Olive Sitting Room

The sitting room in this home was formerly a heavy looking dark room badly in need of a total update. One look at this client’s home and I knew the new scheme would need to ‘fit’ into an immaculate home! I always consider a client’s taste and lifestyle, the style of a house and the view from the room’s window and then I choose a scheme that best fits the criteria. In this case the house is in the heart of a scenic valley, a very natural location so the scheme is based on an autumn colour palette (olive, mulberry, cherry teak), trailing bird and leaf wallpaper design, and natural materials (wool carpet, leather suite, wood furniture).

My brief was to create a simple, modern, formal sitting room scheme that would be totally different to the clients’ existing informal living room at the other side of the house. The paint colour for the room was hand mixed until the correct colour was achieved. We were aiming for a gentle and uplifting shade of olive that becomes richer in artificial light. The wallpaper adds the only pattern to the scheme, drawing the eye to the fireplace recesses to give the illusion of more space in the room. To further increase the sense of space, I chose curtains of a similar colour to the walls. The leather suite (their other living room suite is upholstered) was teamed with quality wood furniture for a sophisticated style.

The lack of decoration, including tie backs on the curtains, is deliberate so that the rich leather suite, finishing touches on the mantle and fine art on the walls can become the focus in the room to psychologically create a sense of culture, ambience and comfort. The light fittings were chosen from a range of artisan products and give a soft ambient effect because they are shaded. Choosing a fireplace can be a difficult decision so I advise clients to keep it simple; select a quiet colour in the right style that has perfect proportions for the room.