On a more positive note in Paris I found the most amazing moose’s. Moose heads crafted from brush bristles (sounds odd) but believe me they are fabulous. I’ve ordered three for me (one in the loo, one in the hall, and one for my studio door) plus hundreds for the store.  The thing about adding animals to a space is that they immediately lighten the mood. Ceramic owls, papier mache  elephants, wooden dogs whatever you find the minute you plonk them on mantles, shelves, tables they add an immediate tongue in cheek twist and for me that is what design is all about. Formulaic perfectly co-ordinated interiors are a thing of the past, homes should be filled with happy things so the minute you come home after an 18 hour day you cast you eyes on a super tall ceramic parrot, a bulldog lamp, a wicker elephant table and your spirits are instantly lifted. Just remember to bolt the door behind you!

Moose heads on walls have been done a thousand times over, except I have to say I am the hugest fan. I prefer cruelty free ones like our resin ones or the bristle ones I have just purchased – but the minute you walk through the door your spirits are instantly lifted.

I’m off to the farmers market for breakfast looking a state as the burglar stole all my make up and I haven’t got the energy to schlep to Selfridges for replacements  – so wooly hat and super large sunglasses are the look I am going for this morning.

So she says, writing at the speed of light as my taxi will be here any second, if you want to immediately add the wow factor to any room, ramp up your style ratings and have one of the coolest pads in town add a super sized mirror. Forget the rules, plonk them on walls that are way to small – or vice versa put small mirrors on walls that are too big and you will immediately see the effect I am talking about. Magical not only do mirrors expand horizons when you start playing around with scale your interior will instantly take on an Alice in Wonderland vibe.

Two images to entice – my pad below and an image taken from lonnymag.com

Got to fly still in pjammas with dripping wet hair, not such a good look on a filming day!

Paris was fantastic found lots of fabulous stuff for the store (and home – whoops) and cannot wait to get it all in. I have literally no patience and hate beyond belief that I have to wait in the odd few cases until May until stuff arrives. Also planned and figured out the next few collections and eager to start on the design for that unless my batteries run out which  I am hoping they won’t do!

Lets talk interiors and more specifically wallpaper. I am a little fussy when it comes to wallpaper you can probably count the papers I like on one hand but even so the difference they make to an interior is quite incredible. If you want to add drama and don’t have a big art collection then wallpaper is the way to go. Forget floral little flouncy numbers instead thing graphic, eclectic knock it out of the park type paper that makes you gasp with joy. These days you can get anything printed out so you can even create your own – Surface View are one source that leaps to mind not only to they have a huge library of images they also bespoke anything.

The wallpaper that Kelly Wearstler designed for her LA pad has instant wow factor. Love it, hate it (I happen to love it) it knocks your socks off – and to paper such a design in a hallway genius (often the most neglected space in the house). You walk into Kelly’s pad and you know from  this first glimpse of her hallway that you are in for a roller coaster of an interior – one that surprises, thrills, tantalises and makes you smile. And that is what good interiors are all about – they make you happy simple as that.

Last year I joked somewhat about converting people over to dark side, this year it’s a full on campaign – if Heston Blumenthal loves my interiors (see them on his new show How To Cook Like Heston, Channel 4 8pm Wednesday evenings) I’m thinking world domination is just around the corner! Soon everybody will be embracing the dark side (let me dream)! As we speak our website is being overhauled and rather soon there will be a section called ‘dare to go dark’ where you guys can post images of your pad and we can all respond, be inspired and generally chit chat as to how life changing it is. There will be prizes also for some of the best spaces – who knows before long we could have our own magazine, TV channel, 500 stores around the world (OK now I’m dreaming)!

Recently I converted a pastel lover over to the dark side by painting a wall with black board paint. First of all it was only a wall so they didn’t flip out  ‘we can paint it back’ they said (which is what I generally here) – but hey ho they liked it so I if you are dabbling with the idea of converting but don’t know where to start blackboard paint a wall and the doodle away. Fabulous in kitchens, halls, loos, kids rooms, offices on and on I could go. Just to prove my point check out these two images of Olaf Hajek’s pad  (artist and illustrator) taken from The Selby – pretty darn cool no?

Oh and don’t let anyone tell you with Spring around the corner we should all be embracing light, bright, pastel shades. Nonsense to that, the contrast between a dark interior inside and a bright sunny outside is even more tantalising in Spring and Summer months, so ignore. Zoom across the road, quicken the pace, get out of ear shot and totally and utterly ignore at least that’s what I do!

HOWEVER you can pretty much get what you want when it comes to interiors. Ignore money you don’t need oodles of cash to have a beautiful pad you just need a good eye and for starters a  can of paint. Color dear friends transforms interiors like nothing else I know taking rooms from ordinary to extraordinary Just look at this space below, photography by Mark Seelen.

You know that feeling you get when you meet the right guy (or girl) heart beats a little faster, pulse rate quickens that’s the feeling I want everyone to get the moment they walk into one of my interiors.  Adding color is the first step and whilst pink may not be our cup of tea see just how beautiful and transformative it makes this interior.Once you start playing around with color (especially dark inky sludgy hues that I am obsessed with) you will be, I promise hooked. Not only hooked but seduced, tantalized and excited all from a can of paint. Bloody clever no?

I design spaces in the same way – paths never being straight I mean. If you can walk in a straight line from one end of you room to the other, MESS IT UP IMMEDIATELY.  the reason being consciously or subconsciously your senses are activated, excited, stimulated and that is what it is all about. The best stores in the world follow this mantra, as do the best homes. I was explaining this to a client last week who said I must live in a very strange world to even think like that. Maybe I do (don’t know seems pretty normal to me) but when you start analysing and figuring out what makes a good interior you will see they are all linked. Look at magazines, make lists of rooms that appeal and I bet you furniture is never just placed along the perimeter. No matter how small the space move it away from the edge. During our master classes last year I brought people up to my studio to demonstrate my point – the rooms in this house are not big, it was built in 1860 after all think standard Victorian rooms and all the furniture is brought into the room rather than lined up like soldiers along the edge.

Call it making mischief but in design like in life you have to break a few rules in order to feel alive. Happy Tuesday

Jonathan Adler’s NY pad pretty much nails what I am talking about, coffee table slap bang in the centre  with chairs clustered around it.

Last week I did something for the first time, striped a wall for a client, and I have to say although dubious at first it totally and utterly worked. I’m not actually sure why I’ve steered away from stripes as they enliven a room instantly. You can go thick, thin, vertical or hortizontal. They can add a sophisticated vibe (think tone on tine) or a playful vibe (think whole host of hues). Stripes are so versatile  and they are not as hard to pull off as feared I promise you. They add instant energy and drama to a space to fab for kids rooms, hallways, home offices. Top tip painters tape is the thing to use when painting stripes, zap a credit card along the tape for a tighter seal and the paint won’t seep through. Check out the beautiful images below (by www.brothertonlock.com).

Right coffee, fire, shower in that order for me. Happy Monday

Enough moaning – the weekend is near thank god. Thank you also by the way for all your lovely comments on the blog and Facebook on the new collection, its those kind of comments that makes everything so worthwhile I can’t tell you enough.  Especially when days are long and some clients liken your work to that of an Indian restaurant! More on that another time lets talk unexpected twists.

I’m not a fan of predictable interiors, safe maybe, comfortable and acceptable yes but who wants to live in spaces like that. I’ve probably droned on about it a thousand times but if you don’t take risks, push boundaries and experiment you don’t get the sort of interior that sends a volt through your body, that makes you want to dance, skip and sing with happiness.  Sometimes when you take risks you get it wrong but when you get it right its addictive. And anyways getting it wrong is no bad thing you learn from mistakes.

There are all sorts of things you can do, cover a modern sofa in a traditional fabric like a chintz for instant to give it an edge. Upholster backs of chairs with vintage bus roll fabric  even rip the fabric off big old lamp shades, spray the frame and wham bam magic starts happening.

Perfect is bland, I say don’t conform wow instead with offbeat colour combo’s unexpected twists and push boundaries. Do that and you will get to live in a home you never want to leave?

Wish I could illustrate the points but I can’t get photo shop to work on the new computer so please excuse lack of visuals today

were served on beautiful slate rectangular or square platters. Also when sourcing all the tableware for Heston’s new show, Cooking with Heston (on this eve, Channel 4, 8pm), it made me realize how vertically everything dinner plate wise is round. Also colour palette wise I wanted to follow my vibe and so have chosen, olives, moss green, greys, deep deep blues as well as some neutrals as course. Rooms like food look better on dark backgrounds.

Square is the new round you know!

Lets talk bedrooms – I would say bedrooms are probably one of the most important rooms in the house since it’s the first thing we see when we open our eyes and the last thing we see at night (shame mine is so neglected). Its where we relax (I don’t as I hate my current one) but hopefully  you are not like me and have bedooms that are true reflections of who you really are. In my new bedroom (happening the minute filming stops) I’m having a big fireplace (obviously) a clubby old chair to read novels in when I want to escape. There are quite a few of us working from home now it’s a hive of activity Atelier HQ so I’m fancying a room with a door I can close. Also want a huge chandelier crafted from mud no less, a panelled false wall which doubles as a walk in wardrobe, bed linen from Merci and a big slubby merino wall throw. Wall lights , oodles of flowers and way hey think I might never leave. That’s my current wish, that and getting a little better so I can crack on with this rather gruelling schedule.

Happy Tuesday I leave you with a few bedroom shots to ponder

Crazy week for me this week but I’m planning a treatment at the Cowshed, Shoreditch house on the weekend which is keeping me going