Client Profile - The Spences

Antoinette and Alex came to me as they needed help with their living room and they had the Room Edit package in mind. The beauty of the design packages is that they all work on a remote basis. I have designed the process so that even without stepping foot in your home, I am able to provide you with what you need to carry out your project to your specifications. But what was really exciting with this project, is that the Spences live fairly close to the Pink Couch studio, which meant that instead of this being a completely remote project, they decided they would like me to be more involved and have an at home consultation!

Antoinette and Alex began by filling out my questionnaire and when I visited we talked through it so I was able to gain some extra detail and clarification on their answers (which is usually done via email with remote clients) and I had the opportunity to take some more in-depth photographs myself of all the aspects that they were wanting to edit. I have to say the most interesting part of this project was how to please both Antoinette and Alex, as here is what Antoinette said in here questionnaire...

It is a common mistake to think that more "stuff" will make a space feel more cosy. Actually it can make you feel more uncomfortable especially if like most of us, you have a house with modest sized rooms. The space can start to feel smaller, you stop seeing and enjoying the items within your room and it just becomes a mass of clutter which invades your field of vision giving you too many visual distractions, making concentrating on what you are doing or even relaxing much more difficult. The key is to add warmth with colours and textures to give that cosy, comfortable feeling - luckily, "Hygge" is something they both requested! It is also important to consider the items in your room. Collecting is something humans do very well - mementos from trips, photographs, heirlooms, knick knacks that appeal to us - but sometimes, we aren't too good at curating them. Just because there is a space on a shelf, a window ledge or a wall, doesn't mean it needs to be filled. If we do this, then we stop being able to see anything clearly. The spaces in between things are just as important as the things themselves.

The Room Edit was perfect for Antoinette and Alex as they already had all the large pieces of furniture in the room. They also had lots of lovely items and keepsakes on display. The key for this project was how to tie everything together more effectively and fill in a few gaps to make the room feel more finished and so they would feel more cosy when they are in it. Here is the board that I put together for them with all the design details.

The Room Edit comes with an item list with details of where you can buy the pieces that I have suggested. Antoinette and Alex used this list to purchase the rug, light shade and blinds, but they decided that they wanted to hit the shops with me to pick out some pieces together! Like a lot of people, Antoinette said on their questionnaire that she didn't think that they had a particular style, it isn't true. When working with clients, the most important thing for me is to encourage them to recognise their style and make sure that their personalities are in their finished space. When I join clients for some shopping, I see my job as to be more of a guide. Yes I make suggestions which fit in with the design that we have put together, but on the day as the time went on, both Antoinette and Alex were spotting things that they liked and that worked with the scheme, making it a real collaboration which is what I love.

Here is what the client had to say -

"My husband and I did a fair amount of decorating when we first bought our house, but life got in the way after we moved in and some of the rooms were left feeling unfinished. We asked Rachel to help us with our living room, choosing the Room Edit service which was perfect since we already had all new furniture and carpets but we just wanted to make the room feel warmer and more welcoming. We decided on the in-home consultation, which was really worth it since we didn’t really know where to start with the room. Rachel visited us one evening after work to talk through what we wanted from the room and brainstorm some initial ideas. Rachel then went away and worked up a fantastic mood board and list of recommended products for us. This made things so simple and easy for us even giving suggestions of which products we should buy first to get the best out of the room without necessarily needing to buy everything on the list (great if you’re working to a budget). Some of the items on the list we bought straight away online, which was made really easy using the web links provided on the product list. And for the rest, Rachel helped us to find what we needed on our shopping trip together (also included in our package). It was such an enjoyable and easy process working with Rachel, and we love how the room has turned out really cosy and now actually a place we look forward to spending time in! We would definitely recommend the Room Edit with the consultation, especially for people like us with busy lives. We’re very happy with the result!" - Antoinette Spence

At home consultations and even shopping trips can be added to any of the Pink Couch packages. If it is something you would be interested in, please drop me an email at pinkcouch@ymail.com and we can work out a bespoke add-on which suits you and your project! (prices will vary depending on location).

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