katie.lacy@letsgetcoffee.co.uk, Author at Modish Living

Clever ideas to make your small garden look amazing

Small Round Table and 2 Chairs Bistro Set in Blue

The small garden is to be celebrated. With minimal maintenance, it can be a haven of colour and scent, perfect for enjoying in the warmer months of late spring and summer. But there is also something pleasing about the deep colours of autumn and even the winter garden can enjoy a beauty all of its own.

But, like a small room in the house, it can be difficult to style and organise a small garden. Too much detail becomes clutter, shutting down the space to the eye. There are solutions, however…

Flexible seating

Top of the list for any garden activity is to sit and enjoy the sunshine, admire your flowers and feel your stress slip away as the scent and sounds of the garden wash over you. You can only do this if you have comfortable outdoor seating.

Flexible seating means that it offers a lounging experience, as well as one where you can dine al fresco too. Softwood furniture tends to have a short life, with hardwood offering being a costlier, but long-lasting alternative.

However, a rattan table and chairs ticks all the boxes. Cover with a waterproof protective coat during winter or when the rain lashes down, and you have stylish AND flexible seating options for the small garden.

Clean, simple lines with details

Just like a smaller room in the home, the detailing plays an important part. Don’t opt for ‘miniature’ stuff as these compound the smallness of the space.

Instead, consider adding;

Plenty of lighting in the garden but keep it soft and subtle. Choose the same kind of styles of lighting too to promote the sense of cohesion that brings it all together.
Zoning areas in any size garden give enhances appeal and function – for example, create a dining area close to the house and then a less formal area to the rear of the garden.

Greenery

You need plenty of greenery in a small garden, although the temptation can be the concrete it and make it into a yard. There are pros and cons but if you don’t fancy buying an expensive lawnmower to mow a small patch of grass, consider artificial grass instead.

A quick sweep (or even a vacuum) keeps it in tip-top condition. Dot your rattan chairs with colourful outdoor cushions and you have a super space to relax and unwind.

Function

A small garden can be functional and a great place to sit and relax. As well as greenery, you need plenty of colour. If you have the border space, choose colourful blooms and don’t forget you can mix vegetables in with your flowers too.

Add more colour with cushions and throws – hot colours like red, golden yellow and orange are perfect, or if you want, choose cooler colours such as pretty blues and lavender.

Candles clustered together on an outdoor table and chairs are also perfect for adding dimension and height and what is more romantic than flickering candlelight of an evening, as you enjoy the setting sun?

The secrets that give your garden a boost in the spring

With the snow now almost gone for most of the country, and some slightly warmer weather upon us, now is the perfect time to give your home and your garden an injection of spring.

However, having had such cold weather, you may feel your garden could do with a little TLC. Take a look at our guide to create a colourful spring garden by the time Easter rolls around:

Clean out the garden

Start by having a general tidy up and removing any debris. Now is your chance to remove those leaves you didn’t get around to pick up when they fell off the trees in the autumn and those pesky weeds (make sure to grab them at the roots to make sure they won’t grow back).

If you have a greenhouse, make sure to wash it inside and out before you get going too – a dirty greenhouse will not look particularly aesthetic next to all those beautiful blooms you’ve lovingly nurtured. And don’t forget to ventilate your greenhouse well for a couple of days after washing.

Give your soil a new lease of life

After the winter (especially when there’s been snow!), your soil is likely to be dried out and packed. To get your soil ready to plant all your beautiful new shrubs and flowers, add some moisture using organic materials like manure or compost.

Prune old plants

Plants that survived through the cold this winter will need to be trimmed back so that they’ll grow again this year. Make sure to wait until it is less cold to do all the pruning just in case there is a frosty spell in early spring.

If your plants are already blooming, make sure you don’t prune before just after they have bloomed – you don’t want to chop any future flowers. Spring blooming flowers should be pruned before they bloom in early spring.

Add new flowers and shrubs

Once you’ve got your garden almost spring ready, it’s time to invest in some new spring plants. Some of our favourites include: snapdragons, tulips, lilac and pansies.

Make sure to buy some summer-flowering bulbs too so that you’ll have a lovely, vibrant garden all summer long. Dahlias, marigolds, beardtounge and gloriosa lilies are all good choices to add a splash of colour to your garden.

Prep your furniture for entertaining

If you are using your trusty rustic outdoor furniture from last year, make sure to give it a spring clean too ready for summer BBQs and garden parties. If you don’t tend to entertain until later in the year when the weather’s a bit warmer, this might be a task to save until nearer the time given how unpredictable the British weather is!

You may also wish to invest in some new garden furniture. For avid gardeners, our advice would be to invest in wooden shelving units or a wooden ladder (like this or this) – both of which will provide a stylish space to store all your garden equipment, and even a spot for popping some extra, smaller plants to give your garden a full, blooming look.

What will you be doing to get your garden spring ready? Let us know, or share some photos of the blooms you’ve been buying all ready to plant!

The best woodland walks to enjoy this weekend

With Mother’s Day the perfect excuse for spoiling mum (do we need one?!), spending time with the woman who offers so much and does so much for is the perfect gift. Of course, it might be your aunt who is the significant woman in your life, your Gran, next door neighbour, step-Mum or foster Mum. Whoever your special Mum is, enjoy a woodland walk together this March – it’s also World Forestry Day on the 21^st, so if you can’t get there for Mother’s day, then there’s always another excuse!

Grizedale, Cumbria

If you are both fit, then this strenuous uphill hike will be perfect especially as the views from the top are simply fantastic. You’ll have panoramic views of the Lakeland Fells from the highest peak (only 314 metres!). But if you don’t fancy hiking up the top, there are some easier, less strenuous trails that are a delight, including the Millwood Trail. Enjoy the mile-long walk streamside and plenty of shade.

Return home to a roast served up at an immaculately laid farmhouse table, complete with a bottle of bubbly.

Ankerwycke, Surrey

Close to Runnymede, a great stopover point if ever there was one, this woodland parkland is a sanctuary from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Just watch the stress roll off Mum (and you too!) as you gently stroll along clearly marked pathways bordered by spring flowers. Rest awhile in the shade of the 2,500-year old Ankerwycke yew, under which Henry VIII is said to have courted Anne Boleyn.

Kielder Forest, Northumberland

Why walk during the day when you could admire the twinkling stars of the night sky? Kielder is said to have the darkest night sky in England so why not enjoy a night time walk with Mum, returning home to enjoy a cup of delicious hot chocolate and a cheeky nightcap? Daytime strolls include the two-mile Duchess Trail or why not hike to the 571-metre summit of Deadwater fell, if you are both feeling a little more adventurous? Keep an eye out for red squirrels too.

Hackfall Wood, North Yorkshire

Described by a 19^th-century writer as a ‘beautiful wilderness’, Hackfall Wood is not actually a wood or a forest but a rambling Grade I listed garden. William Wordsworth included Hackfall in his ‘Guide to Tourists’ book and no wonder! Filled with follies and surprising waterfalls, this is a fantastic place to explore. There is a mix of trails including gentle ambles and more ambitious ones, such as the 17-mile Aislabie Walk.

Hatfield Forest, Essex

With over 3,00 species of wildlife, if your Mum loves the outdoors, then this is surely the must-do walk on the list. One of the only surviving medieval royal hunting forests left, it is cultivated and managed by humans over the years to produce the beautiful place that it is today. With ancient trees, it is a perfect walk with your mum this weekend.

Or, if you don’t fancy travelling to a woodland, why not enjoy a stroll in your own local neighbourhood? Better still, if the weather is fine, there is no reason why you can’t enjoy the great outdoors by dining al fresco at an outdoor table, complete with your comfy, indoor coloured dining chairs giving it a classy, elegant look.

How to elegantly display flowers at home

With the beginning of spring around the corner, now is the perfect to inject some colour into your home with some beautiful blooms. With this in mind, we thought we should share some of our favourite ways to elegantly showcase your floral displays this year and instantly bring your room to life.

One option is to match the colour of the flower buds to the colours of your room. Perhaps not an option if your colour scheme is blue. However, for many colour schemes, adding co-ordinating flowers into your space can look incredibly stylish and will really pull a room together. A bunch of yellow flowers will add a real zingy look to your room paired with a couple of yellow scatter cushions on a chesterfield style sofa.

If you are not sure about having all one colour, go for two or three colours and pick flowers in one of your selection. For example, with a sunset colour scheme which incorporates pinks, oranges, reds and even yellows, any of those colours would look fab!

Go large. Five or six large blooms (think hydrangeas and peonies) will look uber sleek in a glass bowl vase and will make a perfect statement piece for your hallway. If you have a large sideboard, this simple decoration placed on top will keep your decor looking clean and elegant, but will add also add enviable style. Large flowers are also a great way to add excitement in your large farmhouse table.

Double the impact of flowers by placing in front of a mirror. A tall glass vase filled with flowers and foliage will look twice as full if placed in front of a mirror. Whether the vase is placed on the floor in front of a full-length mirror or is on a sideboard with a large wall mirror, your flowers are bound to look twice as impressive! This works particularly well with an otherwise understated room, such as light walls and flooring and soft Scandinavian furnishings, to make the biggest impact.

Work with more natural textures. Beautiful bouquets of flowers are undoubtedly stunning. However there is something more unique in bouquets of wilder, natural flowers. This look works particularly well in country kitchens and living rooms. To really make the most of the style, display in a soft coloured, metal jug, or even hanging out of a wicker basket as if they’ve been freshly picked. You could even line two or three small old glass milk bottles up in on rustic wooden shelves for that cosy farmhouse style.

Have you got a creative way to display your flowers at home? We would love to know!

Beautiful unique gold wall accents you will love

Louis de Poortere Columbus Gold Rug in Living Room

Gold as an accent in home decor is a colour which immediately creates an opulent, sophisticated feeling in any space. This week, we are focussing on gold and stainless steel and how you can decorate with them and first things first – gold wall decor.

Why wall decor? Well, it is a great way to inject style into any room without making a huge investment in furniture pieces.

And why gold? One of the beauty’s of gold is that it is immensely flexible when it comes to decorating. Add to an already dramatic room to create the feeling of a trendy boutique hotel or add to a simple decor scheme to add a subtle touch of luxury. Additionally, and best of all, the chances are, gold will work with the furniture and decor you already own.

Keep it simple

There are plenty of options when it comes to wall decor, but if you are looking to keep it simple, clocks and mirrors are the way to go.

A clock will work in any room but is particularly fantastic in your kitchen, hallway or home office to keep your family running on time. Our selection of large wall clocks looks great on any wall. This large metal and gold wall clock would look equally stylish on a white wall with simple Scandinavian styling as it would on a dark navy or purple wall to really make a statement.

Additionally, mirrors are fantastic to open up a room and to add a touch of glamour. This stylish wall mirror would work wonders huge above your fireplace or in the dining room paired with a reclaimed wood table and white dining chairs to bounce light around the room and creating a real centrepiece for your decor. If you prefer a floor mirror, one like this one would work beautifully in your hallway or bedroom with the unique shape adding a gorgeous modern feel to your room.

Add something extra

If you really want to make the most of gold in your decorating scheme, adding two or three gold accents will create a sleek, coordinated scheme you’ll want to show off to your friends and family.

A gold rug like this Louis de Poortere one is a great choice. In your living room or under your dining room table, a high-quality gold rug like this one will add a real injection of colour to your room and will finish off a contemporary room to perfection.

Alternatively, go for a gorgeous velvet sofa customisable in gold to really make an impact. Our beautiful sofas, complete with gorgeous button detailing for an interesting take on the classic Chesterfield, work either upholstered in golden fabric. If you’re not certain on gold, you could even have your sofa upholstered in a jewel-toned velvet which would be beautifully complemented by those golden accents.

What do you think? Will you be adding a gold accent or two to your home?

Make your home a blissful sanctuary this spring

March heralds the start of spring and yet, as the first day of the month rolls around, it is still winter. But by the last day, spring has sprung.

For many of us, the first tentative buds of spring bring about a new resolve: to declutter the home and to keep it clutter-free. Casting off the shackles of winter, the annual spring clean was a task many housewives performed. In many ways, we do the same today – it just gets called a different thing (and it’s not about thwacking the dust out of rugs with a tennis racquet either…)

The problem with clutter

Clutter is ‘stuff’ that you somehow seem to accumulate but not sure how. Some of it is useful, it just needs a place to be stored. Other bits of ‘stuff’ is exactly that: clutter. Sleeves rolled up, you decide to tackle the clutter in the bedroom and the kitchen, two rooms that seem to have magnetic qualities when it comes to attracting ‘stuff and clutter’.

But, no decluttering process is completely done until there is storage for the items you decide to keep.

The Kitchen

When you have decided what to keep and what to recycle and/or reuse, you need to make sure you have the storage solutions. May we suggest…?

Sideboard – minimise the room taken up by plates and crockery by decanting some from the kitchen cupboards to a sideboard in the dining room. Reclaimed wooden sideboards are not only stunning in style and finish, they offer so much space and storage for all kinds of items.
Bespoke kitchen cupboards solutions – even if you aren’t replacing your kitchen, there are some handy cupboard storage additions that make sense. Carousels that magically reveal items when the door is opened, for example, are an inexpensive but worthwhile addition.

The Bedroom

Just because you don’t spend all day in here doesn’t mean that it is the right place to dump store things. May we suggest bedroom storage including…?

Toy storage boxes – you may think that the toy storage box is only for the children’s bedrooms but if you want versatility when it comes to storage in the bedroom, say hello to the blanket box. With so many blanket boxes to choose from, it’s hard to know which way to turn but, this versatile piece of furniture works in any room.
Chest of drawers – drawers are perfect for putting order on the things you store but rather than opting for drawers that are uniform, opt for a piece of furniture that gives you a little more scope to separate things. The Standford reclaimed wooden chest of drawers is 5 drawer and cupboard arrangement that gives you a lot of storage options. Or choose something like the tall 8-drawer Winchester tower that is great for sliding into a corner and perfect for storing all kinds of items from clothing to accessorise.

Clutter & Storage = Tidy Home

There are times when clutter gets the best of us, but you will find that with adequate and accessible storage solutions, it becomes less of an issue. Run free from coats hung over fabric dining chairs and clutter in every corner. What storage options will you include in your declutter, spring clean?

Put the spotlight on the wonderful coffee table

Lansdowne Reclaimed Wood Coffee Table and Grey Upholstered Chair

We are a nation of coffee lovers so it is no wonder there’s a day to celebrate our affinity for the coffee bean with ‘Coffee Break’ being celebrated on 4th March.

And whilst coffee is perhaps the best way to wake up in the morning, it can also provide a fantastic source of inspiration for our home decor too! Coffee shop decor is hugely popular in interior design, working particularly well in your living spaces like the kitchen and living room. Not only is the coffee shop look ultra-modern, cool and quirky, amalgamating luxurious and industrial design, but there is also something social about the social too.

The Kitchen

If you have a breakfast bar in your kitchen, you already have a fantastic base to recreate that gorgeous coffee shop look in your home.

Alternatively, if you have the space, a breakfast bar table and stools will create a similar look. In the corner of your room, or by a large window to bring light in and wake you up in the morning, you can create a fantastic spot to drink your morning cup of coffee. This compact table with the matching stools is a great option – not only does it not take up much space, but it also adds coffee shop style which will work with any modern kitchen design.

The Living Room

Often used for larger spaces to sit and chat with friends, the combination of sofas and a gorgeous coffee table, is a popular feature in coffee shops.

Perfect for those with a soft spot for modern living room furniture, an industrial coffee table, offering a combination of wood and metal adds a really interesting addition to any living room. The style works really well with leather sofas (as are often found in coffee shops) or, for a real industrial meets glamorous feel, velvet sofas. After all, the infamous Central Perk set-up in Friends featured the iconic golden velvet sofa! The style looks even better if you are fortunate enough to live in a property with a unique fireplace or some exposed brick you can utilise.

There’s often discussion as to the necessity of a coffee table, but we think they look great and are fantastic for creating a really sociable living space. Perhaps if you are very tight for space in your living room, a coffee table may be tricky, but traditionally, they work wonders as a central point of the room. If you do not have the space, a wooden side table or two conveniently located by the sofa can provide the tablespace you need to pop your morning cuppa and are another way of injecting the coffee shop or industrial style into your room.

What do you think? Are you inspired to inject some coffee shop style into your kitchen or living room? Or maybe you don’t like coffee at all! Either way, we would love to know!

Beautiful stainless steel pieces you need to have in your dining

Only a few weeks into the New Year, we are seeing more predictions for what will become on trend in interior design. For the last year, we have consumed brass accessories and although such items are still relevant, designers are suggesting that by the end of the year, we will once again be coveting the sparkling sheen of silver.

The Maddox collection is, therefore, ideal for creating a dining room that has all the sparkle that you need, whilst remaining understated and beautifully elegant. And so with this in mind, this is how to get the look for your dining room.

The dining table

The reclaimed wood dining table, such as the top of the Maddox dining table fuses effortlessly and seamlessly with the high polished finish of the table legs.

The dining chairs

The fabric dining chairs in this fantastic dining room are stunning in their own right but are the perfect foil to the roughly sawn top of the table and yet, there is no class. In this sense, this is because the colour of the fabric and the wooden chair legs is slightly muted, a blank canvas against which the rest of the room can shine. Cream dining chairs would work just as well.

The Console table

Just behind the dining room table is the narrow console table, perfect for adorning with the beautiful silver table lamps with matching grey lampshades to tie in with the chairs. From the same range, it has the same leg choice as well as reclaimed slightly rough swan reclaimed wood top. This promotes a cohesiveness in the room and stops anyone one thing from jarring against the other.

The display units

And there comes a change in height, a ‘trick’ that many interior designers use to prevent everything being too much ‘the same’. Variations in height of furniture and other pieces create the detail that really matter.

And yet, it matches the components seen in the dining table and console table – the reclaimed wood shelves and the high sheen finish to the legwork. There is just enough detail in the Maddox display units to them being a welcome, but not an overpowering addition to the room.

Detailing

Adding accessories is the fun part but get it wrong, and it looks too cluttered. You will note that there are some subtle changes to the metallic finish of the pendant lights, for example. With a brass finish, they are a welcome detail in the room but with an understated shine and finish, they don’t jar against the stainless steel sparkle.

Alongside the neutral backdrop of grey, there are earthy colours teamed with other brass and stainless steel accessories but there is one colour that lightens it all – the varying shades of pink, from the candles to the flowers.

Wall accessories are minimal – opt for artwork if you feel it needs more character – but the beautiful wall clock, complete with Roman numerals is simply stunning, an exquisite detail that draws the eye across the entire dining room landscape.

Is this the perfect way to add stainless steel to your dining room?

How to style stainless steel to love it in your home

Stainless steel is an ideal choice for adding a zing of detail to any room, so no surprise that we turn to it as the must-have metallic finish.

But it can be tricky to handle, soon tipping from chic to a cacophony of silver finishes. And so, using it sparingly but well is the key.

Use it as an accent

Many interior designers use stainless steel as an accent colour in a space. This allows it to be introduced in a way that is controlled and without it being overpowering. It works with a variety of other materials, such as reclaimed wood furniture. The smoothness of the stainless steel works well with the roughness of the wood, an ideal combination.

Devil in the detail

Exquisite pieces with stainless steel detailing are also a serious option for introducing stainless steel into any room. For example, this rather easy-on-the-eye console table is the perfect fit for any hallway. Note how the silver accessories bring a note of cohesion to the whole look, a plus in our book of hallway decorating ideas.

Perfect for any sized room

From the smallest room in the house to open plan living, the versatility of stainless steel is such that it suits all sizes and dimension of rooms. In smaller rooms, stainless steel can really shine but this doesn’t mean opting for larger-than-life furniture. This bijou piece is perfect as a modern TV unit with understated stainless steel legs is perfect.

Workhorses can shine too

There are many items of reclaimed furniture that can be described as essential in any room, from the sideboard in the dining room to the display unit in the living room. All of these items can stand out, with stainless steel being the ideal detail. Take a look at a reclaimed wood coffee table, for example, complete with simple, yet striking stainless steel legs, perfect for pulling together the industrial style with a hint of sumptuous luxury.

Mix it with the traditional too

There are many iconic shapes and styles that we love for our homes, and there is nothing wrong in ringing the changes by marrying the sleek modern, cool appeal of stainless steel with stylish leather.

Mix the modern and the old can produce exciting eclectic pieces. And we think the RetroSit brown leather armchair is a perfect example of the stunning results of mixing two materials such as stainless steel and leather together.

Likewise, the iconic styling of the leather Chesterfield armchair is perfect sitting alongside the elegance of stainless steel legs.

All that glistens…

… could be stainless steel. Or gold. Or both. There is nothing in the rulebook that says you must only just one metallic finish and never mix metallic. There are stunning examples of chrome and brass, or stainless steel and gold metallic finishes working harmoniously in one room.

Our tip would be to decide on one ‘main’ metallic finish but using the other in a supporting role, such as brass tack beading on chairs or a lamp base.

Stainless steel is beautiful. Smooth and cool to the touch how will you bring stainless steel into your home?