bolder paint colour perhaps look for a warm neutral for a benchtop, or you could swap this around and go for a real statement piece on your benches. Timber is an option for a warm scheme too.

• Tapware - Look for brass, bronze, gold fixtures. Mix your metals with some white or even some brushed nickel to add a hint of coolness.

• Handles - If want to consider leather pulls a natural pink-toned leather a or tan would work beautifully.

• Tile - Consider muted or pastel pink, yellow, cream or warm whites, alongside a warm brown or greige for some depth. Here I chose the dark greige small square tile for a kitchen splash back, and the muted pink bigger squares for the bathroom. Both warm options within a light-dark range.

• Grout - Stick to an off white or any gradient of brown or warm grey. Again choose different grout for different areas in your home for interest.

• Cabinetry - Peruse the many warm timber stains. With so many options such as light oak, honey and warm walnut, you’ll be inundated with choice! Contrast the timber with a matt laminate option in a biscuit, beige or warm neutral. You don’t have to use the same cabinetry choice throughout your space.

• Fabrics - Look for some hues such as blush, rust, terracotta or beige. Equally you can go all out with a bold red or orange if that’s your thing. Mix block colours with pattern to create balance in your scheme.

  Enjoy your pulling together your warm colour scheme!

3. Vibrant Colour Scheme.

How to pull together a successful vibrant colour scheme.

What about our colour lovers?

Here’s some tips on what to consider to make this scheme work.

• Paint Colours - You have many options open to you, with the thousands of paint swatches available! Sit down and choose your 3-5 main hues so that you can keep things cohesive and connected through out your space. Consider using full strength, half and quarter strength of the same colour. Equally branch out with a strongly saturated colour for your walls if this suits you.

• Bench Tops - If you’re choosing a bolder paint colour perhaps look for a more muted benchtop. It comes down to balance and not having too many ‘hero’ pieces competing for attention.

• Tapware - Again you have your choice of metal fixtures. Mix your warm and cool metals for an added level of interest.

• Handles - If want to consider leather pulls, a deep navy or black will help to ground other strong colours you may have chosen.

• Tile - Consider a more neutral tile alongside a coloured grout (such as the blue grout and warm neutral tile in my scheme). This is such a playful use of colour and so effective. Equally you can go for a bolder tile for contrast in another space in your home.

• Grout - With many grout options available to you, choosing a less typical colour is what an colour obsessed person would do here!

• Cabinetry - Remember to use cabinetry to allow other stronger elements (such as wall colour) to really stand out. You can reverse this idea if you prefer. In my scheme I’ve chosen a light timber and beige option for my cabinetry, as I want the dominance to come from my paint choices.

• Fabrics - Sometimes contrasting some beautiful patterns with some neutrals can add to that sense of balance in a vibrant space. Perhaps choose some more pared back options to side alongside a bolder colour choice here.

  Enjoy your pulling together your warm colour scheme!

So there you have it.. 3 examples of different, but equally lovely, colour combinations for your interior.

You can use these tips to inspire you with a whole home selection, or you may just be working on your kitchen or bathroom. Once you have determined where you sit on the cool, warm or vibrant spectrum you can begin to make the selections that suit you best!

A helpful way to do that is to place your selections together in a flatlay (where you over lap samples and look at them all together), and determine how well they work as a whole. Really so much fun!

Don’t despair if you don’t find this enjoyable. I can help turn your overwhelm and confusion into clarity when it comes to all things colour schemes and selections - remember this is what I do! So reach out for a complimentary call as I’d love to hear about your project and any help you might need.

Until next time, Bec

How much does it cost to deck out a master bedroom?

A budget for updating your master bedroom?

Well, how long is a piece of string?!

In reality your budget will not be the same as the next person when it comes to updating things in your home. And that’s ok! With good design and careful selections a master bedroom can look quite high end on a modest budget, or perhaps you are ready to invest a bit more into this space and want to turn it into the sanctuary you know it can be.

Where ever you are on the budget spectrum I want to help take away some of the mystery for you on what you can expect to pay in turning your master bedroom into the boudoir of your dreams. The simplest way I communicate budget with homeowners is through the basic, medium and high examples. Often it’s hard to know how much the total for a whole room refresh will cost, but these templates can bring a lot of clarity to the confusion.

*A note here. Every template includes the budget for an occasional chair, side table, x2 A3 pieces of art, vase, book, magazine and small decor piece for this additional reading nook area not shown on the moodboards.

It’s also worth saying that I kept the art supplier the same throughout, Love Your Space, because I love their options and they are a great Australian small business!

Let’s get started with the Basic look..

This look is pulled together using everyday more affordable retailers, and shows you what you can achieve with careful thought put into your colour and textural choices.

Let’s break down the cost of the Basic master bedroom.

Now onto the mid range look…

Here I’ve shown examples of slightly more expensive options mixed with a few more affordable choices. The budget gets close to double the basic example as each piece is that little bit more. This is a good example of how small upgrades do add up in the end.

Here’s the Mid range master bedroom, let’s look at the costings.

Finally, here’s the splurge with the High end look…

I admit I went to town on this example! These selections are using a mix of higher end retailers and more boutique suppliers to give a unique and bespoke look. This sort of look does cost, but you can expect a design that will last the test of time. The budget for this room is four times that of the basic master bedroom look and shows you what you can expect if you love these types of suppliers.

Lastly, here’s the High end master bedroom. Let’s jump into the costings below!

So there you have it, 3 different budgets for your master bedroom update. Regardless of what you have to spend you can achieve a beautiful look with thoughtful design choices, and I hope these templates give you a starting point for when you are thinking all things money.

Happy designing! And remember if pulling it all together is beyond you and you’d like some extra help - I’m only an email away. Reach out here at hello@designrelease.com.au

5 signs you need the help of an Interior Designer

Who do Interior Designers typically help anyway?

There is confusion out there on the sort of person who would benefit from an interior designer. Let’s break it down to make it clearer. The truth is, we interior designers help a lot of different folk!

Here’s 5 Indicators that you might be one of them.

1. You’re time poor.

2. You’re afraid of making wrong choices.

3. You’re confused when it comes to the details.

4. Your budget has given you decision paralysis.

5. Your desire for your home to feel special has left you overwhelmed .

Relate to any of these? Read on to see if these 5 common obstacles could have you benefiting from some time with an interior designer.

1. You’re time poor.

You’re a busy mum who cares about your home, but you don’t have the time to make it the perfect space for your family. Or you’re a frantic full-time worker who is booked up on the weekends, and the lack of time means you never get round to getting your home up to scratch. Either way you’re just putting up with your space as it currently is because you know you don’t have time to do it justice. Your space deserves more time than you can give it!

Or you might be 85% done, but it is the nagging 15% that you can’t seem to carve out time in your diary (or your hubby’s calendar) to finish. You have that, ‘I’ve conked out 10 metres before the finish line’ feeling.

2. You know enough to be afraid to get it wrong.

Those around you believe in your design capabilities. Isn’t this a good thing you’re asking yourself? Hear me out and see if this is you. Everyone has confidence in your ability to pull your home together that you don’t have the heart to say that you could do with a hand. You feel the expectation of those closest to you that you can make it happen, and we all hate to let people down.

After all you might know what you love and might be tempted to ask, ‘how hard can this design thing be?’ You know the looks you love and the styles (or blend of styles) that speak to you. But when it comes to the confidence to place items, invest in the right piece, lay out that room or get the proportions right, you’re not so sure.

3. You have big picture vision, but the details make your head spin.

You have good taste. You have a strong design aesthetic. You have a handle on the bulk of your choices. But when it comes to the small decisions that bring the overall vision together, that’s when your self-belief wavers. The practical decisions like picking paint colours, handles for kitchen cabinets or that feature wall paper start to make you feel confused and slightly overwhelmed.

4. Your hard-earned budget has left you paralysed.

Your hard-earned budget is just that, hard earned. Finally, you might be ready to update your space and do it right, so you feel the pressure to spend every dollar wisely. Now that you some savings to invest into your home you feel decision overwhelm kicking in. You discover there are actually hundreds of options for you to choose from, and the dread of choosing the wrong one feels paralysing.

Or you’re not at the place with your finances to do the big overhaul, but you’d like to update some of your spaces in a budget friendly way. Either scenario requires you to know how to make wise spending choices, and you’re not 100% sure you will get this right. Your budget will only stretch so far and it’s a fact you’re keenly aware of.

5. You prioritise the feel of your home to the point of overwhelm.

It is of upmost importance to you that your house feels like your home. Sounds simple doesn’t it?! You remember those times you have walked into spaces that ‘look’ amazing, but don’t ‘feel’ amazing. For whatever reason they don’t have soul; they feel clinical or they don’t seem to be an extension of the people that live in them. There is a mis-match. You understand that this special ingredient, this ‘X factor’, is perhaps the most important unseen element of what makes a house a home.

You might have lots of interior magazines, bulging Pinterest boards, and know what rooms on paper (or screen) resonate with you. But you’re unsure if you can create a room (or a whole house) that gives you that same feeling that you have when you look at that picture. Feelings like safety, comfort, peace and individuality.

So, could you do with the help of an Interior Designer?

Well perhaps you could!

You know if it would really help to chat and get some advice on a few things, or a lot of things. And just a heads up, a good interior designer will be approachable and a great listener. We are passionate about helping you create a space you love. Our aim is to collaborate with you every step of the way, whether you need us for only a 2-hour consultation or a full project- don’t be afraid to reach out!

Email bec@designrelease.com.au if you’d like to ask any questions.

Master Bedroom Makeover: The best ways for fresh results.

Are you thinking about jumping on the Airbnb bandwagon and want to know how to set up the master bedroom?

Like to learn more on how to inject some styling secrets into the space?

In this post I want to take you through the steps I considered to turn a slightly tired looking bedroom space into the fresh Airbnb coastal boudoir I knew it could be.

The backstory to the Airbnb worthy makeover.

You may have already read about this in previous posts, but in case you haven’t…

The unit had been the home of my sister in law until she had decided to rent it out. And to recap on my previous blog post, she had approached me with the idea of turning it into a seaside Airbnb. She asked if I could help her bring the future holiday rental to life and of course I said yes!

I needed to turn this little unit into something that would appeal to the holiday rental market – and I didn’t have a lot of time or budget on my hands to make it happen.

My tips to achieve a coastal Airbnb master bedroom.

Here’s the steps that helped move me from underwhelm to inspiration as I tackled the transformation of the master bedroom. I hope these steps are helpful if you’re considering your own coastal Airbnb makeover and you’re not sure where to start, or if you’d just like to know more about how I pulled it off…

The best layouts for Airbnb master bedrooms.

The aim with your layout for a master bedroom is to keep it spacious and cosy at the same time. We can fall into the trap of stuffing too many things into a small space, but just because you can doesn’t mean you should. The layout should exude a feeling of breathability and flow, no one wants to stay in a cluttered Airbnb.

I find the best layouts are ones where you walk into the room and view the bed and bedsides as you enter. Even better is the use the space above the bed for some artwork to draw the eye immediately. Ensure that the bedsides are close to the bed, not floating in space off to the side (it helps to think about the bed, bedsides, art and rug almost as one item).

A second zone for relaxing in the master is a real luxury. It doesn’t have to be a huge space, just enough to comfortably sit and not block access to doorways and the sleeping zone. Lastly, if you have a view and/or lots of windows, orientate this zone towards it. This increases the relaxation factor automatically.

Specifically, for a small Airbnb master bedroom:

1.       Have artwork above the bed be the hero piece as you enter the room. (and it needs to be in proportion to the bed, not teeny tiny!)

2.       Incorporate a second zone into the bedroom if you’re able – a seating nook is perfect.

3.       Include ample layers. Always plan to include those important extras such as rugs, different sized cushions, throws. Your aim is the comfort of your future guests.

Coastal style touches.

Typically, a coastal/Scandinavian look is light and airy, fresh and textured. Think about how your layout can highlight those styling choices best as your guests enter the master bedroom.

1.       Position furniture so guests can see all your cushions/throws on entry. It’s these items that pick up your coastal colours and textures.

2.       Have lightly toned furniture as a feature (I used the bed in this way), and remember the blond timbers contrast beautifully with darker tones in the room.  

3.       Always feature texture in your layout. Mix up your use of textures to bring automatic comfort and warmth. This is especially important when your colour choices are more muted and understated (I used a rattan side table with a luxurious leather chair, alongside a textured rug and bedding).

Here I’ve placed the large artwork above the bed as a focal piece as you walk into the bedroom.

The best Lighting for Airbnb master bedrooms.

One of my pet hates is only having that one central overhead light in a bedroom. What are people thinking?! Thinking about the comfort of your guests means that dimmable warm LED bedsides lamps are a must, along with a dimmable overhead light if that’s an option. It’s all about making this space feel like home, and giving your guests the best chance to have a restful sleep. If you have the space think about including a combination of floor lamps, bedside lamps and overhead lighting to give your guests options to suit a variety of tasks.

Coastal style touches.

When choosing a lighting fixture that is in keeping with a coastal style think about the material type.

1. Table lamp bases made out of rattan, lime-washed ceramics or glass would all fit nicely within a coastal aesthetic.

2. Aim to choose light fixtures that are cohesive to the overall coastal inspired colours you are using within your living space. Remember that the lighting should complement your furniture choices.

The muted grey and blond timber bedside lamps both suit the style of the room and are functional for the space.

The Best Art choices for Airbnb master bedrooms.

You can never have enough well-placed art in a space, and art really does make a rental feel like a home away from home. Choose artwork that ties in with your scheme, and for me using art from an Australian photographer show casing local beaches was a must. The artwork needs to make sense in the room, and if your personal taste is quite specific it may be helpful to choose art that appeals to a broad market (keep your quirky pieces for your own place). It is also an extra tick if you can choose art that references your location in some way, think about what makes your holiday rental special and unique and choose artwork that reflects that individuality.  

Coastal style touches.

For a more sophisticated take on coastal style, branch away from the typical shells, beach hat, footprints in the sand type of artwork.

1.       Artworks that references the texture of rope or driftwood reminds us of the beach without it being too obviously beachy.

2.       Abstract pieces with curves that connect to the shape of waves could also work nicely.

3.       Consider the colours of the coast; greens, blues, browns and whites all speak of a coastal vibe.

You catch a glimpse of the artwork here, large piece showcasing some horses in the ocean (see @loveyourspace).

The Best Styling tips for Airbnb master bedrooms.

It’s all about the details when it comes to styling for cosiness. Perhaps for all the spaces in an Airbnb, the master needs to be enveloping and cocooning, so paying attention to styling makes all the difference on this front. Consider elements like the extra throws for the bed, ample cushions, meaningful book choices in keeping with the aesthetic and good quality artificial flowers (it really is tricky keeping real plants alive in a rental). Think about all your styling items as one group as they need to be cohesive and add to the overall vibe of the bedroom.

Coastal style touches.

If you love the coastal, Scandinavian style choose styling items that are within this style’s colour palette. Colours like pale blues, greens, creams and whites always feel coastal and fresh. You can also contrast these soft colours with some depth found in rust, terracotta, beige and greys. These colours can be sprinkled amongst your bed linen, cushions, lighting, furniture, art, rug and styling accessories.

Style every zone in your master Airbnb so that it is welcoming at first glance to your guests.

The Best Comfort tips for Airbnb master bedrooms.

One cushions on the bed isn’t going to cut it. We all know that most of the cushions we dress the bed with aren’t slept on, but if guests are reading in bed they need those extra cushions. Also consider the material type; for a bedroom it helps to have soft cottons and velvets in the mix. Try to pre-empt the needs of your guests and they will thank you by coming back. Another comfort tip to think about is different weights of blankets and quilts, having lighter and heavier options means guests sleep comfortably regardless of the weather.

1.       Aim for at least five cushions for a bed (consider a larger European pillow at the back, with smaller square or rectangle ones at the front) with one-two throws.

2.       Two cushions for an occasional chair, and a small side table within easy reach.

The next must have is a rug for underneath the bed. Even if your bedroom is carpeted a rug works wonders in grounding the bed, and adds even more softness under foot.  Another big plus for rugs is that they reduce echo and absorb sound. These qualities are key for guests to feel comfortable and secure.

1.       Your rug needs to be large enough to sit under at least the foot of the bed with enough width for guests to comfortably stand on.  

2.       The rug needs to be large enough to not look like a runner under the bed.

Coastal style touches.

Mix up your patterns and textures with your cushions and throws. This adds to the comfort level in terms of interest and depth.

1.       Move away from the overdone blue and yellow coastal colour theme (unless you absolutely love this combo, then go to town). Rather think about highlighting different textures that you might find in a coastal environment such as rope patterns or baubles.

2.       Choose a rug that highlights coastal elements such as jute or sisal if appropriate.

Don’t skimp on cushions and throws for a comfortable Airbnb space. These types of soft furnishings really do elevate your rental to the next level.

It’s a wrap….

There you have it, all the goodness on how you can go about creating a beautiful master bedroom that is perfect for a holiday rental getaway. Follow these tips for your own Airbnb master makeover and feel confident that you have done things right!

Did you know that I love helping people with their Airbnb projects? I will be sharing more in future blog posts on how to ‘Airbnb ready’ other rooms in the home to help you feel confident in this quite specific market, so follow along to learn more.

If the overwhelm is real and you’d like specific help for your holiday rental project then reach out to me at bec@designrelease.com.au or find me on Instagram or Facebook. I look forward to helping you bring your Airbnb vision to life.