LIVE 24-SEVEN A ROSE BY ANY OTHER NAME . . .
When the powers that be told me we were doing a feature about lounges this month I was reminded of that well known quotation “Only hotels and airports have lounges”, but I couldn’t for the life of me think who said it - and Google was no help whatsoever!!
At John Charles Interiors we usually refer to it as the living room, although it has been called many and various things over the years, such as the sitting room (a fair description), the drawing room (nobody seems to do much drawing these days, apart from my son-in-law who’s a really good artist, and who also happens to be my curtain fitter – but I digress), and the parlour (possibly implying that it’s the best room in which to hold a conversation ??). When I was a lad my mum and dad used to just call it the front room, which always seemed a bit odd to me, because as we lived in a flat we didn’t actually have a back room. Ah well, whatever you care to call it it’s probably the most used, and certainly the most important room in the house.
Although there is an ever-growing movement towards open plan kitchen / diner / family area living spaces, in most homes the living room is usually still the hub of the house; a space in which to relax, converse, watch TV and entertain friends. It does exactly what it says on the tin. It’s a room to live in, and shouldn’t look or feel like a sterile showhome. Hopefully all but
John Charles Interiors
the most fanatically meticulous have shaken off the heavy chains imposed on us by the minimalists, who told us that our living environments were to be uncluttered and clinical, and that a discarded magazine or newspaper was at the very least grounds for a trip to the Confessional.
More than any other room in the house, with the possible exception of the main bedroom, a living room should reflect your personality, your style, your way of living.
The calm, classic look that has been in vogue for many years now is usually created by painted walls in soft neutral colours such as stone, mole or French grey and a wood floor with rug, or a simple loop or velvet pile carpet (my personal preference), teamed up with sofas and chairs in plain textures or self patterned weaves. When it comes to good quality neutral paints, I believe the Little Greene Paint Company have got it pretty much sewn up. The paint itself is of vastly superior quality to other designer paints available (perhaps beginning with an F and a B), and a great favourite with the decorators, as it goes on really well and covers superbly. It’s a bit more expensive than your Dulux type brands, but as it contains up to 40% more pigment, it can actually end up saving you money by needing less coats. As for the colours, they really are superb. The main range is wide and eclectic, while their Colour Scales is an excellent collection of very useful paints, comprising a dozen of their best neutrals enhanced by adding lighter and darker tones to each shade, with such evocative names as Slaked Lime, Welcome and Rolling Fog. And for fans of the ubiquitous grey, they even have a separate Grey colour card containing no less than 28 different shades, ranging from the crisp, almost white Loft White, to the rich moody Toad.
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John Biddell - John Charles Interiors
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