Looking for inspiration. How to style a neutral 70s build house?

banwa

Hello all

We are in the process of buying a new house. It is probably the least of my worries but I am puzzling over it; but I can not envisage how we will decorate and furnish it, what sort of style would suit it. Our last house had a north facing living room, so we went for dark rich colours to give it a cosy feel, but this house is more light and airy and I can't see our stuff going in it.

It was built in the 70s, grey-ish brick, 4 bed detached, quite attractive in a very neutral way, quite large rooms with big windows and lots of light. It is in a rural village location.

What sort of styles would lend themselves to this type of house?

NervousHomeowner

If you're in a rural location, have you considered a natural feel, sort of country house-ish? Lots of traditional colours (Think Farrow and Ball - maybe some duck egg blues, sage greens, soft yellows?). Just keep it very natural and soft, with little pops of colour here and there.
Or, with it being a really light and airy house, you could go for some really lovely bright colours and wallpapers. Take the oppotunity to go a bit bold!

Whatever you decide, you can use slip covers and throws over your sofas and table cloths over end tables etc. so that they're in keeping with your new colour schemes Maybe consider new bedding, rugs and curtains if your stuff from your old house doesn't really fit with the style of the new house.

Personally, I love http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/ for interior design ideas. It's really worth looking at their house tours, because they have some really lovely properties that you can take ideas from. I like them because they show lots of different properties in different price ranges so you aren't just seeing unrealistic million pound renovations like you do in some of the interiors magazines

banwa

Do you know what, NervousHomeowner? (I must do some light stalking to find out why that username) You have made me feel really excited about decorating this house. It would probably lend itself to all sorts of styles so we can sort of play around to find what is right.

Have looked at Houzz quite a lot for ideas but it is American and quite expensive looking, so liking the look of apartmenttherapy a lot

Thanks v much:)

Banwa

Leif

I completely redecorated my house and I chose white for the kitchen, a pale blue for the bathroom and a pale beige (Natural Calico) for the other rooms. My reasoning was that pale colours make rooms look lighter and bigger. Dark colours make them look dark and small. So I'd go for pastel shades, pale yellow, pale green, cream, pale blue, with only a slight shade of colour. Then use curtains and other soft furnishings to add colour. In hindsight NC is a bit too earthy, I think I'd prefer a more yellowy cream, as it can be like drowning in mushroom soup, as someone here once said.

But this really is so personal. If you plan to sell in a year or two, then chose neutral colours. Otherwise chose what you like. I have seen beautiful homes with darker coloured walls, but I suspect it is quite hard to do it well. You probably have to be more careful when choosing furnishings.