12 minute read
A RENTAL NEEDN’T BE A BLAND
from Cdfgcfg
‘A rental needn’t
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ON THE SHELF
‘My string of hearts plant has grown so much since I bought it! The orange candle holder and oak mirror are from TK Maxx’
COME ON IN!
ABOUT ME I am Salsabil El-Awais, 29, an interior designer (@seinteriors). I live here with my husband Abdullah, a personal trainer, and our son Adam, four. MY HOME A rented two-bedroom Victorian apartment in Edinburgh. We moved here in April 2018. WHEN I MOVED IN It needed re-carpeting, which the landlord did straight away. A new kitchen is planned soon too, which is exciting. AND NOW We have decorated throughout ourselves and invested in some good-quality furniture and artwork. We love living in this area and want to stay here for the foreseeable future. STYLE TIP Try to declutter regularly to display the things you love to their best advantage.
Buy it To shop Salsabil’s style go to PAGE 30
t BE A BLAND BOX’
COLOUR SPL ASH
‘Although I favour neutrals as a backdrop, I couldn’t resist this amazing wall hanging, bought in the sale at Anthropologie. The sofa is from Swoon Editions’
Salsabil has cleverly infused her rental Edinburgh flat with subtle colour, using wall art and a growing collection of houseplants
was born in Palestine and my
Ifamily moved to Scotland, as refugees, when I was two years old,’ says Salsabil.
‘When I left school, I chose to study interior design in Syria, at a university near Damascus. I lived there for three years, just before the war broke out. It was a truly amazing place. I came home when I graduated, Abdullah and I got married, and I worked for Homebase for a number of years as an in-house interior design consultant, which I really enjoyed. When our son, Adam, was born, I set up my own business, so that I could work from home, as well as be with him.
Getting started We moved to this apartment when Adam was still tiny. It’s a lovely place to live – the area has a really friendly local community and the schools are excellent. Although we knew we wanted to rent long term, we saw no reason to live in a magnolia box, and happily, the landlord of this property gave us free rein to decorate as we wish. The up-side of renting is that we don’t have to spend money on maintenance; we just get to do the fun things! We painted the whole place white initially, and then added some quite bold accent colours, as we focused on each room in turn. As and when we could afford it, we’ve splashed out on investment pieces of furniture and some lovely artwork, knowing that we can take them with us to our next home.
Ideas and inspiration I am hugely inspired by travel and my Middle Eastern heritage. I love going to countries like Morocco and Turkey; the colours are amazing, but I tend to pare them down to paler versions when I use them in my own home – it’s just a
IDEA TO STEA L ‘Position a chair near the window and add an elegant arc lamp for the perfect reading spot’
DUAL PURPOSE
‘Our dining table is a great spot for me to work from, plus I can watch the world go by, too’
ABOUT FACE
FLOOR PLAN ‘Rugs work well in a rental as they protect the landlord’s wood flooring from scratches and furniture dents’
COSY CORNER ‘I’ve used a couple of shelving ladders from Ikea to store blankets for when it’s chilly’
better fit. I love decorating with better fit. I love decorating with pale greens, soft pinks and white. I also enjoy watching period dramas for interiors inspiration. In fact, it was becoming hooked on Downton Abbey that made me buy more vintage pieces for our home; I feel they add much needed contrast to my quite subdued colour palette. I enjoy fashion as well and love how it permeates into furniture and interior design trends. Colours and patterns seem to move between the two so freely, which I find hugely inspiring when I embark on a project. Teamwork Teamwork Abdullah and I are a real team. We are both self-employed and both quite domesticated. We share household chores such as the cooking, the cleaning and the childcare. However, I know that I am fortunate that he is happy to leave the interior design decisions to me. I do consider him, but he trusts me to make the right choices. We enjoy working on the flat together and we regularly declutter, but he is happy for me to select the paint colours and pieces of furniture.
In the detail For me, interior design is all about balance. I love organic forms and materials teamed with soft colours that hint at nature. I like to consider every detail very carefully, and of course, in a rented apartment you do have to compromise, but it is amazing what you can achieve with a little layering, and by displaying personal collections and favourite books. The kitchen is yet to be refitted, but it functions perfectly fine and we have focused on creating practical, temporary storage solutions in this room. By choosing only crockery and glassware that you truly love, and then displaying it on open shelving you can soon put together a beautiful scheme with the things you use every day and at very little extra expense. I painted the cabinetry a soft blue, which has freshened it up nicely and we have splashed out on some investment dining chairs. Living in style In the living room I have created vignettes with collections that I change up, as LICK OF PAINT
‘I painted the cupboard doors blue and the tiles white, both in eggshell, using a brush to achieve a really even finish’
A LCOVE SEATING
‘The classic Hans Wegner wishbone chairs are replicas from Cult Furniture’
3 of the best
NATURAL FIBRE RUGS A focal point that’s hard-wearing, too
BRING ON THE BOBBLE
Ravi rug, £69 Urbanara NATURAL PATTERN
Marno jute rug, £66, Maisons Du Monde
TASSEL TOPPED
Istanbul jute circle rug, £99, Dunelm
OPEN STOR AGE
‘I have repurposed a white Billy bookcase from Ikea as a pantry. It makes great storage because it is so shallow’
IDEA TO STEA L ‘A small round rug will zone a dining area in a rectangular kitchen’
COLOUR MATCH
‘I added the white painted MDF panelling myself. Above it I painted up to the cornice in Farrow & Ball’s Sulking Room Pink’
IDEA TO STEA L ‘Mix up favourite artwork with textile pieces to create a unique montage’
Do it! WALL PANELLING
1Decide on a simple panelling style. Choose something to suit the period of your home – it could be contemporary or traditional.
2Measure the area and work out your exact requirements by drawing onto the wall in question.
3Take your specifications to a store such as B&Q where they supply MDF strips cut to your exact measurements. You might need to phone and make an appointment.
4Apply the panels to the wall with a strong adhesive. Sand the edges for a more bespoke result, but remember to wear a mask.
5Apply a coat of primer first, then paint with two coats of eggshell in your chosen colour.
and when I wish, and we can take them away with us to our next home. I would rather do this than spend money on expensive wallpaper, and fittings and fixtures that I would have to leave behind. We live minimally and find this way of life really tranquil. We have no television for instance (although we would love a Samsung Frame TV, a beautiful object that serves as an artwork when it is switched off). But I would rather watch whatever I want on my laptop than have a huge looming TV on a stand in the corner of a room.
Green fingers I started collecting houseplants when we moved in and I am delighted to have found I am quite green fingered. BLUE BLEND
‘I have painted up to dado rail height in the same shade of blue as the back wall of the living room’
Make it! MACRAME HANGING
1Order two brass hoops of different sizes and select two wools in a dark and lighter shade.
2Bind the two brass hoops together at the top with wool in one of the colours.
3Simply knot lengths of the darker coloured wool onto the bottom of the larger hoop to create a wide fringe so that it comes to a point approximately 50cm below the hoop. 4 Knot the lighter coloured wool onto the smaller hoop over the darker wool hanging from the larger hoop, creating a narrower fringe the same length. It will come to a point approximately 20cm above the darker wool underneath and form a pleasing contrasting result.
5Attach an adhesive hook in your chosen spot to display your macramé hanging.
SUCCULENT CORNER HANG UP
‘The textured wall hanging is a bathmat I strung onto a wooden pole in a moment of crafting inspiration’
IDEA TO STEA L ‘Use wooden poles attached to the ceiling with hooks to create extra hanging space’
SWEET DREAMS
‘I bought the grey cotton canopy on Amazon; the upholstered bed is from John Lewis & Partners’
HANG AROUND
‘I made the simple clothes hanger, and the Hemnes chest of drawers is from Ikea’
I have learned not to over-water; I think I have learned not to over-water; I think that is key. The two fiddle leaf fig trees near the window are doing brilliantly. Plants are a delight to have in a flat. The greenery brings such a sense of life to the space. There’s a shared garden in our block, too. We had never really used it, as Adam would normally prefer the play park, but during lockdown it was a life saver and we use it a lot more now. It also means we get to catch up with our neighbours out there too, which is one of the many bonuses of living in a shared building. We love where we live – it’s a great fit for us.’ PLAY PLACE
‘There is plenty of space for toys here; I even managed to squeeze in one of my plants’
BATH TIME
‘The white painted wooden bath rack is from Amazon and the Moroccan towels are from Laura Thomas Co’
Where to buy Salsabil’s style
OLIVER BONAS Great for funky, original home accessories. ANTHROPOLOGIE My favourite shop, they often have products in my top colourways of soft pinks and pale greens.
TK MAXX Perfect for quirky one-off pieces – you never know what you might find next! WEST ELM Smart and contemporary furniture items with a sleek urban edge. COX & COX Rustic-style homeware and accessories in lovely natural materials.
Find more clever ideas to style up your home by going to pinterest.com/ styleathomemag
