‘I’VE FOUND JOY IN COLOUR’

| STYLE HOUSE | I’VE FOUND JOY IN colour

CAREFULLY CONSIDERED PAINT CHOICES PROVIDE THE PERFECT BACKDROP FOR VINTAGE FURNITURE AND BOLD ARTWORK IN JULIA LINDQUIST’S MINIMALIST LONDON HOME

HOME NOTES

WHO LIVES HERE? Julia Lindquist, husband Nick and sons Jack, five, and Lucas, four. Julia is head of brand and marketing for Mylands (mylands.com) and Nick is a UX designer for the BBC THE PROPERTY A three-bedroom Victorian terraced house in Brockley, south London

‘As we have quite a slouchy sofa in the other room, we picked a vintage Danish design for here as we wanted something more contemporary and minimal’

BOLD STATEMENT

‘We both love abstract modern artwork and large pieces like this one not only add a dramatic splash but also help to link the ground floor spaces together’

“Not all whites are the same”

‘We wanted a simple calm look so we chose quite a soft white. It works well with lots of different colours but feels slightly greyer in the evenings. Some people think that any white is white, but that’s definitely not the case – at Mylands we have so many different shades to choose from and the variation of it can make a huge difference to the space you’re in, depending on the play of the light.’

BUY THE KEY PIECES

Walls in Maugham White No.2 Marble Matt, £53 for 2.5ltr, Mylands

“Paint has transformed the stairs”

‘We chose a matt finish for the walls which is scrubbable so it’s great if you get scuffs. On the stairs we’ve used a gloss finish, which is reflective and really hard-wearing. The blue we chose is quite a playful colour so we thought it was a good choice here. The banister had too many layers of paint to strip it back and restore, so we painted it a dark brown which people now assume is wood. There’s also scope for a loft conversion to give the boys a new bedroom before they’re teenagers. The stairs would go where our vintage laundry cupboard is.’

BUY THE KEY PIECES

Large Argyll pendant, £109, Soho Lighting Company. Banister painted in London Brown No.287 wood & metal matt; spindles painted in Boathouse No.33 gloss, both £73 for 2.5ltr, Mylands

“Our flooring makes it”

‘As the previous owners had installed the kitchen just a couple of years earlier, we kept the units but replaced the drab lino with tiles as they’re more practical in a busy kitchen. I had black-and-white checkerboard tiles in the house I grew up in, and we love monochrome. They’re absolutely beautiful and really make the rest of the ground-floor kitchen area and downstairs toilet sing, as well as working really well with the natural wood table that Nick made himself.’

BUY THE KEY PIECES

Alalpardo tiles, £74.70sq m, Bert & May. Try Nordic dining chairs, natural weave, £169 each, Cult Furniture. For a similar table, try Covington reclaimed wood dining table, £415, Barker & Stonehouse

“Pops of rust”

‘Our boys are only a year apart and they wanted to share a bedroom. The room is a good size but we wanted to create a space that wouldn’t date too quickly and would last them for the next five to eight years. We’d been inspired by similar built-in joinery online and came up with a design featuring four single beds to make the most of the space. We don’t want to move house anytime soon and most of our family don’t live in London, so this place has to double up as somewhere friends and family can stay over, and in the future where our boys can have sleepovers. I think we’ve succeeded in creating a look that’s not too childish, adds some storage to the room and also works with the light in the space. As well as complementing the blue walls, the rust-coloured accessories also reference the walls of the bathroom.’

BUY THE KEY PIECES

Exterior cabinetry in Maugham White No.2 gloss, £73 for 2.5ltr; main walls in Bedford Square No.229; bathroom wall in Covent Garden Floral No.270, both marble matt, £53 for 2.5ltr, all Mylands

Being around COLOUR every day has made me BOLDER “ ”

“Blue hues are so calming”

‘Our bedroom is one of my favourite rooms in the house. I absolutely love the shade of blue paint. It’s a spectacular colour that feels vibrant in bright light and warm, cosy and enveloping in the evening, which is exactly what you want in a bedroom. As there’s a big bay window and lots of light coming into the room, the light play was important with the colour scheme. I went for a tonal scheme, with blue blackout curtains, which really darken the space and make it feel so cosy at night. The bright artworks and yellow throw bring a brighter colour pop into the space.’

BUY THE KEY PIECES

Walls painted in Long Acre No. 102 marble matt, £53 for 2.5ltr, Mylands. Lucy Giles artworks, price on request, Artsy.net

IMMERSIVE COLOUR

Paint everything the same colour, including the ceiling, doors, window frames and skirting boards, for a visually dramatic and seamless look. Using the same paint sheen throughout enhances the feeling of cohesiveness

decoratingTRANSFORM | UPDATE | CREATE

“It seems like DESIGN alchemy, but there’s a FORMULA behind theperfect room SCHEME and you can master it”

HEATHER YOUNG, EDITOR