In an interview with Ideal Home, Nadia McCowan Hill, Resident Style Advisor for digital home furnishings marketplace Wayfair, revealed that a touch of the past is going to sweep through homes as we cuddle up against the cold weather.

Pieces inspired by vintage travel will be especially prominent, with travel-worn trunks, old clocks, antique globes and old, yellowing maps making an appearance on mantelpieces far and wide.

In addition, folky prints and dark, inky paint pallets will add a sumptuousness to on-trend living spaces, complementing the sepia-toned look of the objets d’art.

McCowan Hill’s forecast chimes with Love Your Room’s Shoshana Gosselin’s trend predictions in The Morning Call, which also anticipate vintage pieces dominating interiors, as well as wood finishes, which bring a warmth to a home that we all crave in the cooler months.

And if artful arranging is something that does not come naturally, McCowan Hill had some excellent, expert tips for curating a beautiful display to catch guests’ eyes.

The key to clever placement is arranging ornaments in staggering sizes and putting objects together in odd numbers.

“For some reason, items arranged in odd numbers are often more appealing than even-numbered groupings,” she mused.

McCowan Hill added that even though the focus is on nostalgia and antique, organic elements help to breathe life into an interior, so it is important not to forget to bring plenty of vibrant blooms in to juxtapose the vintage and ancient.

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If you’ve been trying to spend as much time as possible in your garden and aren’t quite ready to give up the joy of sitting outside, you may want to consider installing a fire pit – or for something a bit more quirky, how about a stone fireplace?

In larger gardens where you have the room for something this extravagant, this can be a great way to introduce a statement feature that’s functional too. Fire pits are still incredibly popular, but imagine the atmosphere you could create if you had a fireplace as a focal point.

A recent article in Sioux City Journal highlighted the fact that introducing a fire pit to a garden can lengthen a space’s usability, giving you the option of snuggling up outside even when it’s starting to get chillier as we move into autumn.

Owner of Bloomers Lawn and Garden Center in South Sioux City Renee Palmersheim said that having an outdoor living space can allow you to really express yourself.

“Inside you’re so confined to the way your house was built. Your outside can be an extension of who you are,” she stated.

Given that house prices are creeping up in many parts of the country, you may decide you’d like to extend your living space into the garden rather than looking to move somewhere bigger.

Property Wire recently reported that North London is a particular hotspot for property renovation in the UK at the moment, with homes in Barking and Dagenham the ones most likely to be refurbished, according to research from Plentific.

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According to The Morning Call, the move for vintage pieces is still going strong, and thanks to the growing number of businesses selling these kinds of items it’s become even easier to add these types of accents to a room.

It’s also about using vintage materials as well as sourcing vintage items for your interior, Love Your Room’s Shoshana Gosselin told the news provider. “Whether it’s real barn wood or antiqued-looking pieces, we’re seeing it in wood finishes, flooring and, of course, shiplap,” she stated.

Fitting reclaimed fireplaces to your living space could be one option to bring the vintage vibe to your home and give you a practical focal point that can warm the space in the winter.

Other trends that are set to be big this autumn include the colour grey, tiles and wallpaper. Where the latter is concerned, textured wallpaper is an increasingly popular option, the website noted.

Designer Andrea Schumacher, of Andrea Schumacher Interiors, recently told 5280 that she loves a good pattern and notes that wallpaper is the easiest way to introduce this to a room. However, she added that she loves the idea of introducing patterns to fireplaces too.

She also revealed that making spaces luxurious is something she’s loving at present, noting that one of her current projects involves wrapping a fireplace in fur.

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You could, for example, decorate your woodpile quickly and easily simply by adding a string of fairy lights to the pile and switching them on after night falls. What a quick way to give your living room a bit of a magical makeover!

Or you could come over all romantic and create a giant floral wreath using sticks and fake flowers to hang over the fireplace in place of the more typical mirror that you usually find hung above the mantelpiece. Finish this off by placing candles symmetrically either side on the mantel and away you go.

If you want something truly contemporary, what about whitewashing your walls and decorating the mantelpiece with some curios found around the world? Interestingly, ram and sheep skulls are quite popular for interior design as wall art at the moment and you could complement it with some books and some plants to help soften the look a little.

For a quick DIY project and one that won’t break the bank, why don’t you recycle old bottles and jars and turn them into vases for ferns and other plants? This would look lovely, especially if you go for bottles in all sorts of shapes, sizes and colours. Check out Pinterest for even more design ideas.

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However, there are a few things you can do to make sure it looks stunning all year round, including making use of flowers to enhance its appearance.

Speaking to the Daily Commercial, designer Marika Meyer explained that she likes to change the plants or flowers in her fireplace to reflect the season.

She suggested using peace lilies in the summer, and swapping to evergreens as the weather begins to turn. Another favourite among her clients is a big bowl of blue hydrangeas. She also uses cut birch logs in her own fireplace to decorate it when it’s not being used.

However, she said you shouldn’t neglect what goes on your mantel piece either, with plenty of options here for sprucing up your interior and drawing attention to your marble fireplaces.

“I have a lot of fun doing my mantels; I look at flea markets and consignment stores for interesting objects,” Ms Meyer said.

You can change the objects every few months, and you may even want to use some flowers similar to those in the fireplace itself to bring it all together. A small vase with some blooms in can look lovely on a mantel piece and make the room look fresh and bright.

Another way to draw attention to your fireplace is to use lighting. One interior designer recently told the Telegraph that she believes this is a very underused feature of interior design and noted that uplighters work particularly well for fireplaces and mantels.

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But you can easily bring an end to your focal point woes by having Edwardian fireplaces installed in whichever room you’re having trouble with. One of the particular benefits of having a fireplace is that it immediately becomes the centre of attention if done well, particularly during the winter months when the fire is crackling away inside, providing you all with much-needed warmth.

It’s possible that you already have a good focal point in place if there’s a big window that draws the eye to the outside world and all that natural light, for example or something like an exposed brick wall that makes for a brilliant point of architectural interest.

If there isn’t a focal point, a fireplace is one of the easiest ways to create one for yourself. Make it work particularly hard for you by having a big mantelpiece over the top of it, complete with pictures of the family, or a stunning piece of marble that speaks for itself.

Dressing your focal point and playing to your assets is certainly wise. Draw even more attention to your fireplace with a big piece of contemporary art or a really big and bold mirror, for example.

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These make a truly beautiful outdoor focus and if done properly could add serious value to your home. Of course, you will need to make sure you have a big enough garden or you could have something of a problem with smoke if the fireplace is too near the house, so bear this in mind if it’s something you’re interested in.

There are all sorts of different styles you could go for, but make sure you sit down and decide what you want your outdoor fireplace to look like before you spend any money. You could go for a stucco finish on the surround in order to bring in some textural interest, or perhaps go for a herringbone pattern with some brick. You could consider using this pattern on your kitchen tiles inside as well to tie your indoor and outdoor spaces in together.

What we love about the outdoor fireplace idea is that you can create the illusion of a living room outside if you pick your garden seating wisely. Just because its outside doesn’t mean it can’t be luxurious – but do go for weather-resistant fabric and cover everything when not in use.

You could even use a living room rug to tie your seating area together (although you’ll most likely have to bring this in at the end of each day since the British weather is somewhat tempestuous).

The post What About An Outdoor Cast Iron Fireplace? appeared first on .

The independent cafe would embrace the Victorian heritage of the grand building, Michael Ryan, who submitted the proposal, explained in his application.

According to the Telegraph and Argus, the decor in the new coffee shop would replicate the grandeur of the Victorian era. The planning application states: “The new design will incorporate Victorian-inspired joinery items such as wall panelling, balustrading and fireplaces.”

In addition, the furniture used would also be based on pieces from this time period, with the ultimate aim to “complement the buildings’ Victorian gothic style”.

Should the council approve the plans, the coffee shop will replace an empty office, joining other tenants in the building including Waterstones and a number of small businesses and shops.

If you’re thinking of fitting Victorian fireplaces in your own home, it could be worth paying a visit to this particular location to get some inspiration if all goes to plan and Mr Ryan is able to open his Victorian-styled coffee shop.

Refurbishing a property to stay true to its heritage is a good way to attract attention, particularly for a new business. Earlier this year one Lancashire pub received praise for its renovation efforts, with the owners of the Tim Bobbins in Burnley winning an award for the refurbishment they carried out.

During that process they restored the pub to its original four-room layout, and took the time to restore the old stone floors and fireplaces.

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In the winter when you have a roaring fire going, your eyes will, of course, be drawn to the feature, but what about in the warmer months when you’re not snuggling around the hearth to warm up and get cosy?

According to one lighting specialist, using lights is one of the most underestimated and underused tools in interior design.

Speaking to the Telegraph, Sally Storey, a design director at John Cullen Lighting, explained that well-placed and chosen lights can make a huge difference to your interiors.

Lighting can be used to set the mood, as well as to highlight focal points in a room. She explained that the key is to use “layers” of light to create a striking overall effect. For architectural features like fireplaces, a good tip is to install uplighters that will really illuminate the hearth and mantel piece.

Another option is to use a spotlight to direct attention to your fireplace, Ms Storey added. “You can create interest and sculptural effects where you never thought possible,” she asserted.

In the summer when you won’t be using the fireplace there are a few other tricks you can employ to make it stand out. You may want to put a vase of flowers in the grate to bring a bit of colour and life to the empty space, or you could arrange your remaining cut wood logs in an interesting pattern to focus attention on the fireplace.

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It may come as little surprise to find that people who own their properties are generally happier in their homes than those who rent. However, new research has revealed there is a significant gap between the two groups.

A survey conducted by TheHouseShop found that 83 per cent of owners are happy in their homes, compared to just 54 per cent of private rental tenants.

Speaking to Property Wire, the firm’s co-founder Nick Marr suggested that part of the reason for this is because tenants don’t have the freedom to make even small changes to their living environment.

“Buyers will spend a lot of time and effort choosing their ideal property and carrying out improvement works over the years to perfect it,” he explained. Of course, in many cases this isn’t possible for tenants.

There are all kinds of improvements you can make to a property if you own it, but one that you may want to consider is restoring or installing antique fireplaces.

These can provide a wonderful focal point in a room, even if they aren’t in working order. They are also a great way to make a space feel more cosy, even when they’re not in use.

Interior designer Miriam Fanning recently told Domain that because of our associations with fireplaces, they elicit an emotional response, bringing a “sense of cosiness, even when it isn’t on”, she stated.

Ms Fanning also recommended that anyone who is installing a new fireplace in their home needs to look beyond its functionality and view it as a statement piece of interior decor.

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