NUMBER ONE: The first step to choosing the right kitchen for you is to find your inspiration. Visit the show rooms, browse the in store sets to get an idea of colour and functionality. There’s a world of innovation, gadgets and design elements out there to suit any taste and any budget.

NUMBER TWO: Make a wish list and measure up. Space saving draws and hidden units will only go so far as I’m sure will your budget, you will need to fix some priorities and pair them with a few well selected luxuries.

NUMBER THREE: I always recommend going stress free, a full service package may cost a few extra bob but what it will save you in sweat and tears more than pays dividends. Search around and don’t be afraid to ask the suppliers if they are willing to comp the fitting or at least throw in a egg holder of some sort . If your taking up the gauntlet yourself make sure you plan every aspect of the build.

NUMBER FOUR: Don’t be afraid to ask for help, if the builds not going the way you thought stop! Don’t solider through cutting through ply and chip board in the hope your somehow be able to construct a chicken almost as good as the show rooms. Most reputable supplier offers a free help hotline, a god send when you find yourself lost in a flat pack world.

NUMBER FIVE: Keep the documentation, it might sound obvious but too many warranty’s are left out of the newly installed draws and misplaced.

Yeah ,I have lived away from home,  firstly as a student  living in a torn apart house share and secondly in a continuation of this squalor in a ill fated attempt strike out on his own.  The dream lasted a couple of months until I returned to my parents house decidedly sheepish and short a substation portion of my deposit.  Not deterred I’m setting up on my own once again. This time I’ve  got more of a permanent job and a healthier respect for my deposit. Finding a flat I could afford was the first ordeal.  If I’m being honest I’m  not really a man of the world, I don’t know the difference between Lbs and kilo or the price of council tax.  But what I do now know is 60% of my income is the minimum I can get away with spending on rent.

So the long and short of it is I don’t really want, can’t really afford to furnish my flat / ever eat again. I have previously experimented with breeze block shelves and well boxes for coffee tables however that was the old me.  I’m a little bit older now and I’m looking for a little more sophistication. Secretly I have always been a fan 60’s furniture perhaps this is because I was brought up around lament tables, armoires, vinyl lined chairs and lacquered wall units. Although I suspect it was more likely the inherent fragility and the  simply terrible production quality’s of this furniture that intrigued me.  A 17th century chest of draws should survive, they were built with durability in mind, a 1970’s lament units on the other hand were built with economy in mind, held together with glue, tiny little screws and the dreams of their owners , for them to survive they were truly , truly cared for.

So filling my new found flat with this stuff was very much a logical step for me. The results can be quietly brilliant.  There’s a wisp of OCD about me perhaps so I sought to recreate a live in 70’s museum like that of my grandparents inadvertently achieved. However on this road to 1970’s living I found the blend of modern and old sat naturally, this furniture of a bygone era and my minimalist sofa and Ikea table (a present) just simply worked. Unfortunately I couldn’t sustain this balance and had to as with all things in my life go all out.

There’s no denying my living room looked better with the mix of furniture and non of the clutter that makes up my life, but hey what can you do.  I suggest for others’ less bound by perfection than me to use elements of 70’s furniture sparingly and incorporating them into modern life. You will be amazed how seamlessly they fit, adding a cool retro look and  the perfect  place to house Magnavox Odyssey (1970’s games console).

I have saved the best till last, undoubtedly the best thing about this furniture is that its cheap, hey if you’re lucky your grandparents will gladly donate some or even better you can even find it in a skip.

This month I thought I’d share with you some of my special finds for the home. This range is what I call quirky, fun, playful.    Take a second look, these items may look to be one thing but are really something else…

If there is anything that you like, all you need to do is click on the image and you’ll be taken to the originating website.

Interior special finds. Fun way to display artwork.

Interior special finds. A new way to display your pot plants.

Interior special finds. Experiment with floral hairdos.

Interior special finds. Yes, your DNA in art.

Interior special finds. You’d never guess this was a radiator.

Interior special finds. You’d never guess this was a radiator.

If quirky is your style, I hope you found some inspiration to personalise and make your house your home.

Karen Haller helps some of the capitals most fabulous homes and businesses sort out their colour and design quandaries. She lives in fashionable Notting Hill and you can often find her rummaging through Portobello Markets for those vintage gems.

Visit Karen for more colour and design tips at her blog or on twitter.

Credits
Images via Freshhome, Dna11, Archiproducts and Mybtextiles

Outdoor living – decadent lounging.

Isn’t this summer sun just wonderful. It’s the time to be outdoors making the most of the long daylight hours. Why not do this by creating an outdoor living space. Even if you have a small patio terrace, there is still so much you can do.

5 elements to create your perfect outdoor room

1. Comfortable seating
2. Theme in a style and/or colour
3. Lighting to create ambiance
4. Space (balance with proportions leaving plenty of room to move around)
5. Great company, great food and let the conversation flow …

I hope these images inspire you to create an outdoor room just perfect for you!

Outdoor living - all in one living area, cooking come dining come living.

Outdoor living – casual dining.

Outdoor living - Moroccan theme inspired.

Outdoor living - celebrating with a drinks party.

Outdoor living - colour scheme inspired.

Outdoor living – lounging around.

Karen Haller helps some of the capitals most fabulous homes and businesses sort out their colour and design quandaries. She lives in fashionable Notting Hill and you can often find her rummaging through Portobello Markets for those vintage gems.

Visit Karen for more colour and design tips at her blog or on twitter.

Credits
All images via House to Home

With all this glorious sunny weather there’s no easier way to bring the outdoors in than with plants. Creating your very own natural wonderland indoors… and they aren’t just beautiful to look at, they are good for our health too.

Long lasting love affair
It was the Victorians and their renewed interest in the natural world that rekindled our love for indoor plants. Bringing back exotic plants from their travels made it very fashionable to keep potted plants indoors.

Victorian style living room and their love of indoor potted plants collected from around the world.

Nature’s clever air purifiers

Plants are truly amazing. Purifying the air and providing oxygen for us to breathe. Given all the toxins, VOCs and other nasties in our home, NASA has found some very clever plants effective in removing certain indoor air pollutants. Plants absorb noise as well as positive ions emitted from computer screens and other office equipment, perfect for your home office.
NASA suggests one potted plant per 100 square feet to be effective ‘air cleaners’.    They are also ideal indicators as to whether a home has good, fresh airflow.
Look out for plants such as Chrysanthemum, Gerbera Daisy, Palms, Peace Lily, Mother-in-Laws Tongue, Spider plant and the humble English ivy.

Air Purifying plants such as Peace Lily, Mother-in-Laws Tongue, Spider plant & palm trees.

Creating a design feature

Designers having realised standard potted plants may not be for everyone have come up with some unusual ways to display plants within the home.

Bringing life into your home. Wall hanging water air plants, requiring no soil.

These wall tiles are designed to create the illusion the plants are growing directly out of the wall.

Healthy Home. Bring life into your home by creating an indoor garden (potted plants on mass).

Looking after your plants

Some plants are delicate and fragile, others tough and virtually indestructible. Some plants love full sun, others are shade loving. Some needs lots of watering, others just a dribble…. your plant seller will be able to advise you on how best to care for them.
If you’re like me and sometimes forget to water your plants, especially those thirsty ones, you can use beautiful hand blown glass balls. Just fill them with water and push the spike into the soil.

Healthy Home. Beautiful hand blown glass balls. Makes for an attractive self-watering system.

Karen Haller helps some of the capitals most fabulous homes and businesses sort out their colour and design quandaries. She lives in fashionable Notting Hill and you can often find her rummaging through Portobello Markets for those vintage gems.
Visit Karen for more colour and design tips at her blog or on twitter.

Credits

Goforshare.com – www.goforshare.com

Momoy.com – www.momoy.com

Homedesigninterior.com – www.homedesigninterior.com

Homeinterior-design.com – www.homeinterior-design.com

Greatinteriordesign.com – www.greatinteriordesign.com

Karen Haller Interiors – www.karenhaller.co.uk

Banish your home's winter blues. Bringing your home to life with natural light and plants.

Having survived the post festive season blues, we find ourselves in the burst of Spring. It’s the season that represents new growth, new beginnings, a fresh start.

If your home feels like it’s still suffering from the winter blues, here are 3 easy steps to get your spring cleaning off to a blooming start, injecting an abundance of life and light into your home!

1. Sorting it out
Working your way systemically through each cupboard, drawer, box etc, sort everything into three piles:
1. Keep
2. Give away to charity
3. Throw out (recycle when possible)

You may need to be quite ruthless when doing this. If it helps, ask a friend to help you keep focused and motivated. By doing this one drawer at a time you can do this whenever you have a few spare moments without having turned your entire house upside down!

2. Clean out
This is a good a time to give your cupboard, drawers a thorough clean. Where possible use natural eco-friendly products which are safer for your belongings and safer for you to breathe by not filling your home with harmful chemicals.

3. Storage
Now that you know what you are keeping, you’ll be able to see not only how much storage you need but the right type. Good practical storage is key to having a well organised home, where there’s a place for everything and it’s all easily accessible. If your storage is out on display, look for more attractive solutions such as glass jars, wicker baskets, using colours that go with your décor.

Wardrobe storage - organised making everything within easy reach.

It’s surprising how much bigger a room can look after a de-clutter. You’ll also notice your cleaning time reduces as it’s so much easier to clean an uncluttered home.

Banish your home's winter blues. Light, spacious, uncluttered & still personalised.

Push back the curtains, letting the sunlight in and fill your home with plants and beautiful blooms. Now your home is alive with space, light and life! What better way to give your home a healthy start!

Lots of Love,
Karen x

Karen specialises in holistic interior design & colour psychology www.karenhaller.co.uk

Credits
Homedit.com
Martha Stewart
Housemagz

The UK has long been known as a nation of animal lovers with over 21 million cats and dogs! For many it would seem unthinkable to banish them outdoors and not share the home with them.

Just because you have pets doesn’t mean you can’t have a stylish, beautiful home. Here’s my top 5 tips how to create the balance of a stylish home that also gives the freedom for your furry friends to be part of the family.

1. Durability
The key concern is probably hair. Hard flooring such as wood or tiles are the easiest to keep clean. Be aware that wood may scratch easily.

If you have carpets, Dyson has developed a vacuum specifically for removing pet hair. Avoid using a steamer to clean pet stains or a hairdryer to dry them. Heat causes stains and odours to set, making them virtually impossible to remove.

When it comes to furniture look at hard wearing materials such as wood, metal and plastic. Leather is great for easy cleaning but it will scratch easily.

My dear friend Lisa and her husband share their home with two gorgeous Dalmatians. She has successfully combined beauty & ease of cleaning with durability.

2. Lingering Smells
For any lingering smells let a pot of vinegar simmer on the stove. The vinegar will neutralise, deodorise and removes impurities from the air. Being eco-friendly it’s kind to your pet and for us humans too.

You can also sprinkle baking soda onto the affected area (after cleaned and dried), leave overnight, and then vacuum.

3. Little messes
As soon as there’s a mess of any kind, clean straight away to minimise it soaking into the fabric/carpet and possible spread of harmful bacteria.

Avoid using ammonia based products when cleaning up after your pet as they smell like urine and it just may encourage your pet to keep soiling the same spot.

4. Colours & Textures
Neutrals and light colours will quickly show up any hair, stains and wear and tear. One way to minimise this is to think about using textures which will help concealment before your next clean. To minimise cleaning, encourage your pet to have a ‘favourite spot’ when they’re resting, one that you can easily and regularly wash the coverings.

Fashion Designer Donna Karen’s super chic home - Perfect flooring for her pet to chill out on & to keep clean.

Fashion Designer Donna Karen’s super chic home - Easy to clean surfaces, minimising lingering smells & making it easy to clean up those little messes!

5. Knocks & Tumbles
It’s easy for your precious ornaments and collectables to be knocked or broken especially with happy wagging tails. Pets can easily trip on electric cables and puppies just love to chew on them. To make your home as pet safe as possible if you take a look from your pet’s eye level you’ll very quickly be able to see what they can knock, trip over or break.

It may take a bit of extra cleaning and organised living, but there’s no reason you can’t have a beautiful stylish home with the joy of sharing it with your pets.

Karen specialises in holistic interior design, property presentation and applied colour psychology www.karenhaller.co.uk

Lots of Love,
Karen x

Photo Credits

Lisa Madigan

Habitually Chic (photographer: Richard Powers)

It’s Valentine’s Day and love is in the air!

Want to surprise your loved one this Valentine’s Day. Why not decorate your home. It won’t take much to create a space that means ‘love’ ‘romance’.

Colour of Love
The colour that represents love is Pink. This is more the female energy expressing qualities of maternal love that are nurturing, feminine and compassionate.

Colour of Passion
The colour that has come to symbolise Valentine’s Day is Red. This is more the male energy expressing qualities such as passion, excitement, stamina and strength. No surprise that men are attracted to this colour!

Caution if you are thinking of using a red and black colour scheme. In nature red and black indicates ‘danger’, ‘stay away’, think red-back spiders, red-belly black snakes. It can be seen as quite an aggressive colour combination so just be mindful if that really is the mood you want to create.

Here are three tips to help you:
1. Creating the mood What feeling, atmosphere, ambiance do you want to create? Remember it’s a sensory occasion – touch, smell, sound, taste. Create a romantic atmosphere with background music. Either dim the lights or turn them off and use candles/tea lights everywhere, on side tables, lining the stairs, as part of your table setting.

2. Choosing the colours What colour/s means Valentine’s Day to you? Remember no colour is seen in isolation so think about the primary colour you want to use and then a couple of accent colours.

3. Preparing the room Several well placed accessories is all you need. As Valentine’s Day is only for a day so you may not want to make lasting changes. It’s very easy to fall into the trap of thinking you need to do a lot. Here ‘less is more’.

Bringing the colour in
There are simple, low cost ways to bring the colour in. Look around your home. You may already have the items such as candles, vases, pillows, tableware. There’s nothing like fresh flowers that signals Valentine’s Day. If you’re a budding artist, think about purchasing a large canvas and create your own masterpiece.

Flower petals add a simple romantic touch

Romantic pink flowers used as to create art

There’s no mistaking this message!

Dressing up your dining area
Whether you have a formal dining room or a bench in the kitchen you can still create a romantic setting for your loved one.

The theme for this beautiful table setting is old world romance

For those of you lucky enough to spend
Valentine’s Day in the warmth of summer,
think about taking your table outdoors

If you have any queries please do not hesitate to email or call me.

Thanks,
Karen x

Credits
decorati0n.com
Karen Haller Interiors
vanillapink3113.blogspot.com
The City Sage blog
stylinghome.blogspot.com

Each year ICI ColourFutures™ presents their colour of the year based on one dominant trend. The trend for 2011 is “Appreciation” and the colour they believe “best sums up the prevailing mood, attitude and fashion of the time” is Yellow!

Looking at yellow in colour psychology terms, it is the colour connected to our emotions. Relating this to nature, yellow is the colour of sunshine. When we see the sun our spirits soar, leaving us feeling happy and joyous. When our spirits are lifted we are full of self-esteem, self-belief and optimism.

Like any colour it’s important to pick a tone that resonates with you. You will know if you have picked a yellow tone that doesn’t resonate with you as over time you may feel your self-esteem dip or feel fear or anxiety. You may also lose confidence in your own ability. The term “Yellow bellied” refers to a lack of self-esteem.

Here are examples of four different types of yellows. Which one resonates with you?

Making a splash
Yellow can freshen up and bring happiness to any space. You may like to painted a wall or just add a splash of colour in a rug, cushions or flowers if it’s a colour you find too bold.

Ideal rooms to use yellow in are those that could benefit with lightening up or where there is little or no natural light such as a dark hallway. Great for breakfast rooms with the feeling of starting the day in sunshine!

Bright and cheery breakfast room.

Calming, subtle yellow for an elegant hallway.

Warm yellow with a hint of black to compliment harmonious colour scheme.

Cool (blue based) intense yellow works perfectly with black.
No doubt this will be the scene of many stimulating and
lively conversations and meetings.

Causing an irritation
When we sleep our bodies are rejuvenating and restoring, ready for the coming day. If you have a yellow bedroom the opposite will be happening. Your emotions will be stimulated resulting in depriving yourself of a sound night’s sleep, possibly waking up irritated. As babies and children are more sensitive they will feel these negative effects even quicker. Best to avoid using yellow in the bedroom. Look at using calming, relaxing hues such as blue for a restful night’s sleep.

So when it comes to using yellow, find a tone you can relate to, that you feel comfortable with, not just because it’s in fashion….

Given these austere times, what better colour to pick than Yellow – the colour of optimism and hope, as it will be these qualities that see us through….

Wishing you all a happy, joyous 2011
Lots of Love,
Karen x

Karen specialises in holistic interior design & colour psychology www.karenhaller.co.uk

Credits
ColourFutures
KarenHallerInteriors
Inspirationforhome
decodingdecor
Sunset.com
chapmaninteriors

Sparkles, twinkling lights and colour! It can only mean one thing. Christmas is on its way! If we haven’t already, now’s the time when we all start to think about how we can decorate our homes.

Whether you choose the more traditional colours or follow this year’s trend, each colour has a meaning both psychological and cultural. Here’s a quick explanation of what your colour choice means and some ideas how you can use them when decorating your home.

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Colour Symbolism
Colour symbolism is usually related to religion or nature, so it comes as no surprise the traditional colours of Christmas are steep in colour symbolism.

Looking at the traditional colours of Christmas, red represents Christ’s blood, shed during his crucifixion. Green represents eternal life, specifically the evergreen tree and how it remains green throughout winter.

We are lucky to have a wide range of colour choices when choosing our decorations. Here are some of the more popular colours and their positive psychological properties.

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Colour Psychology
Purple – luxury and opulence
Silver – elegance and sophistication
Gold – luxury and high quality
White – represents all that is pure, as snow
Red – warm, stimulating, making your festivities full of life!
Green – calming, balancing. Pair this with red if you don’t want things to get too lively
Dark Blue – safe, traditional and trusting

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Breaking with tradition

If you are looking for something on trend, 2010 Christmas colour trend is blue. If you are looking for comfort and reassurance during these uncertain times, look at using dark blue. Dark blue for a more sophisticated look while a light turquoise will give a sense of fun.

Last year’s trend colour purple, is showing no sign of waning. As yellow is the complimentary colour to purple, harmonise this with the same tone of gold and you’ll have sheer indulgence.
Not only is there a break in tradition with colours but also style, like this upside down Christmas tree from John Lewis. Now that’s really turning things on its head!

This upside down Christmas tree is certain
breaking with tradition

A light touch
When it comes to decorating, if you love Christmas but don’t want to over indulge in decorations, then think of creating vignettes, focal points of small displays. This could be from a simple wreath on your door, decorating your mantelpiece, or a table centre piece. A chandelier or pendent light will dazzle dripped with decorations. You could have your own switching on the lights celebration!

___

Even your everyday objects will love dressing up!

___
Create a mini tree by spraying twigs in your chosen colour. Once dry, put them in a vase with filling to stand the twigs upright. Hang with lightweight decorations to complete the look.

___

Create your own decorations to match your décor

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Colour Inspiration
Not sure of what colour scheme to use. In this example the gold mirror was used as the colour inspiration. Then you can create your own decorations from everyday objects; spray them gold (such as ivy and lettering, twigs and nuts). Add twinkling tea lights to complete a classy and stylish look.

Create your own decorations to match your décor

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Tradition Colour combinations
For some there’s only one colour combination for Christmas and that’s green and red. You just know it’s going to be a Christmas full of nostalgic family traditions.

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A traditional Christmas theme

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No matter how you choose to decorate your home, whether that’s traditional, classic, quirky or with flashes of the avant garde, style to suit your personality… and celebrate!
Wishing you all a safe and joyous Christmas

Lots of Love, Karen x
Karen specialises in holistic interior design & colour psychology www.karenhaller.co.uk

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Credits
Stagehouse
Idealhome
Livingetc
Housetohome

The indulgence of daily pampering, oh what bliss. . .

___
Other than cleaning our body, the bathroom is the ideal place to pamper ourselves. Relaxing with natural light, music, surrounding yourself with colour and aromas is the ideal way to de-stress and take some time out for ourselves. It’s all about nurturing the senses.
If this sounds like your dream bathroom, here are some tips how you can easily create your own spa bathroom at home.

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Healing Light
Our bodies are best nourished from natural daylight. When a room is flooded with natural light we feel energised as it has a positive effect on our health. So bring in as much natural light and air as possible.

__
The absence of windows needn’t be a reason for not bringing light in. The next best thing is using daylight blubs which mimic as closely as possible the qualities of natural light.

Flooded with natural light.
Note the handy bench, making it easier to scrub,
shave & buff to your heart’s content!

Music
Playing music can help put you in the right mood. You may wish to be soothed and relaxed for a quiet night in, or play music to energise you, getting ready for a fun night out.

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Colour
Colour evokes a mood, a feeling. Surround yourself with colours that are supportive for you. Here are some colours you could use and the positive feelings they can invoke:
Turquoise (dark blue/green) – soothing the mind
Turquoise (light blue/green) – creative thinking
Aqua (green/blue) – refreshing, energising
Light Blue – calming, restorative
Green – calming, balance
Brown – grounding, safe, security
White – cleanliness, clarity of thought, no distractions (If white doesn’t feel right for you, Ivory, Oyster or Cream also elicit the same mood. Just pick the right one for you).

Showering in blue light, gently waking up the body.

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Painted white allowing no distractions,
other than to pamper oneself.

Nourish Naturally
To get that true healthy spa feeling, use natural products. Natural bristle brushes and loofahs to exfoliate, sea salt mixed with pure essential oils, natural soaps and hair products, finishing with unbleached cotton towels to dry off.

Nourish. Be kind to your body.

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Candles
Having a bath by candlelight provides both a relaxing atmosphere and gives your eyes a rest from harsh artificial lighting. If you have the space you may even want to add a candelabra for a touch of glamour.

___
Ideally choose eco-friendly candles, such as those made from bees wax. Bees wax may be more expensive, however being a harder wax they last longer. As bee numbers are decreasing it’s a great way to support the bee-keeping industry. Paraffin wax is made from petroleum, creating indoor air pollution. So if you see black soot when burning your candles, you’ll know you are burning paraffin based wax.

Please remember: avoid putting your candles near anything flammable, a draft or an open window, or leaving the room whilst the candles are lit.

Soothing light.

___

Essential oils
Continuing the sensory experience you may like to put a few drops of your favourite essential oil into your bath. Always choose a pure essential oil as many household products are filled with artificial scents that may make your eyes run and give you a sore throat.

__
Less is more
It’s very difficult to relax when you’re lying in the bath and all you can see are those unsightly cleaning products. Hide these away in your utility area or kitchen. Turn your bathing products into a display solving the clutter and storage conundrum.

Handy portable storage holding all your
pampering products – all within easy reach.

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Having created your spa bathroom at home there’s no excuse to not pamper yourself daily. With your favourite glass of wine or warming cup of tea and your favourite magazine in hand, shut the door, indulge. . . ahhhh bliss. Just beware, you just might not want to leave!

Lots of Love,
Karen x

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Karen specialises in holistic interior design & colour psychology www.karenhallerinteriors.co.uk

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Credits
Living etc [http://www.livingetc.com]
Karen Haller interiors [http://www.karenhallerinteriors.co.uk]
Lisa Madigan styling [http://www.lisamadigan.com.au/ content/bespoke-design-styling]
care2.com [http://www.care2.com]

More and more we are finding we’re in need of an office at home, whether we are working from home or just need a place to store all our household paper work.  You’ll be surprised how an office can fit into the most unlikely of spaces – under the stairs, a widow alcove, a hallway, or a cupboard.

Even the simplest of home offices can benefit from integrating the following 5 elements, making sure it’s a place you’ll want to spend time in.

_____

1.  Creating the right environment for you

Making a work space at home gives you the perfect opportunity to design and style to suit your own personality.  You may need a clear, clutter-free minimalist space or one that encourages inspiration with notice and mood boards and surrounded by things you love.

If peace and quiet is important to you, if at all possible, locate the home office away from the main activities of the house such as the kitchen, TV room, playroom, any space where there is likely to be lots of noise.  This will allow you to work undisturbed whilst allowing the rest of the household to carry on as normal.  You’ll also be able to close the door at the end of the day, helping you to make that mental ‘end of working day’ transition.

Office in a cupboard – simply close the doors and your room is restored

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2. Personalise your space with colour

Create a colour scheme that suits your personality and your needs.  You may find you need to have clarity and focus, or be creative.  Or perhaps you need some extra motivation to get that paperwork completed quickly.

Here are some quick tips on colours you could use and the positive feelings they can invoke:
Red – energy and motivation
Dark Blue – focused thinking, concentration
Light Blue – creativity
Turquoise – communication, self expression
Yellow – optimism, happiness
Orange – fun, sociable and joyful
Green – calming balance

Colourful, personalised work space

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Using colour to create the right mood for you.

_________

Interior Designer Annie Doherty cleverly created her office in an otherwise unused hallway.  Her choice of white and a green accent was to allow the colours to visually flow from the living area.  Annie also likes to swap out her coloured accessories when she feels like a change.

Annie’s clever hallway office

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3. Pole position

The best location for your desk is near a large window, giving you the benefits of natural light, fresh air and a view.  Other than getting up at regular intervals to stretch your body, it’s just as important your eyes are regularly ‘stretched’ by looking at a distance point.  If you can, place your monitor/laptop at least 25 inches from your eyes, preferably more.

Alcove office – bright & light with a view

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4. Sitting Comfortably

How often do we find ourselves sitting at our desk only to find the hours have flown by?  If you make one investment, make it your chair.  One that is right for your height and weight, supports your lower back behind the pelvis and encourages upright posture. Ideally you’ll want it to be adjustable in height, the tilting angle and the arms which can go up and down to ensure elbows are in the correct position.

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5. Storage

Good practical storage is key to having a well organised work space.  Where there’s a place for everything and it’s all easily accessible.  Make it as creative as you like especially if your storage is out on display, such as glass jars, wicker boxes, or folders covered in your colour scheme.

Lots of easily accessible storage with the most used items close at hand

I hope this article has inspired you to create your own personalised home office.  Where do you think you could create yours?  Remember, they can spring out of the most unlikely of places!

Lots of Love,
Karen x

Karen specialises in holistic interior design & colour psychology www.karenhallerinteriors.co.uk

Credits
housetohome.co.uk
potterybarn.com
Stagehouse