Latest news with #interiordesigner
The Sun
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Kelly Hoppen reveals 5 viral interior design trends she hates & the flower tip has angered people
FROM mixing colours to choosing the different types of colours and deciding how to position your furniture, decorating your home is filled with endless decision-making. And hiring an interior designer to make these decisions doesn't come cheap either. 3 3 Fortunately, some famous interior designers are all over social media, sharing their advice for free. An interior designer, author, and proprietor of Kelly Hoppen Interiors, Kelly Hoppen CBE, is one of them. Taking to her TikTok page, Kelly revealed the five viral interior design trends she hates. From chopped cushions to angled furniture, she asked her 125.3K followers if they agreed with her or not. She said: 'I'm an interior designer and these are five things that I cannot stand.' First off was mixed flower arrangements, for example, a mixture of colour. She continued: 'They have to be white or they have to be pink or they have to be blue, but never mixed together. 'My pet hate, number one, is chopped cushions. Never chop a cushion. 'A cushion needs to be straight, straight on, never at an angle. Another pet hate, real fur throws. Definitely never.' How to get luxurious living – on a shoestring Her next one is the type of throw she uses. Kelly said: 'If you're gonna have a fur throw, have it as a faux fur throw.' Another pet hate of Kelly's is when people get neutral colours wrong. She said: 'Just because they're neutral, they can actually clash. "So make sure that your neutral colours work. 'So only choose three to put together at one time until you get it right. 'One of my pet hates is furniture on an angle. It has never been designed to be on an angle unless it's in a corner. Always have things straight. 3 'They can be off-centre together, but never at an angle. Coffee table at an angle, chair at an angle, unless it's in front of a fireplace. Be careful.' Her video gained 802k views and 1,375 comments as many people rushed to the comments section to share their thoughts. One wrote: 'As a florist I couldn't agree less on arrangements. What grows together goes together. Don't get hung up on one colour.' Whilst a second said: 'I have never liked chop cushions, not aesthetically pleasing for me.' And a third commented: 'I do admire you and enjoy you on TV. You have some great tips, thank you! 'However, I think we will part ways at mixed flowers, unless they contain my two pet hates ... chrysanthemums and carnations.' Dunelm's top interior design trends for 2025 Maximalism Maximalism is about unleashing your creativity and bringing joy to everything around you, day in and day out. Bold pattern combinations of florals, checks and geometrics set the tone with a bright joyous colour palette that holds everything together. Don't mistake Maximalism for having loads of stuff, it's about mixing and matching florals, layering key pieces and storytelling throughout your home, and ultimately doing things your own way. Dunelm's new collaboration with Sophie Robinson is all about that. Minimaluxe The interiors world has witnessed the evolution of "minimalism" into a richer, more luxurious iteration. The goal is quiet luxury - simplicity with a sense of sophistication. Minimaluxe focuses on creating spaces that are pared down yet warm, elegant, and inviting. Gloriously tactile textures, in a palette of warm neutrals, with hints of caramel and gold, complete the look. Introducing softer forms and round edges to avoid a space feeling overly stark The Edit Built on the philosophy that having fewer thoughtfully designed and well-made things helps us leave a lighter imprint on the earth. Interior design is shifting to be inspired by the natural world, and all its perfect imperfections. Take Dunelm's The Edited Life collection, it focuses on natural materials like wicker, jute and linens - as well as décor pieces and hand-thrown pottery vessels that feature forms dictated by the artisan's mark. Soft relaxed fabric textures mixed with uneven wood grains help bring this neutral, look together. New Nouveau Blending 19th century inspired maximalism with a contemporary colour palette this collection takes inspiration from the ornamental art form from the Nouveau era. Rich and luxurious, blending a little bit of history with a more modern aesthetic you can mix and layer into your home. Stylised Lily motifs adorn sumptuous textiles and wallpapers mixed with marbling & stained glass vintage style lighting for a vintage inspired look, with a modern twist.
The Sun
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
The 4 viral trends making guests cringe as soon as they walk into your ‘dated' home, according to interior designer
YOUR interior design choices might be making your guests cringe when they walk through the door, an interior designer has warned. Alessandra from The Virtual Edit is urging Brits to ditch several homeware trends if they want to avoid turning their homes into graveyards of cliches and forgotten fads. 1 It's important to avoid having a dated home because outdated design choices can make your space feel uninspired, uncomfortable or less welcoming As your tastes and lifestyle evolve, interior experts agree that so should your home; a dated space can hold you back from fully expressing yourself. Interior designer Alessandra, who co-runs The Virtual Edit studio, shared her expert advice on what to ditch in a now-viral TikTok video … Millennial Grey First and foremost, she is calling for the end of the ' millennial grey ' aesthetic. Once adored by many in the 2010s, coating your walls and furniture in endless shades of grey has become a tired cliche, signalling a lack of creativity to many interior enthusiasts. Alessandra explained: 'It was grey everything – grey sofas, grey curtains, grey walls. Stainless steel accents, grey artwork. 'Mirrors everywhere and layers upon layers of grey textures – faux fur, velvet, crushed velvet. It was a lot.' Matching furniture sets Matching furniture sets are coordinated collections of furniture pieces designed to complement each other in style, colour and material. The idea is to create a cohesive and uniform look in a room - but Alessandra believes these sets have the opposite effect and instead date your home. She said: 'We wanted everything to be so cohesive. Everything had the same hardware, exactly that same wood, in all exactly the same colours. 'Everything was built to be easy and work in harmony with one another.' Slogan-heavy artwork Slogan artwork combines impactful text with graphic elements to convey a message or idea, often with a bold or artistic flair. It's typically used in posters, prints or advertisements to make a statement. But as far as Alessandra's concerned, most of it makes a very dated statement. She cited barn signs, posters with the 'house rules' and labels in each room as the main offenders making your home unfashionable. The recognisable 'Live Laugh Love' slogan was the one to kick this trend off in the Noughties, she added. Using the 'Big Light' In most British homes, we have a series of lamps and then a main overhead lighting system, dubbed the 'big light'. Having that 'big light' on is a surefire way to date your interiors, Alessandra warned. She said: 'This is a hill that I will die on and one of my worst interior trends. 'One of the worst is spot lights in places that should be ambient lighting, such as living rooms, bedrooms. 'The only places spot lights should be are bathrooms and kitchens. 'Let the fire do the talking, let the alcove lighting do the talking.'
The Sun
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
I transformed the worst house on the best street into the ‘classiest council house ever' – it was flea infested before
A HOMEOWNER has revealed how he transformed his shabby old council house into a posh and cosy sanctuary. Ashley amassed over 21k followers on social media thanks to the incredible makeover of his old 1850 cottage. 3 The interior designer recently took to TikTok to show off his luxurious pad, which was created using bargain buys and charity shop gems. In the viral video, the vintage lover explained how lucky he feels to be able to live in the curated space of his dreams. "I have spent so much of my own time and my own money creating a home that I absolutely love, and I'm not ashamed to openly admit that this is actually a council house," he said. The council house is also a period property, Ashley revealed, which is something he had dreamed of owning. Inside, the home isn't exactly what you might expect from an old council house though, and that's all thanks to Ashley's amazing decorating skills. Instead of sticking to current trends Ashley decided to take a step back in time and adorned his home with stunning vintage pieces. Intricate blue wallpaper lines the walls, and artwork you'd expect to see covering the walls of the Palace of Versailles lays over the top in luxurious gold frames. It really is the details to make the house a home, with delicate ornaments, glass vases, books and photo frames all around. In fact, there's not a surface in Ashley's living room that hasn't been revamped with a vintage-looking find. Like any home though, Ashley's council home cottage has its fair share of problems, he admitted. The 'charming' Irish castle on market with a host of perks One of the issues is that because it is a council property, Ashley has little say in some aspects of the home, which he said "the local council likes to do on the cheap." The kitchen cupboards, for example, don't exactly match the posh aesthetic he has created throughout the home, but that doesn't mean he hasn't given them a face lift with a few savvy tricks. Now, you barely notice the modern cupboard because of all the interesting design details he's added around them, including posh plates And although the space looks cosy and cute now, that wasn't always the case. When Ashley got the keys to the property, the walls were covered in inches of nicotine stains, the kitchen was covered in grease, and the whole space was infested with fleas and covered in dog fur. "I took the worst house on the best street and created a home," Ashley said. Within a year or so, Ashley even hopes to buy the property from the council, making it his home. After showing off his stunning space online, fellow interior fans were left amazed by his hard work. One said: "I can tell you've poured your heart into your home, it's beautiful." "I was gobsmacked when you said your beautiful house is a council house," a second wrote. And a third commented: "Who cares whether it's a council house or not, it's your home and you've made it beautiful and that's all that matters, be proud hun. Amazing job." "Classiest damn council house ever!!!" someone else chimed in. Meanwhile, someone else said the home was "like walking into a museum" and another said it's their "dream house".
