Interior Design Tips from a Professional

March 28, 2018

Interior Design Tips from a Professional

Key tips for a well styled space

Holly and Hedda from Avenue Design Studio recently used some of our pieces for a larger interior styling project they had. In the guest room, they used our banana fiber baskets as well as our favorite karakul rug to create warmth and bring in texture – and we love the outcome

We asked Holly for some tips on how to decorate using natural materials, what her signature style is and what she suggests to splurge vs. save on when it comes to styling:  
How would you describe your design aesthetic? What is a signature touch you always try to incorporate in your projects?

Our aesthetic is clean, textured and timeless. We love combining materials in a space in an understated, intentional way so as to create texture and interest but not overwhelm. We love woods in varying tones, interesting art, tactile accessories, and neutral but striking colour palettes.

What are some of your tips on how to mix natural materials in order to create a certain warmth in a room?

We love working with natural elements such as wood, wool and woven materials. Allowing these materials to play a central role by keeping surrounding elements understated and neutral maintains a calm space, adds contrast and ensures balance. In this room, neutral but moody walls and bed linens allowed the key accessories (the graphic wool runner, textured basket and graphic artworks) to add the right amount of texture and visual interest while not being fussy.

 

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You used one of our favorite rugs in this space. What made you decide to use a graphic rug here? What are your tips on how to use a rug in a bedroom setting?

The Thato rug is one of our favourites and felt the triangle pattern would be beautiful beside the bed. It emphasizes the monotone, colour palette while adding a graphic touch, shifting the focus from the bed frame which, being quite high, is inherently quite a dominant element in the room. We love using runners because they are an easy element to add to a space like the bedroom without having to invest too much on a larger piece. Our general rule of thumb is to go for a large rug that encompasses most of the bed and the area at the foot of the bed, or a runner down one or both sides.

A pure natural wool rug can be expensive? When decorating a room, what would you suggest saving on and splurging on?

A good quality wool rug is always going to be a splurge but it is a piece that will last for years and years, particularly in the bedroom when it will receive little traffic. We love using rugs to define spaces and rarely design a space without a central rug as a key element. This often means we have to save in other areas. In this case, we saved on bed linens (the duvet in this room was from Zara, with one key element being a beautiful By Mölle blanket) and chose less expensive furniture (the two main pieces are from Ikea).

 

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How do you start to come up with a concept for a space? With this particular room, how did you decide what direction to take?
The colour scheme, overarching style concept and the function of the space are always the jumping off points for us. Of course budget comes into play too. Once we have the base concept and layout locked in, we layer in the art and accessories. Although sometimes a piece of art or a striking rug can inspire a whole space! Each project is different but the fun is always in bringing all the pieces of the puzzle together at the end.

**All pictures are by Holly Marder from Avenue Design Studio