I’m counting down the days until my next getaway, dreaming of hazy days spent on foreign shores. The kind where you wake up at a leisurely 11.34am to the sound of seagulls and can’t bring yourself to mind the grainy bits of sand in your sheets.
Before noon you’ve already gone from bed to beach, walking barefoot against warm pavement with an overstuffed raffia tote thrown over your so-tanned-they’re-almost-burnt shoulders. Drinking up smells of neroli, salt air, and sunbathers drenched in Ambre Solaire, you wish you could live some version of this day on repeat, switching up your destination every so often at whim.
While you can’t escape the office for ever and your budget may not stretch to a shimmering five-star resort, injecting a little holiday style into your very own home can conjure up memories of your favourite destinations.
This week, I’ve spoken to eight design experts about how to master sun-drenched, holiday-inspired decoration. Spoiler alert: skip the cliche in-your-face beach-themed paraphernalia and instead opt for colours and textures that subtly evoke easy-breezy, seaside relaxation.
The striking impact of a simple stripe— (Colours of Arley)
Martin Waller, founder of global design house Andrew Martin, first tells me: “I am endlessly inspired by the romance of travel and the joy of discovering the undiscovered. Like travel, design has the power to both transfix and transport. Your home is a backdrop to your life and so its design should reflect your personality and the things that you love, especially the places you’ve visited and can’t wait to return to.”
If you fancy the Côte D’Azur’s glitzy beach scenes and Grasse’s lavender fields, Nicola Wilson, design manager at British ceramic brand Denby, explains: “To remind you of Provence’s rustic yet upscale style, opt for a light colour palette using plenty of pastels against crisp, white walls. Think muted, complementary shades like beige, olive, ochre, lavender, and baby blue. Aim for simple, uncluttered design with a rustic feel from wooden furniture like a vintage dresser or farmhouse table. You can also add flair with expressionist wall art or pops of colour from ceramic vases filled with fresh-cut flowers.”
To channel Mallorca’s bohemian style, interior designer Kathryn M Ireland, who has just launched her first online course – Artfully Edited Interiors – with Create Academy, shares her tips: “Saturated colour and joyful, large-scale painterly patterns always evoke the Spanish seaside to me. I recently designed a bedroom scheme around beautiful statement block-print wallpaper. The pattern hanging on the walls is so reminiscent of traditional Spanish ceramics. To continue the narrative of the room, I made sure to carry the same predominant colours – yellow, green and red – and the mark-making pattern across the textiles and lampshade. This ties everything neatly together, looking curated rather than just an explosion of colour. A dark wood four-poster bed brings a rustic feel to the space while a sheer canopy overhead brings in a cool, airy Spanish vibe.”
Kathryn M Ireland ties everything neatly together— (Tim Beddows)
Complete your Spanish sanctuary with British interior designer Matthew Williamson’s new limited-edition collection with luxury accessories brand Kurt Geiger. The range seeks to capture the bohemian spirit of Deia, Mallorca, where Williamson lives, and features 80 pieces, including deck chairs and a parasol, alongside coordinating beachwear and accessories. The palette is inspired by the island’s blooms and the Mediterranean sea, with patterns which recreate traditional Mallorcan ikat prints.
If you’re lusting over Capri’s exclusive beach clubs where you can sip limoncello spritzes and laze on loungers all day, luxury London-based interior designer Naomi Astley Clarke says: “To recreate the relaxed and joyful style typical of Italian destinations, look to bold patterns and fabrics in Mediterranean colours, evocative of lemon trees, blue skies, or basil leaves. Elements such as large-scale terrazzo, muraled walls, and decorative ceramics will bring a touch of Italian holiday glamour to your home, but make sure you balance these with more contemporary sourced pieces, such as the sleek, minimal furniture that Italy’s design capital, Milan, is known for.”
Naomi Astley Clarke says ‘look to bold patterns and fabrics in Mediterranean colours’— (Paul Massey)
Look to broad cabana-striped textiles which can help infuse posh playfulness into lacklustre spaces. Louisa Tratalos, founder of striped fabric maker Colours of Arley says: “Wide stripes bring colour and nostalgic vibes of summer days into your home. Recently, we designed a deck chair stripe upholstered headboard and matching blind in dijon and terracotta for a master bedroom. The sunny colours take centre stage in the otherwise neutral room, demonstrating the striking impact of a simple stripe.”
Manufactured in a family workshop in a small Cheshire village, every metre of the brand’s delightfully striped fabric is made to order, meaning there’s zero waste. Tratalos continues: “Consider upholstering an old armchair that needs a little TLC with a distinctive stripe in a shade of blue, olive, or soft pink,” mimicking that feeling of a sun lounger, indoors.
Louisa Tratalos, founder of Colours of Arley, says a distinctive stripe can mimic sun loungers and help to bring summers days into your home— (Colours of Arley)
If you haven’t heard yet, Italian Nonna Chic is all the rage this season – with items that have traditionally been associated with the Italian matriarch taking over our homes. Look to Emma Bridgewater’s Vegetable Garden range to complete your scheme and embody the trend. My personal favourite is the Tomatoes pasta bowl – perfect for holding steaming linguini on a balmy summer evening. The Lemons round birch tray will perk up your table setting, too, with a nod to Amalfi’s groves. You can also add a bit of the country’s caffeine genius to your kitchen with Smeg’s glossy, cherry red espresso machine.
Emma Bridgewater’s Vegetable Garden range is perfect for that Italian Nonna Chic— (Emma Bridgewater)
Anna Elkington, director of home decor retailer Melody Maison tells me: “Greek interior design focuses heavily on bright, open spaces by sticking to the rule that less is more. White walls will be your best friend when creating a Greek island-inspired space, traditionally accessorised with bold blue accents for a fresh, tranquil environment. And sheer white curtains provide privacy while allowing for maximum light.” Santorini’s iconic blue and white colour palette is unmistakable, but she emphasises: “You don’t have to stick to the classic two tones. Many Greek interiors incorporate warmer colours like rusty oranges and muted reds with rattan and wicker furniture, and oversized, woven light fixtures.”
Textural lampshades provide a sense of approachable elegance within a room while also filtering harsh light to create a gentle glow. Niki Wright, co-founder of lights&lamps, an ever-evolving curation of trend-led lighting, explains: “Grounding, natural materials, like rattan and linen lampshades soften a bulb’s brightness, casting a room in a warm and tranquil light.” He continues: “Think of lighting like the summer sun. Big and bright in the day, then gradually becoming lower and softer by night. When ceiling lights are no longer needed to see by, switch to more subtle table and floor lamps. Imitating the setting holiday sun organically transitions your living space throughout the day, bringing peace and relaxation before bed.” Get this lighting look with lights&lamps’ Ensia and Sanvi rattan-based table lamps which pair perfectly with the brand’s Aditi three-light pendant fixture.
The Ensia rattan-based table lamp gives a room a warm and tranquil light— (lights&lamps)
Interior designer Amanda Lindroth, who has launched her Create Academy course, Design Interiors for Entertaining, also suggests the material. “Rattan is one of my favourites. It immediately shouts ‘tropical’, bringing in a breezy holiday vibe that encourages relaxation.” She explains: “When entertaining outdoors, I will always make rattan a central part of the tablescape decor, be that through glassware sleeves, lanterns, or serving baskets. I’ll also opt for bamboo handle flatware too, instead of traditional cutlery, for a relaxed island vibe that will put guests in a laidback, easy-going mood.”
Finally, accent your table with a few whimsical details that embrace vacationing from home – such as the pearlescent porcelain oyster shell pinch pot, designed to hold your seasonings of choice, by ceramics artist Minnie-Mae Stott and available at LAMP/LDN.
