It’s a crazy ass day today. Got up at 4 am quickly bathed (shower has broken which is not the best news in the morning) and whizzed up a matcha latte and now I’m off to ER (Essex Road to instal our new botanicals). Then if the plan works, Gem and I are off to Heal’s to add more gorgeousness there, then we’re off to a meeting in Nottinghill. Except I have 2 whole transit load’s of stuff to get out in both stores so I really shouldn’t be sitting here yabbering to you guys as much as I would actually like to -that is. In both Heal’s in Tottenham Court Road and our own flagship store in Essex Road we are installing new autumnal mossy branches and lots and lots of foliages. None of these are going online I hate to say. We don’t have endless stock of them and I want both these two stores to have a point of difference to what is online, so that said I had better dash and get down to biz.
The new season is the perfect time to revamp your walls and embrace bold, ballsy, inky colour. Convinced, but afraid to take the plunge? Here’s how to join the revolution…
When you’re thinking of painting your pad dark your friends, family, extended family, neighbours, and decorators will all pitch in with their two pennies worth of how it’ll look so gloomy, depressing, dark, small (yada yada yada).
Ignore them I say. Dark hues are glamourous, intriguing, uplifting, endlessly sophisticated and create infinity, tricking your eye into thinking any room looks larger. Anyway it’s your home – decorate it for you. Colour is so personal, and if inky hues make you happy than that’s what you need. Lie if you need to and tell them you’re painting your living room in the latest shade of “off-white” while hoarding tins of Hudson black. Be brave, be strong and go for it!
So you’ve chosen your colour, bought your paint and you’re standing there brush in hand. Now go for it! It is ballsy converting to the dark side, and just to warn you the first coat always looks bad. It’s not like painting white on white, you need to take your time and do all the recommended coats to get the finished effect. You’ll second-guess yourself, you’ll wobble and you’ll want to stop. The first coat never looks how you expect it. Panic not and remember you haven’t got the second coat up yet nor the sofas, furniture or accessories in place. (Also, have you painted the ceiling in the same shade? If not, you must – it will make all the difference!) Hang on in there… magic will happen.
Congrats! You’ve converted. Everything should now feel grander, cooler, edgier and more intense than it’s ever done before. Walls are not just backdrops but statements in their own right. Everything feels cosier, more glam and much more intriguing than they once did. Now spread the word.
Taking a bolder approach to decorating is liberating and life changing. White is OK, but you don’t just want an OK home, right? You want a tantalising, compelling, amazing pad that you never want to leave. Tell your friends, tell your family and shout it from the rooftops! Join the dark side and you’ll never go back, I promise.
Remember, if you would like to show off your dark and handsome pad take pics on instagram and add the hashtag #abigailaherncolour.
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