CHOOSING FLEXIBLE FURNITURE FOR A SMALL FLAT // INTERIOR INSPIRATION

Choosing any piece of furniture for our flat can be a laborious task, as much as I would love to ooh and ahh over the latest trends and designs I always have to ask myself Is this furniture flexible? When living with limited storage and space at home, and especially with a child that likes to leave a trail of toys in his wake I try to be very considered when investing in a new piece.

I often turn to the delights of Pinterest for ideas and inspiration on how to create space and still achieve my style at home. One of my current crushes is the trusty bench, I love how versatile they are and how they can be used at home: To create light and space at a dining table, in the hallway to hide shoes under, as a shelf to display objects on or to create a cosy space to sit and read, there are so many options! Look at these beauties.

So when I was offered the chance to try out the Talia Bench c/o Habitat from their Dining Room Range I was super excited to see how it could be flexible in our home. Available in Warm Grey and White, I knew the clean design would fit into both traditional and contemporary interior making it a piece that would last any interior trends and the Scandi colour would sit perfectly with our palette. 

As we have no dining room theres a lot going on in our lounge, with a collection of sofa, seats and side tables as well as our dining table for meal times. One of my main concerns when decorating the room was how cluttered it would feel with all our furniture with it being a multi-purpose room, and the high backed chairs at the table somehow made it feel a little cramped. 

So first I introduced the bench into the lounge and was surprised at how much lighter the room felt for having a seat that tucks below the table. It gave the appearance of space and I love the idea of little feet all in a line at waiting for pudding, plus F seemed higher up too! 

Also being quite narrow and light the Talia Bench is easy to move around to create extra seating for friends, making it perfect for parties and gathering. As we have no where to store our original dining chairs I wondered how else I could use this piece in our flat and after good few hours lost in the world of Pinterest I decided to try it in the bedroom.

We currently use a battered Ikea chest of drawers as the place to keep piled books and blankets by the bed, and has been on my replace list due to the amount of floor space it takes up. I decided to try the bench at the end of the bed and was super happy with the results. It's perfect for keeping a few books at reach, a blanket or even a morning cuppa, and F loves to sit on it at the end of the bed and chatter or pretend he's on a pirate ship. It also hides all of the storage ugly under the bed *whoop*. 

Would you swap dining chairs for a bench? I think I'm totally converted and love it when one piece of furniture can work in so many different ways. It's making me look at other pieces of furniture and how we can upcycle, sell or replace to create functional space and style.  

INTERIOR TRENDS AT HABITAT PRESS DAY AUTUMN/WINTER 2015

Last week I spent most of my time rushing between Bristol and London with F in tow and have since been playing catch, you know the usual juggle of work, kiddo and life in general. However I am excited to share a bit of what we got up to in London and about our exciting adventure we have planned this week too.

I am a huge fan of Habitat and I have to admit that it's one of my staple go-to brands when it comes to  creating a stylish interior. So I was super excited to head into Chelsea and visit the Habitat Autumn/Winter 2015 press day and discover what designs they have lined up for the next season. I was not disappointed and neither was F, trying to keep him from bouncing on every sofa and bed was certainly a challenge but made a little easier with the table laden with pastries.

I was immediately taken by the pops of colour, geometric patterns, clean lines and all the beautiful  finishing touches Habitat are known for and started to make a mental wish list while chatting to the lovely Clare Askem, Habitat's CEO. The trends for the Autumn/Winter line seem to have encapsulated all of my favourite eras with a mix of 80's revival, mid-century design, tribal collections, monochrome simplicity and Scandi inspiration.

For statement pieces I found myself swooning over the Hawkins Armchair, designed by Matthew Long. It's sculptural form mixes tubular chrome, grey Velvet and tailored wool for a modern day mash up. Available in two colours, I think this is simply beautiful design piece to have in the home and if that doesn't float your boat what about this mid-century Tisno armchair and footstool by Laure Grezard inspired by the late 50's America – available in tan leather and grey wool tweed.

I loved the 80's revival style pulling together bright primary colours, geometric shapes  and bold patterns in a nod to the Iconic Mephis Movement, with furniture being stripped back and with the addition of playful accessories. The cushions and throws were a big hit with me and the most exciting thing is the affordable price point, making it easy to refresh your home without a complete redesign. How gorgeous are these prints!

There were mixes of earthy handmade vases using different techniques all with splashes of colour, beautiful marble chopping boards and gold coloured cutlery, ceramic monochrome tableware as well as a peek at the Christmas store – cue F going into excitement overdrive, fun colours and the coolest wooden guitar/iphone app toy which is now on his Christmas list. 

I can't wait for this to go instore and treat myself to a few things, I might even make myself a Christmas wishlist! *dreams of being wrapped up warm in gorgeous geometric blankets*.  

LOVING HABITAT IN THE HOME

Now I'm in full house mode I've been looking at ways to spruce up our sofa and hide the multitude of F mishaps that have appeared over the years. I've lost count at how many times I've turned up at the dry cleaners, clutching sofa covers decorated in crayon or spaghetti in the vain hope that they can perform the impossible and make it as good as new *news flash* apparently they can't.

Now that F is no longer a baby or a sticky fingered toddler, whose sole purpose in life seems to be focused on touching every part of the sofa while covered in chocolate or peanut butter, I am thinking that now might be the time to upgrade. Yep I could use throws and cushions to spruce it up and hide all that lurks beneath and I do, but I still know it's there, plus any excuse for sofa window shopping has to be a good thing right.

It's no big secret that I have a crush on Habitat, I've always been a big fan of their design, functionality and fun approach to creating stylish interior spaces, which is why you might spot a few pieces in our lounge such as this Tripod light which I love. So I though I would share some of the designs that I'm lusting over right now, after all a girl can dream right.

 I totally love the fabric on this Italian made 3 seater Chester Sofa and we've had our eye on the solid oak three door Max Sideboard which would be a great place to hide all our mess, plus it would look great with lots of fresh flowers on top.

Our current sofa is grey too so it makes sense that I am drawn to the grey sofa's available, I think there are so many ways to style it, especially with pops of colour such as this orange cushion. I love the arms on this one as it would be perfect to rest a tray on with coffee and a book, and if it hasn't got wide arms then one of these bamboo side tables would look great too.

In fact I would just really like a lounge that looks beautifully styled and can stay like that for just one hour for me to enjoy ;) I'd love to hear about your sofa crushes and get some inspiration.


*This is a collaborative post. All words and opinions are 100% my own.