Decorating
Ask Kate Watson-Smyth: How Do I Add Personality to a New Kitchen?
Do you have a burning decorating dilemma? Our resident interiors agony aunt is here to help
In need of design help? Step forward Houzz’s very own agony aunt, Kate Watson-Smyth. We’re thrilled to have Kate, a property journalist who writes interiors blog Mad About The House, on board to support Houzz users with their interiors issues and design dilemmas. Having renovated and decorated her own home (on multiple occasions!), Kate knows the ins and outs of the home-improvement world, and how challenging it can be.
So, over to Kate, who this time tackles how to bring personality to a brand-new kitchen extension, and suggests ways to warm up a grey Victorian dining room.
So, over to Kate, who this time tackles how to bring personality to a brand-new kitchen extension, and suggests ways to warm up a grey Victorian dining room.
Kate says…
Hello Lizzie. Without seeing the space, which sounds amazing by the way, I imagine it’s just a question of adding the finishing touches to make it look lived-in and filled with the personalities of the people who reside there.
You can start by putting some pictures on the brick wall to soften it. Have you thought about a rug under the kitchen table or nearby? And lots of plants will always soften a space and provide a link between the outside and inside.
Hello Lizzie. Without seeing the space, which sounds amazing by the way, I imagine it’s just a question of adding the finishing touches to make it look lived-in and filled with the personalities of the people who reside there.
You can start by putting some pictures on the brick wall to soften it. Have you thought about a rug under the kitchen table or nearby? And lots of plants will always soften a space and provide a link between the outside and inside.
Next up, consider some vintage wood – a bar stool or table – which will take away from the clinical modernity and bring in more character. Have you thought about fixing pots to the brick wall and creating a vertical herb garden there?
Shop for bar stools in the Houzz Shop
Shop for bar stools in the Houzz Shop
Open shelves will also add texture and allow you to display your favourite mugs or vases. Build this up as you go along and it will become your space and tell your story.
2. Dear Kate
We recently moved into a lovely large Victorian house. The dining room, however, was painted in cold grey and white. It still has a lovely Victorian fireplace and wooden floor.
We desperately want to warm the room up while still retaining the overall Victorian feel. Can you recommend a colour scheme and/or wallpaper and accessories to use?
John Yates-Harold
We recently moved into a lovely large Victorian house. The dining room, however, was painted in cold grey and white. It still has a lovely Victorian fireplace and wooden floor.
We desperately want to warm the room up while still retaining the overall Victorian feel. Can you recommend a colour scheme and/or wallpaper and accessories to use?
John Yates-Harold
Kate says…
Hi John. It’s true that grey can be one of the trickiest colours to get right, but it’s often only a degree away from cold and dark to warm and beige. You don’t say how the grey and white walls are arranged, but if you want to keep the grey, then you need to first work out which way the room faces.
South or west will bring a warm, golden glow into the room, so you can use a colder, more architectural grey, as it will be warmed by the light. North and east cast a bluish light, so you’ll need a yellow-based grey to warm it up. A wooden floor will also add warmth, as will a red or pink lampshade.
Hi John. It’s true that grey can be one of the trickiest colours to get right, but it’s often only a degree away from cold and dark to warm and beige. You don’t say how the grey and white walls are arranged, but if you want to keep the grey, then you need to first work out which way the room faces.
South or west will bring a warm, golden glow into the room, so you can use a colder, more architectural grey, as it will be warmed by the light. North and east cast a bluish light, so you’ll need a yellow-based grey to warm it up. A wooden floor will also add warmth, as will a red or pink lampshade.
If you still have the Victorian dado rail, then why not paint it and the lower half of the wall, including the skirting boards, in a warm dark grey – try Down Pipe by Farrow & Ball or Night Jewels 2 by Dulux. Then choose a wallpaper for the top half of all four walls. This can be as dramatic as you can bear, as dining rooms are traditionally used in soft light for short periods of time, so you shouldn’t get tired of it.
Browse thousands of dining room photos for inspiration
Browse thousands of dining room photos for inspiration
If you don’t want grey, then consider navy blue or forest green for the lower half of the walls. Just remember to check the paint in both daylight and electric light, as those dark neutrals can change dramatically between the two and the colour must work in both.
Do you have a question (home improvement-related, of course!) for our resident agony aunt, Kate Watson-Smyth? Ask it in the Comments section and Kate could choose your dilemma to tackle next time.
Do you have a question (home improvement-related, of course!) for our resident agony aunt, Kate Watson-Smyth? Ask it in the Comments section and Kate could choose your dilemma to tackle next time.
We’ve just extended our kitchen and incorporated our courtyard into it with a large lantern in place. I’ve also had a natural brick wall built in this area. The kitchen is now in situ. It’s L-shaped and is fabulous!
However, the overall look is slightly clinical and very neutral, and I don’t know where to start with colour and accessories. It’s a large area, approximately 40 sq m, and, as it’s empty while I prevaricate, it looks like a cavern.
Lizzie J