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Viktoria Dekany
Jun 10, 2017
5 min read

SPRUCE UP YOUR SPACE! Part III.

5 simple ways to smarten up your home this summer

By Viktoria Dekany Interior Architect & Holly Barry Digital PR Executive

With the weather warming up and the light, bright mornings and longer evenings set to stay for the foreseeable future, it’s the perfect time to refresh your home after the long winter months. Airy rooms and light-filled spaces replace the cosy feel of winter. Switch your cable knit throws and cushions for linen and pack your blankets, throws and winter bedding away. With your summer social calendar filling up with events, our top 5 ways to smarten up your home for summer will help you make the seasonal transition in style, whilst leaving you plenty of time to enjoy those weddings, barbecues and garden parties.

Artwork

It’s said that a picture paints a thousand words and a piece of artwork is an ideal way to add ambience and character to your home. While the darker shades and overall ambience of paintings, prints and portraits from artists such as Bill Mack and Chris Derubeis may be ideal to create a cosy feel in your home throughout the winter months, switching your artwork is a quick and easy way to brighten your living space for summer.

Use the handy Visualiser app from Gallery Rouge to find the perfect piece of artwork for your space. Before you buy a piece you can see how it would look hanging in your home with the augmented reality functionality within the app, which allows you to visualise any piece of artwork available in the gallery to scale.

A large abstract piece of art will look perfect hung on its own to make a statement, whilst smaller pieces can be grouped together with mirrors and photographs to create a feature wall. Stick to a theme such as a seascapes from Santana, Villalba or Antonio Iannicelli, or summer landscapes from Allan Morgan for a seasonal take, or mix and match pieces for a unique effect.

Fabrics

While we all love to wrap up warm in the winter months, there’s no need to snuggle up with soft throws, bedspreads and blankets in summer. Swap knitted and woollen fabrics for light linen and premium Egyptian cotton and replace your warm winter duvet with a lighter weight summer tog for a restful night’s sleep.

Summery stripes add a classic nautical theme to your room, whilst bold blooms and florals are a striking statement. Mix in tonal plain brights and pastel accent shades across bedding and towels for a cohesive look in your bedroom or bathroom, then add the finishing touch with complementary accessories, lighting and storage.

The summer season is all about natural materials and you can easily add texture to your living space with sanded wood tables and sandstone sculptures. Swapping your curtains and cushions for lighter shades and fabrics such as voile and replacing a thick pile or fur rug with a cotton design will instantly make a room look brighter.

Ex-display

Furniture is an investment and is likely to be the most expensive buy for your home. As you’d expect your furniture to last for years, it’s worth spending a little more on pieces you’ll love for a long time to come.

An excellent way to invest in designer pieces, consider choosing ex-display furniture, which will be significantly marked down from its full retail price, having been on display in a store.

Add a fresh new look to your living space this summer with a full furniture refresh, or invest in select pieces to update your home.

A designer dining table and chairs makes the perfect addition to your kitchen or dining room, whilst a striking designer bed makes a statement in your bedroom. Mix and match designer pieces with your existing furniture for a look that is bespoke to your home.

Premium home design brands such as Nicholas Anthony, BoConcept and Nest offer ex-display pieces for sale, allowing you to buy their stunning designs at a fraction of the full price. The best time to shop for ex-display furniture is when the brand’s showrooms are being updated at the beginning of a season, as they will need to make space for the new season’s pieces.

Green, green and more green

Bring the outdoors in this summer with house plants and fresh flowers – one of the easiest ways to give your home a seasonal uplift. As well as looking beautiful, indoor plants can also improve the quality of the air in your home as they can act as natural humidifiers.

Succulents are a popular choice around the home as they are exceptionally low maintenance.

The 1970s favourite cheese plant is making a comeback as part of the favour for all things retro in home design. A large potted cheese plant adds impact to your living space when placed in an unused corner of the room.

Group together mini cacti for the ultimate in low-maintenance house plants, or display a single stem in a tall vase as a centrepiece on your dining table, coffee table or mantelpiece.

A bright bouquet placed on your hall table is the perfect way to greet guests, whilst also proving a splash of colour as you open your front door. Leave your hayfever symptoms at the door with allergen-free indoor plants such as palms, ivy and peace lilies. Lift your mood with bright and sweet scented lilies, gerberas and tulips, plus the ultimate summer flower – the sunflower.

Home accessories

Add the perfect finishing touch to any room in your home with your choice of accessories.

Choose ornaments which complement your summer theme. From nautical designs for the bathroom to classic marble pieces for your living room, refreshing your home ornaments is an easy way to mark the change of season.

With the longer evenings of the summer months, you can mix up your lamps and lighting to suit the season. Swap your winter lampshades for brighter colours and use outdoor solar lights to illuminate your garden, perfect for al fresco meals.

Make a feature of your home storage with summer-suitable reed and wicker baskets, perfect for keeping all your essentials together in your bathroom, bedroom or living room.

Swap your winter-scented candles for lighter fragrances. Fresh floral scents are perfect for summer and a reed diffuser is the ideal alternative to traditional candles and can be placed in any room in your home for a burst of fragrance.

Choose a single empty vase to display as a sculpture or group pieces together filled with summer blooms to add colour to a side table or console table.