5 minute read
A concept & style guide
A concept &
style guide
If only the creation of an interior mood, look, style and colour palette was serendipitous! Interior design and décor might be creative and fun, but as interior design diva, Melanie Ewing, the CEO of Chapters knows, there is simply more to creating an interior mood than trusting good fortune. There’s also a fair bit of science, a smattering of maths and geometry, and a ton of in-depth study involved in interior design.
Italtile The Italtile Blog with edits by Gareth Griffiths
Confused? Try the Classic French. French Rustic. Italian. Nordic. Eastern. Art Nouveau. Belle Epoque. Baroque. Art Deco. Minimalism. Maximalism. Bohemian. English Country. Industrial. Modern. Contemporary. Natural. Eco-chic. Transitional. Traditional. Eclectic. Mid Century Modern. Biophilic. The choice is endless. And any journey through the style world is complicated, confusing, and enough to make you feel a bit stir crazy. So, Melanie and the boffins of the Italtile Style Guide have a plan for you: To make it easy, there are four broad style definitions to bear in mind. There are so many roads to Natural. From rustic, rural, romantic ‘cottagecore’ (worn wood, old stone floors, floral prints, patchwork, wicker, ceramics), to the big Biophilic Design trend (which reflects our innate connection to nature and the natural world outdoors), to eco-chic bush lodge looks and off-the-grid living. Included are Scandinavian simplicity and the Japanese wabi-sabi aesthetic. Nature-inspired forms, patterns and textures, organic materials, natural light, and a light carbon footprint. Woven baskets, jute carpets, wicker, wool, raw linen, hand-thrown pottery. Plants. Natural stone cladding, stone-look tiles, wood-look tiles of every description; these are all eco-chic concepts.
1. Moda Vinile is a range of imported vinyl wood-look tiles that offer the lush look and feel of timber, with excellent durability.
Top décor tip: Don’t limit your imagination to floorscaping; may we suggest you consider the ceiling as “the fifth wall” and give it a wooden finish to create those country barn vibes.
2. Aix is Atlas Concorde’s latest stone look innovation. Think of the charm and sense of tradition of 18th Century French farmhouses. Smell the rosemary and lavender in the hot Provence sun!. Lay indoors and outdoors for a seamless living space, this is SA after all!
3. Natural stone cladding is no longer being used only for outside areas.
These biophilic beauties are being incorporated into interior moodboards to create feature walls, decorate fireplace surrounds and highlight supporting pillars.Natural stone cladding conjures up those 5-star bush lodge looks.
NATURAL, a more sustainable, harmonious existence
CLASSIC, true style forever
Fashions and fads come and go, but true style goes on forever. The Modern Classic style is a forever look and pays homage to traditional moodboards. It’s a little bit romantic, with a feminine side; and it speaks of Italian glamour and French opulence.
Contemporary Classic decorators love sculpture, symmetry, elegance and comfort. You’ll find columns, large windows, arches, ornate fireplaces, architectural mouldings, gilded mirrors and chandeliers in a classic home.
1. The Pembroke V&A bath is an ultraluxurious modern take on a classic freestanding tub. Cast from one mould and finished by hand. Pembroke is named after the birthplace of King Henry VIII, a right royal soak.
2. The Sofi tap range by Tivoli, with its curvaceous lines and under-the-skin Italian design genes.
3. The new Trinity Cavan black and white patchworks might be examples of the very latest digital technology. Try this pattern on a staircase, to create movement and a dramatic contrast against the walls.
4. The Shaws Shaker Sink is the ‘most wanted’ item on showroom floors right now, and is the ultimate feature item in a traditional kitchen.
Each Shaws Shaker Sink carries the date, number and maker’s signature stamp.
5. Marble is a key theme of the Modern
Classic moodboard.
Try Mystic. Inspired by mountainscapes, seascapes and cloud formations, it lives somewhere between fantasy and reality, in a space that Italian master tilemakers
Ceramica Sant’Agostino calls “beauty beyond nature”. Also try Intarsi, a patterned tile range.
MODERN, clean & uncluttered
This is the largest piece of the style pie. The modern interior is clean, uncluttered and carefully considered. It can be monochromatic in mood (all the tones and hues of one colour set, like taupe, brown, terracotta, ivory, nude) or achromatic (the black-gray-white canvas). It features ingenious storage solutions and can handle pops of colour. Wood, glass, concrete, stone and steel create the bone structure.
1. Cement-look tiles – all of which are absolutely killing it in the minimalist flooring stakes.
2. Arco Black Wall Hung Vanity, with its gotit-all-in-one looks: natural wood handles, matt black soft-close drawers and squared off white double sinks.
3. Klif for more modernist Italstylista can be used to create granite ‘gravitas’ in a modern, sparsely-decorated, high ceilinged, glasssided living space. The go-to style for urbanites, inspired by loft living, warehouse conversions and gentrified inner city spaces. It is spirited, energising and contemporary. Think of Manhattan, or other districts like those needing easy living to provide a cocoon from city stress. Less grunge, more comfort. Leather, neutrals, wood, mixed metals, matt black, screed, paired with scads of natural light from big, floor-to-ceiling windows.
Décor tip: It takes a clever and imaginative eye to pull off an urban look. Its eclectic personality might need a practiced eye, says Melanie Ewing, CEO of Chapters Interiors.
1. ‘Program 1’. More eco-chic water systems than taps, these matt black works of art are masterpieces of industrial engineering.
2. Kit-Kat mosaics or Finger Mosaics, as followed by trend-hunting Pinterest users all over the world. A range of soft neutrals and zingy, almost electric peacock Sapphire and Emerald. Snazzy and pretty.
3. Nox is the urban ‘second life’ aesthetic so popular in the recycled palettes of the
Urban style.
If worried about creating an expensive mess, give the boffins at Italtile a shout for advice, via whatever channel works best for you (www.italtile.co.za). Do so especially when the planned looks threaten to collide.
