Approaching the design process

I consider a home to be an oasis from everyday life. A haven that welcomes you daily, making you feel safe, comfortable and secure. When it comes to designing an area in a home, whether this is a living room, bedroom or a more functional space, such as a kitchen, I always ask myself how it will make you feel. While, of course, it needs to work on a practical level – when you open the front door and step inside, each element of the interior, from the colours to the furnishings, should aim to bring you a sense of joy or peace. This is what I am for in my designs.
As a space that you often spend a lot of time in, your home interiors are in part an extension of yourself. As someone who loves to host, I always find it important that I consider how my home portrays my personality and my interests and how it should be welcoming to my guests. I believe that this year, in particular, will see a lot of people hosting and entertaining as we look to spend quality time with the ones we love (and also save a little extra money). 
Diving into the more physical elements of a design, once you have carefully considered what you want to achieve from your room in terms of the feel, you will need to consider the colours, textures, and layout of the space. In my recent book – Kelly Hoppen’s Essential Style Solutions for Every Home –, I provide some really helpful advice and tips for each stage. However, to get you on the right track, you can start with the below. Use colours that feel like you. The best way to gauge this is to look at your wardrobe and see the tones you dress in daily as, more often than not, these colours are the ones that make you feel confident and happy. So, they could be perfect to incorporate into your home design. For those who connect with neutral tones and colours for example, My Lick x Timeless Neutrals Paint collection has a stunning range of shades, perfect for colour blocking.  Remember, a space should be a multidimensional experience. Remember the five senses when designing a space and consider how the materials and textures used will affect this. For example, a thick rug on a hard wooden floor will give an instant sensation of luxury and comfort when walking across it. Consider trends but don’t feel you have to follow them. I’m very much an advocate of designing for you and not for what’s considered trendy at the time. However, that said, if a trend really resonated with you, then it can, of course, be added to your room. For example, bold prints are making a resurgence in 2023 and the asymmetrical feel in rooms is going to be huge. A pleasant aesthetic is all about balance. Finally, one of the most important elements for every inch of design is balance. It’s all about balancing the focal points of a room against the wider space, making sure one area doesn’t overpower the other.