Get the look

Be inspired by Carmen’s creative use of colour and texture

well with the black floor and doors. For the windows, she has gone for black wooden Venetian blinds from Wooden Blinds Direct.

Some of Carmen’s furniture was found in local antiques shops and auction houses in Belgium and the Netherlands. She isn’t a fan of knick-knacks and prefers instead to have large statement pieces,. She also uses the classic interior designer trick of placing large mirrors in rooms to make the space seem bigger.

By the time she came to decorating the bathroom, the budget was running low so Carmen simply painted the walls and floor and installed a new blind, but she’s pleased with the result. ‘Now the house really feels like home,’ she says. ‘I love the high ceilings and original features such as the cornice and coving, but above all, I love that the whole place now feels warm and cosy!’

1 Matt velvet cushion, £7, Argos Home

2 Opal Disc brass ceiling light, £160, Houseof

3 Grace mirror, £142, Pooky

4 Hastings table lamp, £59, Iconic Lights

5 Zellige tiles, £128/sq m, Otto Tiles & Design

6 Thonet-style chair, £150, Design Vintage

7 Cast-iron casserole dish, £35, Sainsbury’s Home

8 Freya footstool, £249, House Beautiful Collection at DFS

9 Fiddle leaf plant in pot, £75, The Little Botanical

10 Linear vase, £25, Garden Trading

11 Tribeca bookcase, £94, Dunelm

FOR STORE DETAILS SEE WHERE TO BUY PAGE

GUEST BEDROOM Above right Carmen wanted something a bit different so opted for a gold ceiling – it was a labour of love as the metallic paint was tricky to apply. The walls in a soft green, Alep by B&Q, complement it perfectly. The antique bed is from France

MAIN BEDROOM Top Walls in Inchyra Blue from Farrow & Ball continue the dark theme. Framed prints are from Desenio and the ceiling light is from Ikea

DRESSING ROOM Right Rustic Wicker from Valspar colours the walls while the bamboo chair was found in a local shop

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