Six steps to follow for comfortable and sociable living

WITH over 250,000 followers on Instagram, Man with a Hammer, aka Yorkshireman and handson home renovator Greg Penn, has teamed up with Yorkshire furniture makers HSL, to share the six steps everyone should follow when looking to create a comfortable and sociable living space.

Over to Greg and Leanne Eastwood, commercial director of HSL.

Utilise pattern and colour:

Obviously, this is subjective but a room full of colour and pattern is immediately welcoming, homely and relaxing, which helps to create the sort of environment that friends and family quickly sink into.

It stops things from feeling too stuffy or sterile by providing visual interest that is both stimulating and comfortable. It helps to shape an environment in which you’re not afraid to kick your shoes off and put your feet up. It also has the added benefit of disguising the occasional spill.

Complimentary, but not matching furniture:

A threepiece suite may be the easy option but it leaves a space looking unconsidered and very one-dimensional. Instead, choose pieces that work together, but don’t match. It could be furniture from the same range but in different colours and fabrics, or different pieces but all from a similar period to ensure cohesion.

Equally, throwing something completely different into the mix can work too. A big, comfortable country house sofa paired with an armchair with a much lighter footprint and a mid-century feel can feel fun and informal. An exception to this is a pair of something such as a couple of wingback chairs which, in the right setting, are incredibly pleasing and inviting.

Think about spacing: Often, in large spaces at least, the seating is much too far away from each other to promote conversation and there’s nothing more off-putting than having to shout, especially when there’s a few of you there.

Instead, group the furniture around a focal point, a fireplace for example, with a coffee table or a pouffe close enough to be useful when seated, bringing the furniture off the walls and zoning the space into somewhere perfect for chatting.

Layer your lighting:

The big light is great for when you need to find things but it isn’t ideal for creating a cosy, welcoming environment for entertaining. Lamps are definitely your friend and are an easy, non-permanent way to create an atmosphere.

Greg uses smart, wireless bulbs and says: “I can turn them all on and off from my phone and effortlessly dim them. Candles are another great way to add to the ambience.”

Add softness:

This is especially important in a room full of hard surfaces where sound tends to bounce around. Adding textiles really helps create a much more appealing acoustic environment, something that is frustratingly so often overlooked in public spaces but is easy to get right at home.

There are so many ways you can introduce softness, for example through the means of rugs, thick curtains, throws, cushions, pleated lampshades and upholstered furniture. These all help to absorb sound.

Create ambience through scent and sounds:

This is an element that is often overlooked but it’s one of the first things your guests will notice when walking into a room. You can build scent with a reed or plug-in diffuser, as well as room sprays and scented candles. Choose a scent with a gentle aroma.

Music, which isn’t too loud, creates a relaxed environment.