I like the grey and purple idea, Farrow and Ball Elephants Breath and Brassica would look great (see pic) or you could go more dramatic with Farrow and Ball Pelt as the room looks lovely and light, so could take strong colour. I think change the clock on the fireplace to a statement mirror and add some pattern with the soft furnishings. There's a bit of a French influence in the style of the console and there's a country feel to the fireplace, so for curtains maybe a check or ticking stripe, or if you want more French you could have damask or floral pattern, mix and match colour and patterns. Maybe add a rug to the new wood floor for a bit of texture.

Oh you're too sweet! I've been thinking about my biggest challenges so I could pick one. A lot of them were actually practical or build related things - stuff that I didn't consider or couldn't foresee during my renovation and that I will do differently next time. What I'm finding surprisingly challenging now that I'm furnishing my home is: balance of colours and materials. I've been obsessing over interiors for as long as I can remember, and in my head I knew exactly what I wanted my home to look like. There is not one item of furniture that I purchased in a haphazard manner, I thought about function and style, I considered how it would tie in with the rest of the room, I created visuals...and still, now that it's all there, carefully arranged, it doesn't look like I wanted it to. Colour is a big aspect of it: what is the right amount of colour to inject so it doesn't look bland but still coherent? I like bright and white so I stick to neutrals for permanent items and bring in colour with decorative items that don't cost the world and can be moved and played with (that's with the exception of a brown chesterfield sofa that I've had for years and can't part with, an a black fireplace that must have been tiled by a blind person). Same goes for materials - I guess with an all white backdrop you can introduce materials more generously (?) but there is probably still something like a healthy medium. Is it ok to mix brass, steel, glass, fur, linen, marble...or is there a magic number to stick to? I have attached a photo of the living room I'm working on, as an example. I'll either remove the rattan chair or cover it with a sheepskin, the grey sofa will be reupholstered in a lighter fabric and the art over the mantle will be replaced with a mirror or a more toned-down canvas. Maybe these changes will solve my problem. But bottom line is, I was going for an urban industrial look and now feel that the room has got a granny touch, it's too girly. Anyway, materials and colour. I bet you're sorry now that you asked ;) x

When I first moved into my rental home, I was truly stuck on how to decorate the space. After all, the house wasn't technically mine and I would have to adhere to what my landlord would and would not let me do to the space. To say it was a daunting task is an understatement. Working with designers every day, however, has allowed me to pick up quite a few tips and home decor ideas that I could start to add or alter to suit my rented space. After sitting down to make a mood board and have an open conversation with my landlord about what he would and would not allow I finally had a vision for the space. Visit here for idea. So, here are eight tips I used to decorate my rental house that make it feel like my own home. 1. Negotiating paint green bedroom home office with wood and metal desk, metal chair, desk lamp, window frame painted black, blind I am more than aware of the fact that landlords around the world can sometimes be touchy about paint ideas in a rental house, but negotiating adding paint to my rental has easily made the biggest difference in making it feel like home. While I couldn't paint my ceilings, I was given free rein to paint any wall I liked. One of the first things I did to the house was introduce some color to my home office ideas. The room was originally a flat, pale grey but I took inspiration from recent paint trends and had the room redecorated in a deep, lush green. I didn't just add paint to whole rooms, however, instead focusing color on smaller areas of the space to make a statement. The dining room, for example, has an electric fireplace with a wooden surround that was previously (badly) painted a gloss white. Adding a fresh coat of black paint to the surround made my fireplace ideas stand out and look more purposeful than before. If you can't paint in your rental, consider introducing bright colors through other furnishings such as art, soft furnishings, statement furniture, or houseplants to brighten up the space and take the focus away from the less-than-impressive walls. 2. Investing in quality pieces White living room with white curved sofa, purple chair and colorful artwork Rental houses tend to look a little on the cheaper side. Unless your landlord redecorated between each tenant, there will be small marks, cracks, scratches and so on that makes some houses look a little worse for wear. My priority in my new home, then, was to make it look expensive. Story continues My rental was completely unfurnished when I first moved in, giving me a blank canvas to work with. While I was able to add the bare necessities straight away such as a bed and some living room chairs, waiting to purchase investment pieces and even commission bespoke furniture and window dressings added a touch of luxury to my space. Yes, I did have to live for a few weeks with less-than-ideal furniture but the wait was more than worth it. I know that these higher-quality furniture pieces are items I will be able to take with me wherever I move next making the investment worth it in the long run (while also making my rental beautiful in the meantime). 3. Using rugs to disguise the old carpet A white textured rug with armchair My absolute least favorite thing about my rental house is the existing carpets. The brown-colored, low pile carpet covered every inch of the house outside of the kitchen and bathroom. While I have nothing against carpet ideas generally, this carpet is just not the one for me. Adding area rugs to the rooms helped to disguise the existing floor coverings while warming up the space both visually and literally. The luxurious wool carpet in my living room ideas, for example, and a wonderful sense of softness and elegance to the space – and helps me to forget what lies beneath. Adding rugs is also a simple addition to rental property as they do not cause any damage and will protect the existing floor from general wear and accidental spills so my landlord cannot be upset about damage when I move out. 4. Rehanging curtains and window dressings Girl's bedroom with pink patterned and cream curtains, small arched window, beige cozy armchair, cream carpet, colorful wall art, bright yellow side table Although my house came with window dressings, raising the curtain poles and replacing the curtain ideas were high on my to-do list. The original hangings were dumpy, mismatched curtains that were hung a little too low down for my liking. With curtains looking their best hung just a few inches from the ceiling and hanging to reach the floor, this change would have to be made to make a home look more expensive. Changing out the existing curtains also helped me continue my color scheme throughout my rooms. If you are not able to change the height of your curtain ideas, do not panic. Although curtains look best hung from higher up hanging curtains that flow to the floor is a great start in making your rental look that little bit better 5. Changing out hardware and lighting Hanging brown light in a kitchen This is a simple change that I was easily able to do myself, although it took a few learning curves to get perfect. The existing hardware in my home, such as switch panels, cabinet handles, and lighting fixtures, were all builder-grade standardized fittings less than luxury, let's say. Although this was not an urgent change that I made, finally got around to replacing the boring lighting ideas with statement fittings that instantly transformed the space. making this simple change in my bedroom ideas brought the whole space together like a missing puzzle piece. Once I had taken the old handles and fixtures off I simply stored them in a box together in storage to be swapped back out again when I looked to move out. 6. Adding statement art and mirrors Living room with pale grey walls, white cornice, framed maps, dark grey woodwork and mirrored coffee table. Before moving house I had a rather lacking art collection. I had never lived in a property where I was allowed to hang things on the wall before with previous landlords being scared of putting holes in their walls. 7. Don't forget about the kitchen and bathroom A blue free standing bath with four pictures on the wall above I didn't touch my kitchen ideas or bathroom ideas for a long while when I first moved into my rental house. I mean, the rooms seem so finished already, with it basically impossible to remodel a tiled space in a rental. When I had finished up with the rest of the house and I was itchy to continue decorating something, I finally began personalizing these smaller spaces. Besides adding a runner to my kitchen to hide some of the old tiled floorings, I also added bathroom art ideas and kitchen art ideas to warm up the spaces. One of my favorite additions was the battery-operated picture light similar to this one on Amazon above my bathroom mirror and kitchen frames to add some accenting wall lighting to the space without having to rewire anything.

Thanks for the advice everyone. The walls are just plastered at the moment, so I'm thinking to paint them a shade of white first to get a better idea of how the space looks, then decide on some tiles. It's difficult to picture with how it is at the moment! I do like the idea of having white zellige tiles placed vertically, but worried it might look a bit busy if it goes from the countertop to the ceiling.