Twin Rivers Interiors Design Tips

Your home is not a showroom. It’s your personal space where you should feel cosy, comfortable and be able to relax. If you want to create a warm, welcoming ambience in your home, the correct lighting will play a significant role. Sometimes it takes only a few small adjustments to transform your home into your own personal haven.

These tips are designed to help you create a welcoming homely ambience in your home. We hope you find them helpful.

Whilst it is important to be able to see clearly inside your home, a large number of down lights in the ceiling is not conducive to creating a warm cosy feeling. Installing a dimmer will allow you to regulate the amount of light and make it softer and more subtle.

A few table lamps placed around the room next to sofas or armchairs will not only give the room a warm inviting look, but can be used to read by. Improve the colour of the artificial light by buying good quality bulbs in a warm white colour.

Placing some candles and tea lights in small containers around the room will create a cosy atmosphere - especially in winter. For safety when there are children and animals around make sure candles are placed up high.

Hard shiny materials can make a room appear colder because light reflects of the surfaces. Floor rugs and carpets will absorb some of this harsh light. Add a few photo frames, some nice artwork and other accessories like ornaments and a pretty vase to soften the look.

Colour evokes feelings and emotions, sets the mood and looks different depending on the light of day. The use of ‘cooler’ or ‘warmer’ colours can completely alter the feeling of a room.

Fabrics are a great way to change the mood and appearance of a room. They’re soft to the touch; available in an abundance of colours, textures, and plain or patterned designs. Textiles are ideal for curtains, cushions, throws, lamp shades and table linen - adding warmth and comfort. Clever use of textiles adds cosiness and minimises the reflection of light from outside. 

Tips for renovating a bathroom

As we all lead busy lives a functional, comfortable bathroom where one can have a quick morning shower or a long soothing bath at the end of the day is an absolute necessity. Not every home has a spacious bathroom and not everyone has an unlimited budget to acquire on. However, with correct planning, ergonomic design, bathroom furniture and top-notch workmanship every bathroom - large or small; expensive or more affordable - can become the luxurious space you’ve always dreamt of.

Plan your bathroom renovation with great care and remember that products — especially those that come from abroad — can take a while to arrive. To prevent disappointment and unhappiness later on, appoint only professional highly-skilled trade people who are as passionate about their work as they are knowledgeable.

In order to keep installation costs down, try to work within the layout of the hot water system, plumbing and drainage lines. By doing this part of the existing plumbing can be used and will reduce the cost of the plumbing.

Consider the ergonomics of your bathroom space to ensure a good circulation zone to the bath, shower and toilet and make sure you can bend down to access the vanity unit.

As a bathroom is a ‘wet area’, wet tiles can create a hazard, especially with children around. Buy tiles that are suitable for a bathroom floor and don’t use wall tiles on the floor. Floor tiles with a rougher surface will increase slip resistance.

It’s important to install the correct lighting. Ceiling lights are a good idea, but lighting around the mirror is attractive and practical. Mirrors with built-in lighting are available too.

If you want to save on your water bill, install taps specially engineered to reduce water consumption.

How to use and combine colour in your interior

Remember, colour is usually the first thing you see when entering a room. It adds life and vitality and is an expression of individual preferences. Colour can be used to highlight an interesting area or feature. It evokes feelings; sets the mood; can be warm or cold; can form a contrast. Everyone perceives colour differently. People living in the Northern hemisphere will choose different colours for the interior and exterior of their homes because the light up north is much cooler than Down Under. Not only walls but architraves, window sills, wallpaper, cushions, upholstery fabrics and window treatments are part of a colour scheme.

Some rules

The lighter the colour, the more light it will reflect. The darker and intense the colour, the more light it will absorb. ‘Cool’ colours may be more suitable for a ‘warm’ room on the north side of the house and ‘warm’ colours may work better in a cooler room on the south side. Light colours give an illusion of space, whereas darker colours make an area look more confined. A light ceiling will make it look higher and the room more open whereas a dark colour will make a low ceiling look even lower. This is how you successfully use/combine colours in your home. Colours need to harmonise with each other. By using tints and shades of one colour you’ll create a monochromatic scheme. By using colours in this way, you’ll create a soothing, relaxed atmosphere. To create a more vibrant interior, use two colours from opposite sides of the colour wheel, i.e. any tint from the yellow-green range with red-violet shades. Use a painting, artwork, cushion, curtains or upholstery fabric as inspiration and a starting point for colour combinations to create balance and harmony between different objects. By doing this, everything in the space will relate to one another. To create contrast, use tints and shades of one colour in combination with a dark colour - like your timber furniture.

Need help?

If you need help to create your own beautiful living space, simply call or e-mail us to book a free one-hour consultation. We will come to your home at a mutually convenient time and provide you with a quote for any services that you require. We look forward to hearing from you soon.