TV presenter and interior designer Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen is famed for his bold and flamboyant home decor style, and if, like me, you've always wanted to be braver with your window dressing choices, then he has a few truth bombs that might finally help you take the plunge and go for that pattern you've been tempted by.
'Relax and drink gin, stop overthinking it. Stop taking it so seriously,' says Laurence when I caught up with him to discuss his new collection of fabrics, curtains and blinds with Terry's.
The House Llewelyn-Bowen Legacy Collection at Terry's includes 79 pieces showcasing 11 prints from the Llewelyn-Bowen archives, a 'greatest hits' that have been recoloured and scaled to work in a modern home. The patterns, such as Menagerie Artois (seen above) and Gwendoline (below), are as bold and opulent as you'd expect from the former Changing Rooms star, but right now feels like the perfect time for these rich and timeless patterns.
In the last year, bold and beautiful patterns on furniture, rugs and bedding have taken off. Just take Habitat's sellout Morris & Co armchair or John Lewis' collection with Sanderson. Laurence's vibrant and dramatic collection, which feels like a luxe take on William Morris with a hit of Biba vintage glamour, fits right in.
However, while many of us (myself included) are happy to be bold with the odd piece of accent furniture, there is still a fear around being bold with your living room curtain ideas. However, according to Laurence, this is actually the best place to be bold and adventurous with your design.
'That continuing debate about feature walls and patterns walls? It's actually the curtains. They were staring us in the face all the way through. That's exactly the best place to put your block of pattern, that wall that you need to furnish with fabric,' he says.
But how do you get it right and stop a patterned pair of curtains from looking too busy in a room? That is where Laurence dropped one of his many truthbombs. We're all thinking about curtains the wrong way; we see them as something that should blend in, instead of an opportunity to sneak in visual interest that is tucked away during the day and unleashed when you close them at night.
'Stop worrying about it being busy or taking over the space. Actually, that's a really rather lovely thing. I think particularly now, where we're looking for our homes to be a distraction, to be much more nourishing and more interesting. A hit of pattern in a space is exactly what it needs,' he says.
'Fall in love with stuff. Don't just have something because it's nice or it fits, or everybody else is doing it, actually have things that you desire.'
When I ask whether people get too caught up in what colours go together, he quickly points out that the idea of things 'going together' in interiors isn't a thing anymore.
'High-end decorating is really proving at the moment that there is no such thing as 'go'. 'Go' has long gone, the idea that you're picking out the same colours and you're moving the same elements from one thing to another, that doesn't work. It's all about storytelling. It's all about personality.'
'It's all about your reaction to things, and yes, it takes confidence, and that's something that you need to trust yourself with, but when you take that risk and it pays off, you've got something so joyful for you,' he adds.
'You know it's particularly joyful when everybody else comes around and goes 'oh, my god, that's hideous'. That absolutely reaffirms how personal what you've done is. You should actually go out of your way to piss off estate agents and your mother-in-law as far as I'm concerned,' he quips.
I think we could all afford to be a little more Laurence when taking risks with our design choices. Will you be taking his advice?
