What You Need To Know To Arrange Furniture The Easy Way

Well there doesn’t seem to be much that feels easy at the moment.

In the midst of Covid-19 and a concerted effort to curb its spread, we find ourselves staying at home. Like many of you I am attempting to work and home school children simultaneously! No easy feat.

But even with so many things feeling challenging, there are still positives to be found. One of them being you can unapologetically work on your home! Improving it, updating it, loving on it.

If you’re lacking inspiration on where to start, can I recommend something?

Rearranging furniture! There is nothing quite so satisfying and revitalizing as the simple task of moving some things around. It can quite transform your space, and your mood at the same time.

I was inspired this week to make some small tweaks in my home. Though I only moved a few things around it really changed the feel of areas of my home that weren’t working so well. Here I created more of a designated entry way with a mirror, a place for some indoor plants, books and magazines.

If you feel inspired I’ve put together 5 simple tips to show you all you need to know to rearrange furniture easily and simply. May they be the reassurance you need.

1. Tackle what doesn’t feel right.

I’m going to get all touchy-feely on you, but if you have areas in your home that just don’t feel right then trust your feelings and fix them. Have a walk around your home and choose 1-2 areas that have always felt a bit off. These are the areas you should focus on. These are the places in your home that you will yield the biggest results for your efforts. You want to get the biggest bang for your buck after all!

2. Get your inspiration, but don’t get stuck.

I know you are probably spending time on Pinterest anyway (especially if you love interiors and design), so make it count and research the types of rooms that you are wanting to rearrange. If it’s your lounge room you want to re-jig then spend 20 minutes specifically pinning lounge room images that resonate with your style or floorplan you’d like to try.

Be strict on your time limit here, as it will force you to stay on track and only pin what is relevant. Pay attention to how the furniture in these images are arranged, along with the room sizes. If Pinterest isn’t your bag you can look through interior magazines or jump on some design blogs. In all your inspiration finding remember that you don’t want to over plan. Getting started with some basic ideas of where you’re heading is a  must – don’t get stuck in the planning phase.

Another angle of my new entry way showing a spacious and light-filled area. It’s become such a functional and beautiful space in my home.

3. Measure and tape.

Now we get down to the nitty gritty. It’s tape measure and masking tape time.

Once you have your inspirational images sorted it’s time to look realistically at your own space. Don’t feel overwhelmed or discouraged here. Your home may not look like that sun-drenched, gorgeous image you have on your Pinterest board, but that’s not really the point. Remember that your home is a reflection of you and any improvement you make to it is positive.

Ok, let’s get back on track. I find that measuring out the room I’m wanting to change is super helpful. Especially measure the furniture pieces currently in the space, and any others you hope to move into that room. If I know I want to move a large piece of furniture like a bed or sofa, then I will tape out its dimensions on the floor to check if it will fit (you can do this with the furniture still in its current position). This way you have confidence when it comes to moving things around.  

You can get fancy and do a scaled drawing on graph paper of your room, and check out how your furniture might work best in 2D first. If you don’t have the perseverance for this, I recommend that you remove as much out of the room as you can before you start rearranging things. By removing all the small items you can get a much better sense of how the room needs to flow.

I used to have our bed in a different orientation but since moving it closer to the window, I am enjoying the beautiful morning light so much more.

4. Lights, camera, action.

Another helpful tip is to take photos of your space. By taking pictures of your room as it currently is you will be able to see clearly what needs to be changed. For some strange reason things seem a lot more noticeable in a photograph than in real life, so use this to your advantage.

Then when you are in the process of changing things up take more photos. These will help you see what areas of the room are working, and what parts need extra attention. All this being said, the aim here isn’t perfection. Remember a change is as good as a holiday.

5. Doorways are the great equalisers.

This tip is a seemingly small thing, but has brought furniture rearranging endeavors to a standstill. Remember to measure your doorways and staircases before you move any mammoth furniture pieces. You know that sick feeling in your stomach when you can’t shove the sofa through the doorway? It’s that scenario I’d like to save you from. I want to see you succeed and not trip at the finish line, so don’t overlook this one!

So, there you have it, my easy tips to making rearranging furniture doable and successful.

It’s not as hard as it seems and you’ll feel amazing once you make it happen. If you decide to try these tips out I’d love to hear from you and see pictures of the finished results!  

Even with my tips if this sounds like something you don’t want to tackle alone then perhaps you’d benefit from a virtual design consultation. I can help you with the best way to rearrange your furniture so your spaces function and feel how you need them to, and yes we can do this together online (thanks to Zoom and Facetime).

Here’s an example of a floorplan for an outside deck area I’ve recently helped a client with, along with a moodboard to show the sort of furniture sizes and style that would work best. If this is something you’d like help with, email me at bec@designrelease.com.au

How to create a cosy home with 7 simple tips.

How can we make our homes more peaceful and enjoyable places to be in?

Creating a cosy home is important more than ever. We all have a lot going on at the moment.

For us in the Adelaide hills, we’ve had the recent bushfires and now we have the effects of this virus. But what a resilient bunch we are because from what I can see, we are all getting on with things as best we can and taking things one day at a time.

Cosy Example 1. Mantle Styling. I used a round mirror in the mix to keep things interesting with the straight lines of the mantle.

Another tip is to group items in 3’s (I used the candles here) and space them by themselves to stop things looking ‘bitsy’. This also allows your eyes to rest with some negative space between your items.

How do we create a cosy space that feels comforting for both us and our family?

When it comes to our homes, we can be thankful that we have a safe place to retreat to. Now more than ever our homes are our sanctuary, the familiar place where our lives play out.

There is a level of acceptance that comes when, rather than resisting the restrictions we are currently bound by, we can look for opportunities for connection and peace within our homes.

Now more than ever I want my home to feel peaceful and function well for all who live in it.

In my quest for a cosier home, here are 7 tips I’m trying on for size.

Cosy Example 2. Mantle Styling. Use organic shapes and pieces (like these AMAZING flowers from www.ivyshed.com.au for my wedding anniversary!), mixed with hard angles like the mirror and artwork for lovely contrast.

Use colour like the terracotta and blush to complement cooler colours like the grey blues. Always remember your negative space (at the right hand end of the mantle) when you have lots of goodies to display like I did!

1. Layer up for the cooler days.

Already the evenings are feeling cooler and I’m grabbing an extra jumper during the day, so it’s time to get your home ready for the change in weather. Pull out any extra throws and thicker blankets you may have stored away, and place at the end of beds and on the sofa. This way you can feel warm and comfortable, because there’s nothing worse than feeling cold and cooped up.

2. Create a creative workstation.

If you have kids, or even if you don’t, creating a space in your home for art and self-expression will do wonders for your mental health. Find your art supplies of crayons, pencils, graphic markers, paints (depending on your patience for clean-up) along with plenty of paper and set up a space specifically for creativity.

If you’d like to be more adventurous, you could try your hand at a more advanced home-made project like building a shelf, sewing a cushion cover, making a macramé wall hanging, creating a string of pom poms or trying your hand a line drawing. Whatever you choose make sure it’s something that would add beauty to your home, and bring you joy in the process.

If you’d love to learn how to create your own watercolour art, my friend @jasmine.heather.artist runs online workshops to guide you through the process. Then you would have your own special piece to take pride of place!

Cosy Example 3. Mantle Styling. If you have a few textural pieces that you’d like to display together then a handy tip is to keep to a neutral colour palette. Here I let my love of texture shine and incorporated wood, ceramics, rattan and even a rusty horseshoe into the mix.

Don’t ever forget to add some foliage to your styling, and often the bigger the better. It doesn’t have to be fancy, here I simply grouped some jasmine and wisteria from my garden together for maximum beauty factor.

3. Pretty up the place.

Remember how I said that it really does matter how your home makes you feel? Well, for those of you that can’t see the point in well-chosen accessories (is that even a thing I can hear you saying?), trust me when I say that lighting a scented candle and popping some foliage from the garden into a vase will make the world of difference to how you feel in your home.

It’s not frivolous, it makes you feel better and you can’t put a price on that in this current climate. Yesterday I picked some roses and put them in my daughter’s rooms and that little gesture brought some added joy.

4. Rejig your space.

Now is the time to change the layout of your space. If your lounge room is too pokey with the whole family now residing there, or if you’re feeling a little flat and need a bedroom refresh – there’s no time like the present.

You may only change things around temporarily to suit the fact that we are all staying at home, or to surprise your child (remember the excitement of setting up your room in a different way as a kid?), but regardless now is the perfect opportunity to play around with some varied room layouts and experiment to your heart’s content.

5. Be Sadie the cleaning lady.

I know a lot of us have already instinctively started doing this, but cleaning and sorting is such a satisfying past time when you’re spending more time than ever at home.

It’s productive work and results in us making a difference in our own sphere of influence. So whether it’s cleaning all the windows or sorting through the laundry cleaning cupboard, when your home feels more orderly you feel more peaceful and at rest.

Cosy Example 4. Mantle Styling. Here’s more of a moody collection I created. Adding some black is vital to pulling this off, and then contrasting it with some fresh white pieces keeps it from looking dreary.

Another tip is the use of height to create a hero piece (don’t you notice the branches straight away?!), and yes you can use stacked books to achieve the height you like. I also love using pairs of identical objects for some repetition too.

6. Bite off a DIY project.

When you spend more time in your own digs you automatically notice everything that ‘needs to be done’. Well rather than let the overwhelming feeling paralyse you, why not pick one small project that you could tackle. Now would be a perfect time to repaint the guest room, order a new rug for the lounge or bedlinen for your bed.

It’s a win-win as you are smashing out those things that you’re forever trying to get around to doing, and at the same time supporting the economy and better still; small business! Take that extra bit of time to source your things from a local small business and give both you and them the warm fuzzies.

7. Love your accessories.

Something I love to do is change up my accessories. This is where my love for decorating kicks in as it such a refreshing and addictive activity. I encourage you to give it a go in your own home choosing one mantle, coffee table or display area in your home.

Gather all your accessories into one central location, think things like nice books, vases, candles, art, pot plants and interesting ornaments so you can see them all together. Then pick different groups of objects and rearrange them in a new way. I promise this will make your home feel fresher and you’ll be able to appreciate your meaningful objects in a new way.

Cosy Example 5. Mantle Styling. I love to use the tip of grouping smaller items together so you see them as almost one thing (I achieved this with the vertical books, horizontal books, stone bowl and ceramic cup). Try this with your small bits and bobs, it works like a treat.

Here I wanted to create a fresher feel by using 2 types of greenery and a bold artwork in a light timber frame. Using glass is another great way to achieve an airy, yet grounded look. Try it out yourself and see how you go!

Well I hope these ideas have given you some inspiration to cosy up your space and make it a place that nurtures you and your loved ones.

Try some of the tips out, I know you’ll be so glad you did.

You’ll find yourself smiling more and enjoying your sanctuary away from it all. If you’d love to try your hand at some accessorising, changing furniture layouts or refreshing a room but it’s not really your bag, then remember that I’d love to help you.

While we have all moved away from unnecessary face to face interaction for the time being, online communication is going from strength to strength. I’ve enjoyed helping clients over the last week via photos, phone calls and video chats with their design dilemmas, and I’d be happy to help you too.

Reach out to us at hello@designrelease.com.au if you’d like to book in a 30min video chat where I can see your space and help you in any way you need. Think gallery wall, shelf styling, paint colour recommendations, furniture layouts… the list goes on.

In the meantime, stay safe, be grateful and enjoy the cosy home you’ve created.

How to plan a girl’s Bedroom makeover right - What you need to know

Do you want to know how to plan for a beautiful girls bedroom makeover?

You may have a bunch of inspiration photos but need guidance to know what ideas will actually work.

Some mantle details of my daughter’s bedroom in the ‘before’ stage. Each accessory is meaningful to her, so that means that they will be making a reappearance in the makeover, or be thoughtfully handed on to another little person who can treasure them.

Come with me as I breakdown the process I took as I planned a long over due makeover of my daughter’s bedroom. It’s more than unicorns and rainbows despite how it might appear on Instagram, but that doesn’t mean it has to be difficult or overwhelming.

These 5 tips will give you a solid starting plan to tackle your own makeover.

MAKEOVER TIP 1.

Find function that flows

Whether the space you dream of creating is a soft, whimsical one, or a bold, energetic one, it will only work as well as it functions. You might have lots of inspirational images of rooms you love, but do those elements fit in the room you’re planning?

This is where thinking about how the room will function comes into play. There is nothing worse than a makeover with lots of lovely details, but you stub your toe on an awkwardly placed reading chair, or your ‘little lady’ doesn’t have enough space for her craft supplies. Here’s how to plan for the function factor…

The craft/homework/Lego playing space gets a lot of mileage in this room. All it needs is a little freshen up in places to help it stay a functional zone for years to come.

Ask yourself the following questions:

• How does she currently use the space?

  Does she like to create a cosy reading nook for herself, or prefer to have space to swing her toy cat? Is she into spreading Lego all over the floor, or does she have a neatly organised gel pen collection?

  Make note of how she uses her room day to day, this will give you a great starting point in understanding how her room needs to work for her.

In our bedroom makeover we wanted to keep lots of floor space for playing so our furniture choices were minimal. The limitations of the room is its size, so we needed to think of ways for it to feel larger than it actually is!

• What are the limitations of the space?

What are the glaringly obvious problems with her space? While you may not be able to fix all of these, recognising them is half the solution. Is the room on the small size, or does it feel too large and cavernous? What are the things she complains about, or the frustration points for you?

Brainstorm your ideas and see what sort of list you come up with. Your list will probably be a mix of practical and aesthetic things, and from there you can prioritise what is most important to your family to change.

• How would she like to use the space?

This is where you can invite the little girl in your life to share her dreams for her new space. Be prepared for A LOT of ideas to come at you here! As you listen hear the repeating threads that might emerge, things like the feel, style, the use of the space.

These are the points you will want to hone in on and address the best you can. For my daughter the overarching theme was for a cosier space, it was all about the feeling of the space for her.

MAKEOVER TIP 2.

Discover a look that delights

When we think about children’s rooms and colour palettes things can get a little crazy. Some mums are happy to embrace the superhero theme, and others are not (honestly, I’m more in the not category here). But that being said, as a designer my job is to listen to what the client wants and not to push my style aesthetic onto them.

We already had some muted colours in the bedlinen that my daughter wanted carried into her bedroom makeover. Being such a sentimental gal she also wanted to keep the patchwork quilt I made for her as a toddler (lucky the colours all sit well together)!

It often comes down to delivering the favourite colours/themes your daughter loves in a cohesive and clever way. For my young client, she loved green and fairy lights and so we chatted about how to incorporate mood lighting and her favourite colour into her new space.

When it comes to room colours, remember that often a muted or toned down version of the colour creates a more calm and mature space that works well into the future. A favourite theme can be incorporated in your accessories, such as figurines or wall decals, which are easier to swap out when the craze has past.

Also keep in mind that a room that has a couple of elements of a certain style, be it bohemian or eclectic works much better than a room that is monopolised by one style. This is especially the case if the rest of your home has none of this design style at all! A collected and personalised room is much more meaningful full stop. Your aim is to create a room that will grow with daughter, and a makeover that is built to last.

MAKEOVER TIP 3.

Pull the practical punches

As pretty as the fairy lights on the mantle are, practically it involves running an extension cord along the wall to have them there. We spent time thinking about how to display the lights in a more practical way that minimised tripping over cords. When it came to thinking about what feature we wanted to highlight, it was the mantle all the way.

Too often the practical aspects of a room makeover are overlooked. But remember your room makeover will only be the bomb if you have ticked all the practical boxes. Things to consider might be:

• Power point placement (you may need extension cords to plug things in)

• Position of light switches (they need to be easy to access)

• Types of window coverings (block out window coverings or sheers, curtains or blinds)

• Heating and cooling needs (ceiling fan or ducted cooling, natural ventilation from windows)

• Sound acoustics (extra rugs and cushions to help absorb noise)

Along with all those important practical points, another thing that is helpful to think about is what do you want to disguise or highlight in the room? If you are working within an existing footprint, work out the number one feature of the room you want to highlight (what you love the most), and one thing you can’t wait to hide. For our makeover, the mantle piece was the highlight, and the smaller than average size of the room was what we set about disguising. Just picking one of each helps keep you focused and not chasing rabbit trails.

MAKEOVER TIP 4.

Nail a fabulous floorplan

It’s common to have so many lovely pieces you want to fit into your new room makeover. Usually though we end up with a cramped space and things don’t fit comfortably.

How do we overcome this dilemma?

Whilst having a log for a bedside table is sorta cute, it’s far from practical. Part of our planning around the floorplan was a bedside table that was at the right height to use, and narrow enough not to block the doorway.

Measure the space (preferably once it is empty), and measure the furniture you know will go back into the room. Tape out the placement of furniture on the floor and walls, including the height to get the best sense of how all your chosen pieces will work together.

Alternatively you can plot the furniture and room size on graph paper at a chosen scale, this way you can play around with different layouts before committing in reality. Don’t forget about the heights of items too. This will help you find solutions to how high the bedside table needs to be in comparison to the bed, or how high the bed can be in relation to the ceiling fan (this was a super important one for us)!

If you don’t skip this step you can be guaranteed of a well thought out space with the perfect amount of furniture for it to feel spacious and practical.

MAKEOVER TIP 5.

Settle a sensible budget

The thing with budgets is we always think we need a bigger one. In reality a smaller budget often delivers a smarter design, as we are forced to get more creative and be content with what we have. Whatever the budget is for your girl’s room makeover, accept it and make peace with it! If you are constantly grumbling about the amount you can invest it won’t be an enjoyable process, and at the end of the day design is meant to be a joy. We found that pricing out our big ticket items was a helpful place to start, and this meant we didn’t overspend on the smaller accessories which is so tempting to do. Sticking to a rough allocation of funds for each item helped us determine a sensible budget for the makeover in the first place, and stopped us going too far over!

Part of our budget planning was using the relatively economical design tool, paint! As you can see here the walls are looking tired, chipped and plain old bare. To fix this doesn’t have to be pricey, nor eat up a lot of your precious budget.

With these 5 tips we were able to plan for our bedroom makeover, and I hope they will give you confidence to do the same. Armed with these guidelines you can be sure that your bedroom makeover will be an enjoyable process, and will give you confidence that you’re on the right track.

Still not sure how to narrow down all your ideas for your bedroom makeover?

Sometimes chatting with someone and looking at the space together can bring the clarity you need. Reach out to Design Release at hello@designrelease.com.au and in a two hour consultation we can brainstorm, talk layouts and colours, suggest what pieces to edit or add, and generally address any uncertainty you might have.

Together we can anticipate the joy and excitement the end result will bring!

4 rules for beautiful kitchen selections

The world is your oyster in the sea of kitchen selections.

With so much choice it can be feel difficult to know where to start when it comes to all the possibilities for your kitchen.

Follow these 4 basic guidelines to make beautiful, cohesive selections for the heart of your home.

1. Know your undertones

It’s all in the feeling. Kitchens can have all the latest mod cons and yet still feel not quite right. Spend time early on thinking about the type of feel you’d like your kitchen to have. Find some images you love, or colour combinations you always go back to, as a way of understanding what feels like home to you.

Deciding on a cool or warm vibe is a good place to start.

If you gravitate towards a cool look you will prefer the bluer whites and greys, so for you choose paints and tiles with a blue, green or purple undertone. On the other hand you may obsess over warm interiors, you will need to choose selections with a yellow, orange or red undertone. Sticking to this idea of cool or warm choices will mean your kitchen will look balanced and tied together as one whole space. It will save you those mistakes like having a neutral wall colour that ends up looking slightly pink, next to your tiled splash back that looks more blue than white! Stay true to your undertones and you’re 80% there.

Here's a kitchen selection I made based on warm orange undertones and complementing them with green. There are so many interesting selection schemes to create, and don't forget to use a mixture of textures and contrast for interest. Here is some leather and stone, along with smooth and grainy fabrics.

2. Think about the whole room

We can often fixate on our dream kitchen, all the while forgetting that it adjoins onto another main part of our living space. Don’t fall trap to this. These days our kitchens are more typically part of a larger, multi-purpose space. If you are only renovating your kitchen and it opens onto your dining or family room, continue to see the space as one big room. This is key to ensuring that your kitchen feels like it belongs in your home, rather than having a clash of styles when all the dust settles.

How do you do this?

Take note of certain colours or themes playing out in other parts of the room, and repeat them in your kitchen selections (unless of course you plan to renovate the rest of the space in the near future). Look at your flooring, window dressings, cushions and accessories as inspiration for your new kitchen space. Trust in your style and what resonates with you - these are the things that will make your kitchen belong.

3. Remember texture

Let’s focus down on a specific design element now. Texture. Want to know what is key to creating a kitchen that feels welcoming and homely? It’s all in the texture. We’ve all been in newly finished kitchens that feel as though they are missing some soul; and if you’re investing your time and money into a new kitchen you want to feel the love right from the word go. This is where texture plays a big role, but as ever the quiet overachiever it is often times overlooked.

What to do?

Consider a balanced mix of shiny and matt, rough and smooth materials. It’s these subtle elements that produce a kitchen that feels considered and enduring. Think in terms of a balance between light reflective and light absorbing surfaces. If you love a highly glossy benchtop, juxtapose this with matt-finish cabinetry, or shiny hardware with a cement look tiled splashback. Play opposites attract with your texture choices, and your kitchen will feel more authentically yours because of it.

Here’s my second kitchen selection based on the complementary colours of green and purple. This is another way to bring cohesion, in the same way that cool and warm undertones do. There's also lots of textures and use of contrast, along with fabric swatches to show how selections can be made with a multi-purpose room in mind!

4. Consider contrast.

We all know less is more, and with kitchen selections it really is. For a feature colour to look it’s best it usually needs to have something understated next to it to allow it to shine. The same can be said for a key material choice (think a gorgeous stone benchtop, or statement metal handles for example). For hero features to be just that, think about how you will balance them with more understated selections. Decide on your ‘wow factor’ and be ok with your other choices playing second fiddle. This considered use of contrast in your selections, and not needing everything to fight for attention, will help to create a beautiful balance in your kitchen. And this is the sort of kitchen that people don’t want to leave!

That’s a wrap on the 4 rules for beautiful kitchen selections. If you follow them you will be well on your way to having a kitchen with an intangible feel good factor, and you’ll know why.

Are you still feeling confused and overwhelmed in choosing your kitchen selections?

Design Release can help. Let us walk you through the process using our wide selection of samples, or we can meet with you at a showroom of your choice. We can work with builders at varying points of the design process, so don’t hesitate to get in touch to make the process smoother for you.

How Design Release will start 2020 right.

What an exciting proposition, a new year and a new decade.

It feels like there is so much potential for new beginnings as we welcome in 2020. I have such a sense of expectancy for all the things this year has in store and want to embrace it all, however it comes.

I’m eager to jump into all things interior design this year on the blog, and to help and inspire you as I do. But already this year has had its challenges for so many, and is causing me to think deeply about what my priorities are for Design Release.

A collection of leaves from my garden. The story of the burnt leaf through to the freshly fallen green Eucalyptus leaf.

December 20th 2019, is a date that for Adelaide Hills dwellers, (especially my little part of the hills), will be hard to forget.

Whilst bush fires continue to ravish much of N.S.W, Victoria and Kangaroo Island, on December the 20th our community was confronted with terrible, out of control fires of our own. Many in my community have lost homes, livestock, farm buildings, infrastructure and gardens. Not to mention the loss of native fauna and flora which is quite devastating. More broadly 23,000 hectares of land around Woodside, Lobethal, Lenswood, Charleston, Mount Torrens, Inverbrackie, Harrogate and Brukunga have been burnt. This sort of event quickly puts all else into perspective.

I am beyond proud of the way that my community has pulled together to support and care for families who have been affected. For Design Release, I want my business to be one that helps when there is helping to be done. I value meaningful design and creating spaces that mean something special to those that inhabit them. So how can Design Release help?

For anyone who has been affected by the Adelaide Hills fires I would be honoured to offer a complementary two hour design consultation.

For many their homes still stand but they are looking out at burnt landscape as far as the eye can see. Whilst I can’t change the landscape, I can help you bring some freshness and comfort into any area of your home where it is needed most. If Design Release can make things a little easier in anyway in the aftermath of these fires, it would a worthwhile way to start 2020.