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IT'S ALL ABOUT THE LIGHT BY AN G ELA KELLY
CHANGING the mood of your home is a definite way to alter and improve your lifestyle in 2018. The wonderful thing about this positive decision is that it can cost as much – or as little – as you want it to, involving differences to your home that are radical or merely minor. “It really all depends on your budget and how much change you want, your circumstances and your surrounding space,” explains interior designer Allyson Houghton from Ideas Interior. She has noticed that a major trend in improving homes today involves glass and letting in plenty of natural light through glass walls and roofs. “This is a natural improver of your mood and helps bring the outside in,” she adds.
lifestyle you dreamed of by having this improvement in light and space.” There are many varying styles of both available and, again, choose your supplier carefully. Go online and study
“In bathrooms and kitchens you generally want brighter lights, with softer lighting in the lounge and bedrooms,”
Select your builder carefully, preferably on recommendation, and see for yourself the kind of work he has already carried out. Look at the planning permission or building control approval you might need first by checking on the Government website www.planningportal.gov.uk “Conservatories and orangeries are also very popular these days,” says Allyson, ”and you can often finally achieve the
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Take a look at your existing front-door: does it need sprucing up with a lick of paint or do you need a new one? A modern front-door, often with smart glass panels, can make quite a difference to your hallway – “and this area is the gateway to your home as it’s the first thing visitors see so it really needs to give a good impression,” says Allyson.
Try panels on the walls that reflect light. “LED lighting is so far advanced now that you can change the mood whenever you want.” If you are planning major changes to alter the whole mood and atmosphere of your property and way of living, it may well be worth investing in an extension to provide more rooms or an extra bathroom.
the styles that would both complement your own home and will provide the changes you want or visit local showrooms.
Allyson Houghton Ideas Interiors is an established Interior Design Studio based in the heart of Lancashire, and their client geographic stretches from The Highlands to London and further afield in Europe. • For more information go to: www.ideasinterior.co.uk
Lighting around your home is a major improver of mood and feelings. Allyson advises investing in dimmer switches to change the lighting as your own mood changes, and use good-quality candles around the home. “These not only give out a lovely light but can also scent your home – and the senses need soothing in this way so they are a definite mood-changer.” If you’re buying new light fittings, while it’s useful to see what is available by going online, it’s always best to go into shops and stores and see light fittings for yourself and the effect they have on an area.