Your Interior Design questions answered!

If you are having trouble with interior solutions, why not drop me a line and I'm sure I can point you in the right direction.  Here is a recent question and answer session I did for Yorkshire Post Readers.

I am looking to decorate a room using a flag theme and want to incorporate a Union Jack Carpet, can you suggest any interesting options? PT, Elmswell

The flag theme is very on trend at the moment. I have found two particularly nice designs which are also a little quirky. The Union Jack Rug from Hill & Co (www.hillcorugs.com; 020 3258 4100) features the flag at an angle which is more visually appealing than a straight reproduction and avoids looking like a front door mat. It is made from 100% viscose, measures 1.8m x 1.2m and costs £390.

If you have a bit more budget and are looking to make a serious design statement choose the VW Flag by Vivienne Westwood for The Rug Company (www.therugcompany.info; 020 7229 5148). At £1,995 it is more pricey, but is a wonderful 100% wool Aubusson Tapestry rug that works equally well as a wall hanging.

We have converted the cellars in our Georgian home to create a day room. The ceilings are not high, but we need a central light fitting to incorporate into the room. Our decorating style is “traditional with a twist”. JW, Rotherham

With low ceilings you need to ensure you get impact from a light fitting, without it obscuring your view through the room. The ideal solution is a light constructed from glass to allow you to both appreciate the design, but also easily look beyond it to avoid breaking your sight line. Victoria Rothschild and Mark Bickers have developed a wonderful range of hand blown glass lights which are all made at the London Glassworks, one of the last workshops in the UK. Most of their lamps would be perfect, but I particularly favour their Vintage and Opulence designs with the cheeky interplay of glass and fringing: around £250 including delivery (www.rothschildbickers.com; 020 8418 5900).

I have just moved into my first home and want to liven up the walls of my kitchen which are painted plain magnolia. I am afraid I have a very tight budget. Do you have any ideas other than a bright colour or feature wall as I want to do something more interesting? SS, Malton


When it comes to jazzing up a plain wall, you do not need to go mad to achieve something stylish. Less is often more and I would opt for one of the new wall stickers which you can easily apply to a ready painted surface. Spin Collective (www.spincollective.co.uk; 01242 255244) offer a range of funky designs made in vinyl. They also have a “custom wall quote and sign” maker on their website that allows you to choose your own word or phrase and have this made into a custom sticker. There are a variety of fonts to choose from and 20 colours available. Prices start from £12. These will look very chic and a carefully chosen phrase should raise a smile each time you see it.

 We are looking for an eye-catching feature to include over our fireplace at home, but want to avoid a picture or mirror. EA, Halifax


I love incorporating really eccentric items above a fireplace to amuse both owner and any guests. They provide a great talking point and a good ice breaker at social occasions. My current favourite is the Silver Trophy Stag Head from Strawberry Fool (£69.99 - www.strawberryfool.com; 0845 226 9177) a witty take on the traditional hunting trophy. At 47cm height this is large enough to make an impact without being overbearing. It is made from light aluminium so should also be easy to fix in place.

Jamie Hempsall is a member of The British Institute of Interior Design and one of the region’s leading interior designers. If you have an interior query you need answering call him on 0800 032 1180 or visit his website www.jamiehempsall.com

Making adults feel at home once the toys are put away

One of the challenges with which we are frequently presented is the best way to design a true family room where everyone can relax, play games or watch TV. The main problem being that "family" areas frequently become "child dominated" with parents having to put up with lots of toys and mess.

A couple who recently engaged our services have two children under five and were fed up living in a cluttered space. They wanted a room that would allow the children free rein during the day, but revert to an adult friendly space in the evening.  The design key to achieving this goal is storage, and this design has it in spades without compromising on style.

The first item I designed was an oversize leather ottoman – one of our favourite problem-solvers. It is a versatile piece of furniture and something many homes that are short on space could benefit from.  The large surface makes it the perfect place for playing board games, while the padded leather top and carefully calculated height ensure it also makes the ideal foot-stool.   I sometimes incorporate hardwood centres surrounded by cushion, which make it more usable as a coffee table, but these are never quite as comfortable.  

A large, low ottoman provides masses of space for toys of a variety of sizes.  For those with really small children I would recommend a hydraulic hinge to avoid any accidents with trapped fingers.

The two bespoke cupboards contain a large amount of shelving behind mirrored doors at the top and mesh panel doors at the base. The top section was designed to hold books, DVDs and CDs without any visible mess. 

The lower section served a different purpose in each cupboard. One cupboard remained the property of the junior children with maximum space for storing larger items, such as toy pushchairs. The other cupboard has a lock and more shelving and holds the majority of the clients' audio visual equipment, which is operable without need for the cupboard to be open.

From the outside, the cupboards look identical, which is critical when placing pieces either side of a fire if your design is going to succeed.

A bespoke surround for the TV ensures it does not dominate the room and ties in with the cupboards on either side.

Young families need plenty of fun, so the strong colours of the furniture and rug were chosen to invigorate and enthuse. The soft textures also feel warm and tactile and are amazingly resilient to wear and tear. The softer shades of the walls and cabinetry act as a soothing backdrop and ensure that any evening transformation is perfect.

This particular room does not benefit from terrific external light, so I added the large wall mirror and mirrored doors of the cupboards to help reflect extra light in and around the room.

The combination of overhead and wall lamps ensure the perfect range of lighting from high to muted, depending on who would be using the room. A conscious decision was made to avoid using table lamps to minimise the risk of potential accidents as small children career around the room.

Contemporary side-tables reflect the modern taste of the couple and provide the ideal place for a gin and tonic or favourite book in the evening when this is once again an adult space.

Finally, a remote-control gas fire completes the cosy feel of this room and ensures heat without any hassle when required.


Jamie Hempsall is a member of the British Institute of Interior Design. Contact him on 01777 248463, follow him on Twitter or visit www.jamiehempsall.com

Jamie Hempsall Interiors transfer formal to fabulous

Yorkshire Post - Mid Week Life & Style Section - 23rd September 2009

Interiors

It can be a wrench when you are considering re-decorating a room, particularly if you have spent considerable money on it in the past and it is wearing well.

I always advise clients to “leave well alone” if they have a room that they are regularly using and that is in good repair. However, I often find people are not making the best use of the space available in their homes by keeping entertaining space, such as a formal sitting room, when it would be better employed as an everyday area.

The idea of formal space is ingrained into many of us, but in this day and age is it really practical or pleasurable to dedicate rooms to your occasional guests at the expense of your everyday life?

With some of the amazingly resilient fabrics now on offer, you can ensure that a switch from formal, can still be fashionable and cope with even the hardest use by toddlers and young children – not to mention the odd careless adult!

I was recently invited to a home which had an attractive formal sitting room that the owners only really used at Christmas and the odd family gathering. It was still in excellent condition so the decision to change it was an important one and needed to have extra impact at the end.

The house had been extended in the 1970's which added extra length to the room, but meant the fireplace now appeared off-centre.My remit was to create a comfy sitting room for everyday use, with bomb proof fabric to accommodate heavy use by grown up children and grand-children. It had to be a room that everyone really wanted to go in everyday to relax; snug and cosy for winter was a must!

Firstly, I designed a warm colour palette - banishing the previous creams and yellows to make the room less intimidating (and more stain resistant!).

The room needed additional natural light, which was introduced by using Roman Blinds, rather than curtains and adding a large mirror at the furthest end of the room and behind the shelving in the library unit; reflecting light from windows directly opposite them back into the room.

New coving was used to disguise a difference in room height between the old and new house, as well as providing a channel for hi-fi wiring.

To avoid major re-development work the real fire was replaced with a remote control “living flame” unit: ending trips outside for logs and providing more interactive entertainment as the flames lit up at the touch of a button. The fire was housed in a bespoke library & storage unit, designed with a mixture of fake and real storage that allowed us to visually re-align the fire and re-position it back into the centre of the room.

More theatre was added by incorporating a flat screen TV hidden behind the fire and revealed by a remote control rise & fall system. Perfect for hiding the TV away when not in use.

Comfy and spacious sofas and chairs are critical to the success of any family sitting room. These were designed to specifically accommodate our clients’ leg and lounging requirements and were covered in soft, crushed velvet that is unbelievably hard-wearing!

Finishing touches included a tactile cushioned carpet, wall lights with silk shades to tone with the sofas and a console underneath the mirror.

The end result was a 30% increase in everyday living space and the transformation of a rarely used formal showpiece into a room that is now the heart of the home. Not to mention a very happy family.
Jamie Hempsall is a member of BIDA and one of the region’s leading interior designers. Visit him at http://www.jamiehempsall.com/ or check him out on Twitter!