Calm E-Book

Sally Denning

• Herausgeber: Ryland Peters & Small
• Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Seitenzahl: 103

Beschreibung

In recent times, many of us have spent more time at home than ever before. Creating a home that instills a sense of calm will cocoon and protect us from the outside world, create a sense of wellbeing and make us feel truly nurtured. Calm will help you create a restful, restorative interior that draws you in and makes your shoulders drop the moment you walk through the door. Sally Denning first explores the essential foundations of a tranquil, comforting home: calming and harmonious colours, textiles, pattern, lighting and decorative elements. She goes on to explore a mix of accessible real-life homes, ranging from city homes to country houses, new builds, flats/apartments, beach houses and more. The spaces may be different, but they all share one thing: a timeless, soothing and restful atmosphere that is a pleasure to come home to.

Leseprobe

CALM

CALM

Interiors to nurture, relax and restore

SALLY DENNING

photography by Polly Wreford

To my boys, Freddie and Billy.

SENIOR DESIGNER Megan Smith

SENIOR COMMISSIONING EDITOR Annabel Morgan

LOCATION RESEARCH Jess Walton

HEAD OF PRODUCTION Patricia Harrington

ART DIRECTOR Leslie Harrington

PUBLISHER Cindy Richards

First published in 2021 by

Ryland Peters & Small

20–21 Jockey’s Fields

London WC1R 4BW

and

341 E 116th Street

New York, NY 10029

www.rylandpeters.com

Text copyright © Sally Denning 2021

Design and photographs copyright © Ryland Peters & Small 2021

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

ISBN 978-1-78879-383-4

E-ISBN: 978-1-78879-417-6

The author’s moral rights have been asserted. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.

A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library.

Library of Congress CIP data has been applied for.

Printed and bound in China

CONTENTS

Welcome

Creating a Sense of Calm

Calming Colours

OFF-WHITES & NEUTRALS | DELICATE PASTELS | MUTED TONES | BOLDER COLOUR

Calming Textures

WALLS | FLOORS | TEXTILES

Calming Pattern

MIX & MATCH

Calming Elements

NATURAL OBJECTS | PLANTS & FLOWERS | RESTORING ORDER

Calming Interiors

SOURCE BOOK

PICTURE AND BUSINESS CREDITS

INDEX

THANK YOU

STRESS BUSTERS

The muted blue tones of this Georgian living room instil an immediate sense of tranquillity, thanks to the colour choice and easy-on-the-eye furniture and accessories.

WELCOME

I’ve lost count of the number of different homes I’ve worked in during my many years as an interior stylist and art director, but the thing that always leaves an impact is the way they make me feel. There are places I can’t wait to leave, others that I love but am happy to leave after a shoot, and a few where I would be more than happy to move straight in and stay forever. These tend to be filled with texture or muted colour, are rich in natural elements such as wood or stone and have interesting features, considered corners and pleasing vignettes that fire my imagination and pull at my heartstrings. Put simply, our physical surroundings have a direct correlation with the way that we feel and make an important contribution to our emotional well-being.

The place we call home has always been a backdrop to a variety of activities, but at the time of writing most of us have probably spent more time there than ever before. Home is now a place where we live, work, sleep, eat, exercise, love and laugh, and, hopefully, where we can be ourselves, kick back, gather with friends and family and recharge. It is so important that this place works well for us and offers a sense of retreat and escape – a sanctuary, a safe place. Creating a home that exudes a powerful sense of calm is beneficial on every level, protecting us from the outside world and allowing us to flourish and feel nurtured and secure.

The aim of this book is to provide ideas, tips and tricks for creating a restful, restorative space that makes your shoulders drop the moment you walk through the door. First, I describe the essential foundations of a comforting environment: calming and harmonious colour; lots of appealing textures; an abundance of textiles; quiet pattern and calming decorative details such as plants, flowers and other natural elements. I go on to explore 12 different homes that all have one thing in common: a timeless, tranquil atmosphere that is a pleasure to come home to. I hope this book delivers a sense of peace on each and every page, encouraging you to pause, be present and take a breath – something that we all need more than ever.

Getting our dog Buster has changed family life for the better; he’s a constant source of happiness and the most wonderful stress reliever. This is Henry the beagle, who you’ll also see further on in the book.

CREATING A SENSE OF CALM

CALMING COLOURS

Creating a restful space that makes your shoulders drop the moment you walk through the door can be achieved in many ways, and getting the colour palette right is one of them. Colours can stimulate and excite, but they can also make us feel relaxed and at peace – just what you want in a calm home.

While earthy browns signal safety and security.

Pink, believed to reduce aggression

NATURAL INSPIRATION

I’m lucky enough to work with colour almost every day in my job as an interior stylist and draw most of my inspiration from nature, where colours harmonize together beautifully and instinctively. Different natural tones have different connotations. Restful tones include green, associated with peace and calm

OFF-WHITES & NEUTRALS

Neutral hues, ranging from off-whites to earthy clay and tobacco shades, are known for their calming qualities. They have an association with the natural landscape – sand, rocks and soil – and provide the eye with a restful alternative to brighter colours. Gentle, sludgy neutrals are versatile, working well in all parts of the home, and will add a sense of warmth and sophistication to any scheme. They have the ability to enhance a space, making walls appear to recede and ceilings feel higher, which in turn creates a sense of airy tranquillity. I’ve always been a fan, mostly using off-whites and neutrals as a useful blank canvas to which I can add or subtract colour as desired. To my mind, they are never cold, never dated and never boring, especially if you add oodles of delicious different textures to keep the space interesting. Classic and timeless, these shades will work hard to make any room fresh and serene.

THE BRIGHT SIDE

Production of the hormone serotonin, responsible for feelings of happiness and well-being, is stimulated by exposure to bright light, so light-filled rooms can elevate our mood and help us feel calmer and more focused. Reducing visual noise and keeping living spaces pared down and uncluttered will also foster a tranquil feel. In these schemes, the addition of rich wood, tactile washed linens, chunky ceramics and simple lighting brings interest and depth to white walls without distracting from the sense of airiness in the room.

SOFT INSPIRATIONS

Quiet pastel hues are soothing and comfortable to live with. Adding contemporary touches in the form of interesting accessories or accent paint colours sharpens the effect. Monochrome frames give pale pink a grown-up quality

DELICATE PASTELS

In colour theory, adding white to any colour results in a tint, and the more you add, the paler the tint will become. Pastels are tinted colours. less saturated in purity and intensity of colour than other colours, so they inspire a fresh, soothing and peaceful vibe in the home. They are the kindest, softest tones in the colour wheel, so tend to be associated with spring and feelings of rebirth and new beginnings. Rooms painted in these shades feel inviting, cosy and soothing, and they are often chosen for bedrooms, bathrooms and children’s rooms for this reason, but they can work anywhere. Pastels come into their own when teamed with a natural element like stone or wood, which prevents them from feeling childlike or sugary. When teamed with darker tones such as black, earthy brown or charcoal grey, pastels feel grounded and take on a more interesting or even contemporary edge.

While a deep forest green on the woodwork/trim prevents a pale grey interior from looking bland.

MUTED TONES

These wonderful hues are soothing, tranquil tones that you almost want to reach out and touch or stroke. They are are created when a colour is desaturated with black, grey or a complementary colour, resulting in a subtle shade that’s easy on the eye. Muted tones speak softly and quietly rather than shouting out, ‘Hey, look at me!’. They are the opposite of vivid colours that pop; instead, they calm and ground a space with their knocked-back colour. Any colour can be muted, from pink to yellow to blue, and any muted tone will help to create a reposeful, quiet scheme; all you need do is choose the intensity (or depth of colour) that is desired. Sticking to muted tones throughout an entire home will ensure that the decor works well as a whole, creating a smooth, calm visual pathway from one room to the next rather than jumping about in a mismatched manner.

SUBTLE HINTS

Muted colours bring a calming quality to any room. Soft green sits restfully behind chunky wooden shelves and piles of white ceramics, adding a sense of warmth and earthiness to this Welsh farmhouse kitchen.

A deep neutral browny-pink shade tones beautifully with ikebana floristry. These subtle, muted colours help your eyes to rest in a busy world.

DRAMATIC BACKDROPS

Bold, saturated colours create richness, warmth and interest. Adding wooden wall panelling, as seen here in a pinky-red bathroom and green bedroom, introduces extra texture and contrast to a scheme, especially when the light hits it.

BOLDER COLOUR

Darker tones have lots of character and will introduce a sense of drama and personality to any room, whether in a modern or period home. Very rich hues have an almost bottomless depth that the eye can find hard to focus on, so a wall painted in such a colour may appear further away than it really is. This can also be the case if the whole room – walls, ceiling and woodwork/trim – is painted in the same tone; it’s a bold approach that creates an enveloping, cocooning feel that’s very calming. Opting to paint a room one single colour in this way can also make it feel bigger, as the colour flows uninterrupted across every feature. Colours that hark back to the natural world are the best choices here: blues and greens reminiscent of the sky, sea and plants are restful and will work in any room. Dark neutrals are soothing and relaxing too; shades ranging from aubergine/eggplant to chocolate and deep taupe will exude tranquillity in any interior.

Painting the whole interior in a single strong colour will bring an enveloping feel of comfort and security.

CALMING TEXTURES

For me, a home without texture is a home without soul, and it’s one of the key design elements you must include when decorating. Maybe it’s the beautiful patina of old wood or weather-worn brick that puts you at ease, sparking an association with the outdoors and the elements, or perhaps the gentle softness of well-washed linen fabric makes you want to reach out and touch it.

LAYERING TEXTURE

Colour works hard to bring interest to an interior, but it’s natural elements like stone, wood, hessian, linen and raw brick that give it an organic, multilayered feel which, in my view, can’t be beaten. Untreated elements like the ones shown here work well in any scheme – bare stone, unpainted wood and organic linen will soften a space, giving it the feeling that it’s always been there, even in a newly built home.

Mixing bare brickwork and stripped wood with sleek, modern cabinets in this kitchen adds a calming tactility and timeless quality.

WALLS

Walls are the biggest area within a room, so adding or revealing texture here will immediately make your space feel more tactile and inviting. There are several ways to add textural interest. Using naturally pigmented paints with a chalky, living finish (such as those by Edward Bulmer) will give you a velvety depth of colour, while a lime paint (try Bauwerk) will create a soft wash of colour that you want to stroke. Painting walls, ceilings and architectural details all the same shade means no visual breaks to distract the eye, which brings a great sense of calm. Painted wooden panelling or cladding is another brilliant way to add interest, and can be found in DIY/hardware stores. Painted or raw brick, exposed stone, wooden cladding or reclaimed timber panelling are an integral part of creating a scheme that feels peaceful and relaxed.

WONDER WALLS

Whatever the finish on the walls, keep it simple and fuss free. Lime plaster slurry over stone retains texture and interest yet keeps this room light and bright

Clayworks breathable plaster has a soft, chalky, tactile feel.