Neglected corners can be transformed into places that enhance the way we live
Everyone needs a space that feels like theirs alone. “Somewhere that encourages stillness and reflection – however small – can have a huge impact on how you feel in your home,” says interior designer Suzy Hoodless. “Having a corner that invites you to slow down is a gift.”
In Suzy’s house, that place is a library, and not the grand, dusty room lined with thousands of leather-bound books that might spring to mind, either. “When we first moved in, the room was a transitional space between the sitting room and kitchen, used for storage and overflow,” she says. “Over time, I realised it was the perfect spot for a library.”
The interior designer wanted it to possess “the comfort and quiet of an old reading room but with warmth and character”. The bookshelves are built-in and painted in Papers & Paints’ Veinous Blood Red (“a deep, enveloping shade that instantly gives the room a sense of intimacy,” she says) and there’s a vintage armchair reupholstered in sheepskin sitting beside a dainty table which is just the right height for a cup of tea.
The room, which Suzy spends time in towards the start and end of most days, is “a bridge between the social spaces, yet it feels wonderfully cocooned”. Of course, poorly utilised areas in the home don’t have to be turned into sanctuaries for solitude. Spaces that exist to bring people together are just as fundamental to our wellbeing, as interior designer Mia Karlsson is all too familiar with.
One recent project saw Mia transform the rarely used basement in a family home into a place for everyone to gather and socialise. The room you see here may look like a groovy snapshot from a David Lynch film, but it was once a leaky subterranean coal hole used to store bicycles.
“We thought it was such a waste, so we tanked it to make it waterproof, installed underfloor heating, and turned it into a 1970s bar,” she laughs. All of the joinery is surface-fitted to allow a gap for aeration, and the designer flooded the space with bold pattern and colour to give it a party vibe, choosing geometric floor tiles and a primary-hued palette.
“It used to be a dark hole with no light, but now it’s a really fun spot with DJ decks,” Mia smiles.
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