There are approximately 486 days in January. At least it feels like it. And while crisp, blue-skied, frosty mornings bring a joy all of their own in the first few weeks of the new year, rain, fog and dark mornings really don't. Well not for most, anyway – us included.
Thankfully, small, gentle, intentional changes are all it takes to transform your home this month, to make your every room feel like a sanctuary, to look forward with purpose to the warmer, lighter days ahead. A kind of early spring re-boot, without a large-scale overhaul of your interiors.
Of course Christmas, really, is the problem: with the tree taken down, decorations packed away for another year, garlands and wreaths dismantled and everyone back to work and school, rooms can feel rather empty and flat. Cold, even. It's now that we look critically at our stripped-back rooms, judging everything from lighting to furniture, curtains to artwork.
Annie Blackledge, central to the Interior Design team at Holloways, lives in a converted barn in Herefordshire – a year-round haven of warmth, colour and personality. Here, she shows you how simple tweaks can create a pleasing, welcoming interior you'll love now, and for every season.
1. Let there be lighting
Adding lighting to a room is an effortless way of creating warmth and atmosphere. From task lighting next to a favourite reading chair, to picture lights and pendants, creating a layered lighting scheme will help counteract the short days and promote rest and relaxation.
"Designers talk about the importance of layered lighting all the time," says Annie. "But all this really means is multiple light sources in a room. From table lamps in cosy corners to wall lights creating symmetry over a fireplace or flanking a door, to floor lamps, making pools of light feels cocooning. If you're using overhead lighting, make sure it's dimmable. And if you don't have multiple plugs, no problem – our rechargeable table lamps are perfect for illuminating gloomy corners and creating atmosphere. Done right, a carefully curated lighting scheme will do the same as a roaring fire, drawing you in and comforting you and changing the look and feel of a room from day to night."
Even new lampshades can make a huge difference to the atmosphere in a room. Discover the whole collection of Neptune lighting and lampshades in our Gallery Showroom, plus handmade, pleated linen lampshades from Wiltshire design house Fermoie. You'll find an ever-changing selection of table and floor lamps, plus designer rechargeable lamps, dotted around the showrooms in inspirational room sets.
2. Colour me beautiful
"While neutral rooms are chic, elegant and calming, adding bold colours in a room creates instant warmth, whether it's on the walls or in your upholstery or curtains," says Annie.
Neptune's new-season paint shade, Saddle, is a deep, rich, chestnut brown – elegant in dining rooms, bold in sitting rooms and cosy in a cloakroom. Inky blues look spectacular in tall-ceilinged townhouses. Autumnal olives and mustards are perfect for kitchens. And rich, ruby reds and corals bring energy and warmth. Looking for inspiration? Learn How to Decorate with Bold Colours in our Journal, where you'll find expert advice on paint shades, choosing sofa colours and updating curtains and blinds.
We stock the full range of Edward Bulmer Natural Paints and Neptune paints.
"Whatever your flooring, a bold or richly textured rug can help bring your whole scheme together," says Annie. "Creating a cohesive scheme in a room is grounding and calming, and a pleasure to spend time in, particularly at this time of the year when home is our focus."
A bold new sofa will create a thrilling new focal point for a sitting room or snug, transforming your room in an instant. Consider a bright accent chair – they're an easy and inexpensive way of adding character and colour to bedrooms and hallways. From mid-century designs to classic wing-backs, tub chairs to swivels – superb in a library or home office – discover our collection of armchairs and occasional chairs here.
Trims on curtains and lampshades add a layer of texture, while upgrading tired curtains and blinds is a cost-effective way of transforming a tired, cold room, says Annie. Not sure what style of blind, curtain header or fabric to choose? Expert advice from our curtains and blinds specialists, coupled with hundreds of fabric books from all the major design houses in our Interior Design Studio, means you'll find the right combination for every window.
Explore Curtains & Blinds
3. Scent-sational fragrance
It's no surprise that home fragrance alters mood, evoking memories and transporting us to different places. Whether you create one signature scent througout your home, or use different scents as a journey through your rooms, our collection of Holloways candles, diffusers and wax melts are heavenly. Inspired by the Worcestershire countryside that surrounds our showrooms, scents like Country Garden, Mown Grass and Hedgerow will instantly lift a room. Neptune's home fragrance collection is rich with herbs and spices, while its Vegetable Garden collection of candles instantly invokes summer.
4. Bring the outside in
While Twelfth Night traditions put paid to the heady scent of spruce, bringing the outside in at this time of year is crucial to wellbeing. Plant vintage teacups, bowls and terracotta pots with bulbs, packing them with moss from the garden.
"I love to fill vases with pussy willow, gnarled branches from the garden and seasonal blooms," says Annie. "They remind us there's a world outside, and that brighter spring days are just around the corner. The first daffodils are always a joy, arranged in a favourite ceramic jug. And snowdrops, planted in little containers, packed with bright green moss, are a delight."
The Holloways Garden Antiques courtyards are full of vintage terracotta pots and planters, perfect for a display of spring bulbs. From salvaged tomato pots to glazed planters, there's an ever-changing collection of indoor and outdoor pots dotted around our outside spaces. For the garden, there's an unrivalled collection of Italian and Cretan terracotta pots and planters in every shape and size.
5. Create a quiet corner
Longer nights and slower mornings call for cosy corners. A cleverly lit reading nook is a joy at this time of year. Place a favourite armchair next to a bookshelf in the library or snug, create a window seat in a bedroom or arrange a smaller set of furniture in the sitting room for those quiet moments away from the hubbub of the house.
"Making smaller spaces in larger rooms, where we can tuck ourselves away, feels protected and calming," says Annie. "Layering with mood lighting, and adding textured throws and cushions, will add to the feeling of softness and safety."
6. Paint a picture
Moving art around in your home is an effortless way to make rooms feel energised and new, says Annie.
"Don't be afraid to move a favourite piece from the sitting room to the kitchen," says Annie. "Create an eclectic gallery wall in the hallway or up the stairs with photographs of your favourite people and pictures and framed postcards you love. They work brilliantly in kitchens, too. Switch bedroom artwork around. Hang quirky pieces in the cloakroom, next to the certificates and the school photos. It all makes everything feel much fresher, and brings greater pleasure from each piece because it feels new."
