Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2025 i The English Home

RUG PLACEMENT Jute rugs are well-suited to low-traffic areas, so they are ideal to place under groups of furniture such as a kitchen table and chairs. Opt for a design with a colourful border to further delineate the area. As it can be tricky to envisage how a rug will look within a scheme, Layered offers sample-size rugs to try in situ, the price of which is deducted upon purchase of a full-size design. Scallop jute rug in Misty Blue, 200 x 300cm, £995, Layered GOLDEN LIGHT Each glass droplet on this contemporary chandelier is individually shaped to be reminiscent of a handbag silhouette. To draw the eye, the amber-coloured pieces refract the light below an antique brass-plated steel frame, which glows when the lights are switched on. Notably, the…

COSY NOOK A small bedroom can be made to feel luxurious by enhancing the area around the bed. Carpentry can be used to create a built-in nook for a bed, but a simpler option can be to employ textiles. Use pelmeted curtains to create an opulent, cocooning effect similiar to that of a four-poster bed and give an illusion of greater space. Opting for a pattern with a stripe further elongates and adds height. This design from Colefax and Fowler’s new autumn collection is inspired by antique kilims and has bold embroidery and a weighty handle. For extra cosiness, add interlining, perfect for hunkering down on a winter’s night. Bayton, Blue/Cream, £156 a metre, Colefax and Fowler…

SPOTLIGHT ON… Will Kirk as The Cotswold Company’s Quality Expert Antique furniture restorer Will Kirk has been chosen as The Cotswold Company’s new Quality Expert. Millions of television viewers have warmed to Will while watching him painstakingly restoring cherished family heirlooms by hand. Watching his grandfather in his workshop sparked Will’s passion for furniture. At university, he specialised in antique furniture restoration and conservation before establishing his own workshop in London. ‘I’m excited to be partnering up with a company that shares my passion for enduring design, quality materials and furniture that’s made to last for generations,’ says Will. Founded in the Cotswolds in 1996, The Cotswold Company carefully crafts thoughtfully designed furniture and home accessories. cotswoldco.com…

PRETTY IN PRINT Textiles house Ian Sanderson has boosted its popular Complements family of fabrics with the Beyond Complements range, which gives a new spin on six original designs: Olmo, Elney, Nettie, Reel Stripe, Swing, and Miss Polly. Featuring larger motifs, new colour combinations, innovative ground cloths, and refined finishes, five of the designs are printed on a soft and durable cotton and linen blend that works well on both soft furnishings and upholstery. The delicate leaf design of Miss Polly is the only one to come in pure cotton, with a light chintz glaze, while the whole collection has been printed in the UK using high lightfast dyes. The collection is perfect for adding a lovely dose of whimsy to interiors. iansanderson.co.uk CREATIVE KITCHENS The White Kitchen Company says…

‘Coming from a Finnish background, I’m drawn to a pared-back aesthetic, but I also love a layered, cosy feel’ After a seven-year stint living in New York, Hanna and Richard Litchfield decided the time was right to head home to the UK with their two young sons, James and Felix. They initially relocated back to their old stomping ground, Wandsworth in London, before figuring out where to settle permanently. ‘Richard studied at Oxford in his younger days and at first disregarded living there again, but when we went to have a look, we realised it ticked a lot of boxes. Being a university city, Oxford feels very international with its own culture,’ says Finnish-born Hanna. An old university friend of Richard’s recommended a local independent school for the boys. On…

A PLUM CHOICE With warming undertones of red and the richness of deep blue, purples are a seductive choice for a darker scheme. Opt for a perfect plummy colour and pair with navy woodwork for a chic and comforting combination. Tyrian Plum, £55.95 for 2.5l Wall Paint; Oxford Navy, £24.95 for 750ml Satin Paint, Annie Sloan COLOUR CONTRAST Create a more vibrant look by combining light, dark and a splash of colour. Keeping the walls lighter with the deep green picked out in a more limited use on woodwork creates a brighter look in this bedroom, emboldened by a rich red that creates flair by confidently adding high contrast. Wallpaper, Lovers’ Toile, Puck, £99 a roll; ceiling, Puck, £59 for 2.5l Absolute Matt Emulsion; woodwork, Puck, £91 for 2.5l Intelligent…

While rooms filled with natural light, along with tall ceilings and plenty of space, are the ideal, the reality is that many houses lack these attributes – at least in some areas. The challenge for a designer is to make the most of every space, whatever its size and availability of natural light, and much of this boils down to having a good lighting scheme. But successful lighting schemes are about more than adding a dimmer switch to every light on a circuit; some involve sophisticated, barely visible, subtle interventions that are recessed into woodwork, floors and ceilings. ‘The best lighting is never obvious, it’s simply felt,’ says Sally Storey, creative director of John Cullen Lighting. Many of the rooms in this year’s Chelsea Design Centre WOW!house showcase demonstrated how…

STICKY PUDDING WITH DATES, WALNUTS AND CARAMEL SAUCE Round off seasonal dinner parties with a rich and comforting sticky pudding topped with an indulgent caramel sauce Serves 16 INGREDIENTS 200g dates, roughly chopped 50g candied ginger, roughly chopped 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda200g softened butter1 tsp vanilla extract150g brown sugar3 eggs250g plain flour1 tsp baking powder100g ground hazelnuts100g walnuts, roughly choppedIcing sugar, for dusting 200g caramel sauce, ready-made METHOD • Put the dates and ginger in a pan with 200ml water and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat, stir in the bicarbonate of soda and allow to cool. • Preheat the oven to 160 °C and line a square baking tray (approx 24cm x 24cm) with baking paper. • Cream the butter with the vanilla and sugar. Gradually…

With variable seasonal weather and a variety of bedding options available, changing from summer to winter bed linen requires consideration. ‘What you are aiming for is weightless warmth, so it’s all about finding that perfect balance – being cosy without being sweltering,’ says Stephanie Betts, founder of exquisite bedding company London & Avalon. Achieving the desired effect is often about personalisation. ‘The ideal winter bedscape is one that is easy to adjust and customise so you always have the perfect “pod”, totally designed for optimal sleeping comfort,’ explains Betts. To achieve this, materials, layers and visual warmth should all be considered. Fabric features There is a wide range of different fabrics suitable for winter bedding and the preferred feeling of certain materials on our skin can be as much a…

There is nothing like slipping under a duvet or resting on a pillow that feels just right. Each of these carefully selected designs has been tried and tested by The English Home online team, with full reviews available at theenglishhome.co.uk. These are our top picks, offering warmth, breathability, softness, and craftsmanship to suit different sleepers and seasons. 1. BEST WOOL PILLOW Filled with 100 per cent traceable British wool, this pillow offers gentle, adaptable support and natural temperature regulation, keeping sleepers cool through the night. Its thick, washable cover protects the wool while ensuring longevity, and the slight springiness adds comfort without feeling engulfing. Approved by Allergy UK and backed by a 30-night trial, it delivers natural comfort with enduring quality. Deluxe washable wool pillow, £89.99, Woolroom 2. BEST FOR…

Sharing The Spotlight Handcrafted lighting brand’s first foray into soft furnishings Known for its characterful hand-stitched pleated lampshades, combining traditional sewing techniques with vintage-inspired design and contemporary style, Beauvamp Studio has expanded into soft furnishings with a series of pleated bolster cushions. Founder Alice Moylan says: ‘We wanted to carry through the same love of materials, colour and silhouette applied to something softer, more tactile but equally expressive, and making sure to incorporate a pleated element.’ beauvamp.com Paint The Town Silver: Gallerists Mark 25 Years Porthminster Gallery founders’ silver anniversary exhibition in St Ives David Durham and Dee Bray-Calvert launched their first fine art galleries in York before relocating to St Ives and opening Porthminster Gallery, voted the best in Cornwall and representing over 60 British painters, printmakers, ceramicists and…

CAN I BLEND ANTIQUE AND CONTEMPORARY PIECES? Many interior designers actively encourage a mix to create successful schemes. ‘For a space to be personal and individual, avoid filling it with only new things,’ advises Sarah Peake, founder and creative director of Studio Peake. ‘Combine, say, some fresh contemporary furniture with an antique rug found on your travels, because mixing styles, and art and possessions that are important to you, is key to creating the sense that this is “your” space.’ The contrast of old and new can highlight the beauty of both, suggests Kate Earle of Todhunter Earle Interiors. ‘The interplay between hard and soft materials, between the patina of age against the precision of contemporary surfaces, or complexity next to simplicity, all help to create active, visually exciting interiors.’…

Who do you live with and where? I live in a small village in South West London with my husband Max and our three children: India, eight, Wolfie, four, and our youngest, Wilder, who is in his terrible twos! We also have a dog, Pedro, who is a Wirehaired Vizsla and has a gorgeous goatee. What kind of English home do you have? Our house is semi‑detached Edwardian, but has undergone substantial renovations over the years, which we are now adding to. It has a fantastic garden, lovely big windows, a well‑proportioned layout, and the most beautiful wood-beamed feature on the back, which we like to call ‘the barn’. How long have you lived there, and what kind of work have you done to the house? We moved in November…