When choosing fabrics and styles for your soft furnishings, there are all kinds of things to consider – one of the most important is colour.

Whilst a colour mistake in your wardrobe can be painful (and costly) enough, making that kind of mistake with bespoke soft furnishings can leave you feeling very sick indeed! Just as with personal style, what looks amazing in your friend’s home won’t necessarily be right for you, after all. So, how do you get it right?

Choose colours you like

I know! this seems obvious, yet so many times we find we are guided by the market, the latest colour trend and what others want us to have. Think carefully. How does this colour make you FEEL? It may be ‘neutral’, ‘go with everything’ or ‘bang on trend’, but if cream, beige or green don’t please you, avoid at all costs! If you’re passionate about rich, deep turquoise or luscious ruby red, make sure you bring some into the scheme! We can make ANY colour work for your home, we just need to find the best version of that colour and use it in the right amounts.

Choose colours your room likes

When considering colour for your home, don’t think of a colour in its purest hue, consider instead shades, tints, tones and other subtle variations of that colour.

Balance your scheme

As referred to above, colour can be a powerful thing. The way to pull of a great colour scheme is to ensure balance. You may love bright orange but I doubt you would want to live in a room that was entirely orange, would you?

The ‘general rule’ on colour proportion is to aim to have 60% of your main colour (for most that will be a neutral but it doesn’t have to be), 30% in your secondary colour and just 10% in your chosen accent colour. HOWEVER, this is, in my opinion too simplistic for some and that brings me on to personality…

Give your scheme personality

There is a tendency, especially in the UK, for people to ‘play safe’ with colour. The majority will favour tonal schemes of no more than 3 colours. For these people, I often suggest using more unusual (perhaps seasonal) colours as accents (perhaps as cushions or just trimmings on curtains and blinds for example).  Those who are confident with colour often choose more than one accent colour and generally bolder schemes. It’s important that your home reflects your personality, so in all things interiors but especially colour, choose what you love; what makes your happy or calm…what makes you feel at home.

Inspiration for your Scheme

Probably the easiest way to build your colour scheme is to decide on a fabric or a wallpaper you like and pick out colours from the design to use elsewhere in the room. Paint can be mixed to match/blend perfectly and a few sheets of white card and some match pots will ensure you get it right first time.

Choosing a great brand

Lazy Pheasant is a lifestyle brand inspired by the countryside with an urban feel. – Based in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It’s about creating a modern lifestyle and bringing the traditional into the 21st Century. In 2018 Lazy Pheasant officially took flight with an initial collection of home furnishings, launched using traditional and colourful tweeds – to create bold ‘stand-out’ pieces.

The most popular product is the ‘Lazy Lineout’ Rugby Ball Cushion and has become the brand’s signature product – exclusively designed and lovingly created by Lazy Pheasant.

What’s their vibe?

Based in South Ayrshire amongst the backdrop of the Carrick Hills and the rugged coastline of the west coast of Scotland, really inspires Lazy Pheasant. Surrounded by farmland and a working estate, with plentiful pheasants roaming the fields, it’s hard not to miss their elegant and majestic presence.

Their passion for rugby is part of who we are – and their products reflect this! Whether it’s a signature rugby ball shaped cushion or a unique range of cushions with a rugby inspired slant – Try Colour, Saltire Smash and St. George Bosh!

Lazy Pheasants’ unique style also has a nod towards the urban environments of Edinburgh, Paris and New York, each with its own unique characteristics and style.  The traditional architecture mixed with funky modern art, captures the flair and spirit of LAZY PHEASANT.  Mashing up country styles with bold contemporary designs bringing the traditional into the 21st Century.

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