Helllooooo - and welcome to the latest addition of ‘Good News Guide’, a new series here on my site which champions the great, the good and the downright daft to help you invite a little more positivity in your life. We could all certainly do with a bit more, after all, especially during the last couple of years or so
I had grand plans to make Good News Guide a kind of online mag, but work has been busier than ever, which means it will now reside here on my site. I’m sure you don’t mind.
Delve Into Past Editions of ‘Good News Guide’
If you’ve missed the first two instalments of the guide - with content submitted by the owner of a bookshop (in the form of some great book recommendations), and a pal of mine who has discovered a newfound passion in the pandemic - head here to scroll though and have a peek. Plus, if you want to pitch an idea to Good News Guide, get in touch here via my site.
In this, the third instalment of Good News Guide, I chatted to Roxii - a lifestyle and interiors blogger who has recently moved into her first home and has poured time, love and creativity into making it a colourful haven from which to relax.
I love Roxii’s fun and flirty take on interiors - and I bet you will too. Read on - and consider, in 2022 and beyond, taking a leaf out of Roxii’s book (if you feel bold enough), ditching the magnolia paint and getting a bit fruity with some bold shades.
You recently moved into your first home with your partner, Karl – congratulations! Tell me a little about your personal interiors style and how you plan to inject even more of it into your property?
We are all about good vibes, bright colours and keeping the gin flowing in our flat. We both have a very quirky style, so we always knew we wanted our first home together to reflect our personalities through bold design and tech-forward features.
Tell me a little about your living room and your inspiration for it – the bright sofa, the walls, the quirky little gin cabinet…
People kept telling us to go to Ikea for inspiration but turns out we prefer their logo, so we went for a blue and yellow theme (just kidding!).
We didn’t plan to have a yellow and blue theme in our apartment, but we fell in love with our yellow chesterfield sofa and built the rest of the room around it. We have an open plan kitchen; dining room and lounge and we’ve divided each area so each area has its own unique style.
The dining room area has become more of a bar! We have a mini wall bar and six shelves full of gin from around the world. Last year, we launched our brand ‘Kent Gin Co.’ , which offers virtual gin tastings, and we use our dining room area/bar as our set for our live tastings. We’re tempted to ditch the dining room table from this area and get a breakfast style bar so we can create our own at home bar.
In part of the lounge, we’ve created a picture wall which we plan on expanding from floor to ceiling. Here, we also have a drinks trolley and a zebra print rug – these were the first two things we bought, even before we started the mortgage process. As you can see, we’ve got our priorities right!
Also in the lounge area we have our yellow chesterfield sofa and we bought a navy blue love seat to go with it – you know what they say, opposites attract. We also have a range of cushions that we change depending on the season - we have celebrated Halloween and Christmas so far with themed cushions.
What would you say to someone who’d like to introduce a bright colour palette in their home, but is teetering on the edge of doing so?
If you are a bit nervous about adding bright and bold colours to your interiors, then that’s absolutely fine. We recommend starting small by adding a rug or some bright ornaments or by creating a feature wall - things you can move and change around the house until you are happy, or if your style changes over time. The bright colours really life your mood, even on the dullest of days! It creates a happy and positive atmosphere.
You’re given £50 to spend on your house, what would be the first thing you’d buy? And what would you say others could buy with £50 that would make the biggest impact?
Spend it in a charity shop. You can find some fantastic bargains and amazing vintages finds, it’s also a great place to find pieces to upcycle.
We bought a huge dark wood mirror for £20 and painted it gold ourselves (we are 100% not painters and it turned out just fine), it would have cost us a few hundred if we had bought it elsewhere.
The mirror is not only a great feature but makes the room look and feel much bigger. We have floor to ceiling windows so the living room is already quite bright and airy but a large mirror emphasises this.
Does your partner get involved with your interiors choices? And do you agree where colours and styles are concerned?
Karl and I have a similar taste. If I had it all my way though I would have a lot more pink - although I have just convinced him that we need a pink sofa bed in the spare room!
We can be bad influences on each other and that means we are constantly buying new things. We both try to support small businesses as much as possible but depending on our budget we also shop on the high street and at second hand shops.
What are your top three places to buy quirky pieces for the home - and why?
Wild One Interiors – it’s amazing for quirky ornaments and decorations. We got our yellow candlestick and wall bar from Wild One. We are looking at their astronaut bookends for our new shelves too.
Punkhaus – Great prints if you are thinking about creating your own photo wall.
Aldi – A real surprise but that middle aisle is full of great finds. Their online shop has everything from ottomons to beds to stools. Definitely check them out for affordable, good quality items.
What’s your favourite interiors piece in your space and why?
Karl says the bar is his favourite for obvious reasons. He says it is colourful but we both know its because it is where the gin is.
Mine is the sofa. It is such a great feature as well as being a super chilled place for me to work, watch Netflix and unwind.
If someone’s feeling fed up with their space, what’s the one thing you suggest they do that will immediately change the way they feel about it?
Brighten the place up. This can be done in several ways: feature walls, mirrors, quirky and colourful ornaments can all brighten your space and have a real effect on your mood
If you fancy following Roxii and Karl’s interiors journey, check out @sixfeetapartment on Instagram.
Until next time…
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