Client: Chris and Richard Grainger
Project: Garden Room Makeover
Designer: Annie
Chris and Richard Grainger moved into their barn conversion earlier this year and have been decorating and furnishing each room in turn. Their final challenge was the garden room and, although it was a lovely big space, had very dark and imposing woodwork, making it look rather depressing.
The room is situated at the end of their long wide barn with one wall, and three sides of floor-to-ceiling glass. Established shrub borders and trees are all around the garden room with views to adjoining farmland.
Chris and Richard lived in a cottage-style home previously and were keen for their new house to be light and airy and not over-crammed. They have a grown-up family with children of their own and needed a sociable space with lots of seating. The only proviso was that the one wall was kept free for a big flat-screen TV.
I made a site visit to measure up and to get a feel for the room and the rest of the house, and to make sure the suggested scheme would flow with the other rooms. Furniture, accessories and colours were discussed over a pot of coffee. Chris has a great eye and the rest of the house is furnished beautifully, so she was already very knowledgeable about fabric houses and paint colours. Luckily Chris and I have similar tastes and the meeting couldn’t have gone better. We agreed a plan of action.
First I presented a couple of mood boards with green colour schemes. As the surrounding garden was such a prominent factor in the room, green seemed the natural choice.
The colour of the newly painted wall and woodwork was taken into account to make sure it complemented the choice of fabric on the sofa cushions. A few accent colours including citrine and aubergine were thrown into the mix to add some interest. When Chris and Richard saw the mood board, they adjusted a couple of the suggestions to incorporate their own ideas and we agreed on the scheme.
The ceramic floor needed something to soften the room and absorb sound so a large seagrass rug with a calico edging was commissioned.
Chris had always liked bright zesty limes and had a few favourite fabrics that she had spotted during her previous visits to Holloways. These were included in the fabric swatches we sent and that was our starting point. The sofa base cushions were in a light, bright green called Pistachio with a selection of co-ordinating scatters for extra comfort.
Voyage Blair and Cairngorms, Meadow £40 per m
Grazing deer are often spotted in the open countryside that backs onto Chris and Richard’s garden. The addition of a Voyage fabric with deer and stags seemed the obvious choice – and Chris absolutely loved it.
Mayfair modular corner sofa, from £1,775
To get the maximum seating, we went for a Mayfair modular sofa with lots of space for the family to pile on. An individual armchair was included for Richard, who prefers his own space in his own chair! A huge coffee table from the Chiswick range provided a large surface for drinks and snacks and sits in the middle of the seating area, with a roomy shelf underneath for magazines and books – essential for garden room relaxation! A useful storage chest with a lift-up lid doubles up as a play-box for the children’s toys, a footstool or extra seat – and even another place to put your wine glass on.
The oak windows are such a good example of craftsmanship, it seemed a shame to hide them with blinds or curtains. As the house is very private (and the views are stunning) we agreed that no window treatment would be required.
Chris and Richard are delighted with the end result. They had a family occasion in the new room the weekend after their furniture arrived –and it was a huge success.
Chris said: ‘Having an area in the house where the whole family can congregate is vital. We can watch our grandchildren playing in the garden, while we sit comfortably, have a cup of tea and enjoy the views. Richard and I plan to use the room all year round for both relaxing and entertaining. It’s created such a sociable space – we’re thrilled with it! Thank you’.
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