If there was one word to describe the defining trend for 2012 it would be GRANDEUR!!! Elegant, luxurious and rich, ultra stylish interiors are rich and inviting. It is time to embrace the lavish and forget the understated.

We are most certainly seeing a shift back to a more salubrious style of décor. Rich textures, warm colour and  ornate details all come together to create interiors that will have you dressing up in your ball gown just to have dinner in your own home.

Colour is a central part of creating the Grandeur look. Gold is a key colour thread running through this style, from rich golden paint tonnes, to gold gilded mirrors and sumptuous golden fabrics, this colour alone screams copious luxury. Think rich jewel shades like ruby reds, garnets, aubergines, emeralds and topaz blues, let your colour palette take it’s inspiration from a bountiful jewellery box.

Fabrics are another vital part of this trend, deep piled shiny velvets, soft chenille’s and luxurious raw silks all give a extra dimension of grandeur to a scheme. Layer texture in a space with fabric sofas, piled with tactile cushions, tall upholstered head boards and long voluptuous made to measure curtains pooled on the floor.

Remember to pay attention to detail in the grandeur style choose accessories that have a vintage or aged feel like thick carved curtain poles, ornate mirror surrounds, deep ceiling cornicing, crystal chandeliers and antique candle sticks. This look can be built upon gradually adding your new treasures as you go.

Wallpaper is another central part of this look. Your trying to create layers of interest, texture and luxury. Wallpaper can help you achieve this, a ornate paper with a metallic shine, a raised pattern or a velvet flock will all work well. Don’t be afraid to choose a more subtle paper and wallpaper a whole room for a period feel.

So go on get a little grandeur in your life and make your home your castle.

Elegant, timeless and versatile White is like a Hollywood actress, Beautiful to look at and less  high maintenance than you first might think!

Decorating with white can seem daunting  and many believe that it is to hard to live with but nothing could be further from the truth. With the modern trends for strong colour, white offers the perfect alternative for those who like a softer colour palette in their home.

The secret to creating a successful interior with white is texture. Lots and lots of texture! From flocked wallpapers, to wooden floors, beautiful made to measure curtains, cushions and throws, these items will add warmth and interest to your calming space.

It is also important to remember there is more than one shade of white, you just have to lift a colour card to see the variety. In south facing rooms you can afford to use bright white but in north facing rooms it is best to use creamier white tones to add warmth. Mix and layer different shades of white in a space, on the walls, furniture and soft furnishings to add depth to the scheme.

Hints of metallic silver or gold  in wallpaper, guiding on mirrors or in fabrics will add a modern twist and give a nod to the contemporary trends for metallic finishes.

Period detailing is another way to add interest to a white scheme. Antique chandeliers,  roll top baths or ceiling cornicing will all grab attention and be set off beautifully by a white back drop.

Introducing key strategically placed pieces in striking colours like red, green or even black will help break up the white and add a focal point. Remember a colour will be intensified when placed against a white background, so one or two piece will have a big impact.

Pattern is essential in a white space. Keeping fabrics and wall covering all white means you can afford to go for large daring patterns like floral or geometric designs.  They will look a lot more subtle in white than in bright colour. These beautiful pattern details in wallpapers, bedding, cushions, carpet and curtains will create a feast for the eyes and stop the scheme becoming boring.

So this spring take your paint brush in hand and come over to a whiter side of life.

We’re delighted with our new roman blinds. Thanks so much! We’d 
recommend you to anyone.
Emma & Kieran
 25/02/2012

Hi Sheena

Just to let you know that the fabric arrived today, I’m delighted with it and can’t wait to get started on my curtains!

Thank you for all your help.

Kind regards

Tina

Januaray 2012

Dear Bernadette,
The curtains arrived today. Wow!  they are just fantastic and I am so
pleased. I can’t wait to hang them but I’ve removed the old poles because I
think they deserve new ones so I will have to wait. I can see the care and
attention that has gone into the curtains and into matching the cushion and
tie back patterns. Please please thank the lady who made them. I also want
to thank you for all your help explaining things and getting back to me so
promptly. Your customer service was a delight in an age when so often people
just don’t care. I would not hesitate in recommend F C Curtains to anyone
who wants a top quality product and a top quality service.
 
Once again thank you and Happy Christmas to everyone at FC Curtains. Make it
a good one.
 
Best Wishes
Sandra

December 2011

Ever wished you could live in a hotel or that your own boudoir could have all the elegance and glamour of a boutique hotel room. Well dream no longer in your decidedly average bedroom, getting that coveted designer hotel room look could be easier than you think!!!

First things first… the bed!! It is all about the bed. It is the centre focus of the room and should be more inviting than a ice-cream on a hot summers day. If you are buying a new bed always choose a model that is little higher from the ground than the average bed, this will give it more presence in the room. When choosing a mattress a pocket sprung mattress with a memory foam cover are the ultimate in sleeping luxury.

Even if your not purchasing a new bed the most important aspect of the hotel look is the upholstered head board. For get metal or wood frames, upholstered head boards in tactile, luxurious fabrics are the ultimate in hotel chic. The larger the better have them stretch up high on the wall as statement piece as you enter the room. When it comes to style of upholstered head board you will be spoiled for choice, with deep buttoned versions, shaped styles and pleated or rolled edges. The choice is huge.

Wallpaper is another important element in achieving hotel luxury. A feature wallpaper behind the bed in a striking pattern or colour, again makes a feature out of the bed. You could even wallpaper a whole room in a more subtle pattern, for extra warmth and glamour.

Finally a pair of voluptuous made to measure curtains hanging impressively on the window will add the final touch of grandeur. Make sure your curtains have plenty of fullness in them and opt for a hand pleated heading like pinch pleat with black out lining for the ultimate hotel opulence.

Are you a black and white kind of person? Prefer things clean cut and despise those pesky grey areas that make life that little bit more complicated? Well then I mite just have the perfect home interiors trend for you… Monochrome!! For get 40 shades of green or keeping up with this years must have colour scheme, opt for the stylish simple life of a timeless interior that will never date.

Just like the old Hollywood movies some things just look more elegant and stand the test of time in black and white. Easy to work with, unfussy and  ultra sophisticated you just can’t go wrong with Monochrome. There is however more to this ageless style of decorating than just two hues, Monochrome decorating can be versatile and give you more scope to be original than you ever might think.

Monochrome can be used to create a ultra modern sleek interiors, with clean lines, sharp definition and a masculine edge. This style looks particularly well in a kitchen with a high gloss black units, white walls and lots of shinny chrome fittings. A high end look that would impress any quests.

Monochrome however does not need to be masculine, it can work equally in a boudoir. This simple colour combination allows you to be more experimentative with soft feminine patterns. A floral wallpaper behind a bed with a textured head board and the bed piled high with lots of textured cushions and blankets in feminine satins, velvets and cottons. Makes for a room that is feminine without being overly girly.

Monochrome is also ideal scheme for creating a wonderful retro inspired interior. Just add geometric and retro influenced prints to your space in wallpaper, made to measure curtains curtains and cushions. Use low backed sofas and vintage shaped pieces to add extra interest, along side black and white photography on the walls. This look is ideal for sitting rooms and creates a space which has a cool modern feel that isn’t just a fad.

So take the grey areas out of your life and keep it simple with black and white.

The most popular pastel tones for 2012 are set to be pale pinks, powder blues, soft lilacs and gentle greens. When decorating with pastels you can afford to be braver in your combination of colours as the tones are so light. You could, for example, combine pink and blue walls or pink and green in bedding and made to measure curtains. So don’t be afraid to be a little more daring.

This pastel colour trend is ideal for bedrooms, as it creates a very relaxing environment after your long day at work. For a quick update simply change bedding to a floral patterned pastel duvet set or introduce a pastel curtain fabric in a neutral coloured room.

However, be careful when using pastels and sherbet colours, as just like their sweet counter parts, they can become sickly in large amounts. Always balance them with neutrals such as white or cream; as well as adding strong accents to anchor the scheme.

So indulge your home in some soothing colour this spring/summer, and take a step back in time to a more relaxing era with pastels.

Toile de Jouy, a century old pattern originating from France. Nothing exciting or new there I hear you say? Oh contre my dears, this little French Fancy has been reinterpret, revamped and reproduced to give a touch of French elegance in a modern creative way to fashionable interiors in 2012.

One of the worlds most recognised and used interiors patterns. A complex design, usually depicting a pastoral theme for example depicting a couple having a picnic by a lake, printed on a plain cream/white background in a single colour usually red or blue. This famous traditional pattern as we know it has been restyled for interiors 2012, the pattern scale has been increased, it is being printed on coloured back grounds instead of just white and the range of colours has been brought bang up to date, with vibrant fuchsia pinks, lime green and sophisticated greys.

Using these new modern Toile de jouy patterns in your home gives a contemporary twist on a classic timeless look, the contrast between the old design and the modern colours creates an unusual and interesting paradox, that has a real elegant French influence with a modern edge.

The great thing about Toile de jouy is it can be introduced anywhere in your home from the  entrance hall, to kitchens or even a bedroom. It can be brought in on sumptuous made to measure curtains, Roman blinds, feature wallpaper, cushions, chair upholstery or bedding. You can go completely toile or introduce subtle accents of the pattern to a existing interior

Some of the fabric and wallpaper companies have launched fantastic ranges of co-ordinating toile fabric and wallpaper allowing you to create a polished cohesive finish easily.

So get ready to reignite a romance that has spanned over century’s, as we fall in love with Toile de jouy all over again.

Like two peas in a pod, floral and stripe have become the new bonnie and Clyde of the  interiors world. Inseparable, inescapable and incredible, the combined force of this pair is evident everywhere this Autumn/winter.

From broad stripes and bold floral to thin pinstripes and dainty rose buds, whatever the scale or the size, floral and stripes are being combined everywhere from the kitchen to the bedroom. The masculine, clean modern lines of the stripe, combine and balance the feminine influences of the floral, while the floral softens the straight lines of the linear stripe. They are the perfect complement for each other, balancing and enhancing one another.

There are loads of ways to combine your floral and stripes in your home. One of the most popular is in your window treatments. With all the major fabric houses designing fabric stories that include mix/match able floral and stripe designs, making it easy to create your own bespoke design. It is hugely popular to put the stripe design in roman blinds on the smaller windows  and the floral design on the larger window in the room in made to measure curtains and then combining the patterns in cushions. You could even experiment with putting bands of stripe to the top of your curtains or do double sided cushions with flower on one side and stripe on the other.

Wallpaper is another great way to mix these designs. A stripe curtain is the perfect complement for a striking feature floral wallpaper, with more life and interest than plain curtains. You could even wallpaper one wall in a stripe paper and one in a floral paper for added interest.

Sofas are another great way to mix and match flowers and stripes, with patterned sofas becoming very fashionable at the moment. A stripe chair is the finishing touch to a floral sofas, it will not only be a feature in it’s own right but it will tone down the strength of the floral pattern,

So get ready to have your home redecorated with the greatest coupling of the year, floral and stripe.

While we might have a while yet to wait to our summer holidays in exotic foreign lands, that is if we are lucky enough to get a break away at all, we do not however have to wait a moment longer to bring some exotic style and colour into our homes, as interiors take a Mysterious carpet ride into Moroccan decorating with a modern twist.

Think of all of the beautiful colours of a spice market, luxurious bellowing silks, ornate fret work and relaxing on a day bed and you will have a glimpse of the seductive charm of this vibrant and unusual style of decor. We have all gone on holidays to far away lands and wished we could bring some  of that charm home, well now is your chance.

This new modern Moroccan style of decor is not about trying to turn your home into a Bedouin tent or a Moroccan palace, it is about introducing hints of the mysterious and exotic into our existing interiors in a way that will enhance our homes and give us an individual interior, filled with personality, while allowing us to show off our new found treasures. 

Colour is hugely important in Moroccan decorating, vibrant pinks, oranges and yellows. Warm hues are all combined together with confidence. So add blocks of striking colour to an interior for an instant injection of personality. Long loose luxurious silk               made to measure curtains or lots of cushions in stripes or northern African patterns. Moroccan culture uses a lot of low level seating for lounging upon, so use lots of bean bags and cushions for added relaxed seating in a space.

Fret or lattice work on screens or room divides is very Moroccan, so for an added hint of  foreign mystery, you could introduce a elements of this in your interior on head boards, room dividers or shutters.

Gold and silver are another huge part of this culture so silver gilded furniture with foreign patterns, silver lanterns or chunky wood furniture with gold locks and detailing will all add to the feel of this style.