I am not a trained interior decorator. Well, not formally, anyway. However, if being trained comes from loving life, loving furniture, loving fabrics and knowing how to put them together to make a room dynamic and liveable, then I guess I’m somewhat trained. Over the years, my friends have been my loyal guinea pigs, graciously allowing me to experiment on their homes and gardens. The bad thing is, there have been mistakes, from which I’ve had to learn and grow. But the great thing is, as I learned, I was not confined by the rules of a taught trade. As a matter of fact, I broke many rules, some giving amazing results, some… not so much. I can tell you that my personal rule has morphed into not making a room stuffy or stiff. My motto is: Decorate to de-stress, not to impress. If a home does not make you feel like you want to throw your legs up and close out the rest of the world, then my job is not done.

Homes are the souls of the world – they nurture, teach, coddle, protect, and love. With that said, homes should then reflect the personality of the families living within them. My first rule in beginning a job is to listen and watch. I have to listen to what the client wants, but more importantly, I like to watch how that family lives – if there are children in the home, if the family entertains frequently, if they like to cook, read, or watch television. These are the elements which communicate so much more than the client’s actual words.

My second rule is to use what the client has as much as possible before buying new pieces. Recycling furniture is the most wonderful, exciting part of decorating. It is amazing what fresh upholstering and paint can do for a beat-up piece of furniture. Not only does it save money, but it allows clients to keep pieces that can become sentimental momentos. My children are passionately attached to some pieces of furniture – tables under which they played hide and seek, chairs that they were rocked in while sick, and cabinets that they secretly opened to peek at Christmas gifts. These are the memories that give homes their heartbeat.

Here are a few decorating tips from the more successful design projects –

# 3578 This foyer lighting creates a warm glow against the gold coloured wall. At nights, the golden light illuminates the entire foyer and creates a welcoming feel to the home.

# 3552 Collections make fantastic decorating tools. When using collections, the pieces should have the same tones, whether blacks and greys, or rusts and reds. Using varying sizes and tones creates interest and depth versus a monotoned display. In this foyer, a collection of white jugs contrasts with a cream-coloured planter and tablecloth.

# 3716 An example of a broken rule – in this home’s entrance, the impact of the foyer was minimised by the staircase running up the wall. Even though decorating rules dictate that the wall above and below the stairway should be the same colour, I created a textured wall beneath the stairs and deepened the colour. As such, even though the wall belongs to the same room, the visual image is of two separate areas, creating an impactful foyer beneath the staircase.

# 3606 This client wanted a sitting area off from the rust coloured living room that reflected the tones of the living area, but still had its own personality.

# 3611 This living room was quite a large space, and to have placed furniture throughout to fill the room would have made it seem cluttered and impersonal. This extra- long sofa was custom-made to fit the dimensions of the window by Island Art and Framing. The seating was the perfect focal point for the large room, immediately drawing the other pieces together for a warm, cohesive feel.

# 3643 This client was very gentle and ladylike, but with a very strong personality. This room was designed to reflect that, with soft colours on the seating, but strong chocolates on the walls and accessories.

# 3679 The family of this home had strong English roots, and their lifestyle very much reflected this. To freshen up the dining room and keep the English feel, little skirts were added to the antique chairs and fretwork shutters were added to the windows.

# 3738 In the powder room off the dining area, the same fretwork was used to create privacy shutters for the large window. A gold glaze was washed over the paint to add a little formality to the walls, and to create a beautiful glow when candles are lit for functions.

# 3621 Olive green stripes on the walls of this boy’s room give a very masculine feel without being too overpowering.