Switch soft furnishings

Remove heavy blankets, rugs and dark coloured cushion covers, opting instead for light covers in thin weaves. Curtains and cushion covers in light or bright colours should be made of cool fabrics such as silk and cotton. Store heavy window dressings until next year.

Bold patterns should also be changed for finer designs in delicate shades.

Buy flowers

Flowers are ideal decoration in spring and summer. I love placing a vase of flowers in the fireplace, totally lifting that normally sooty grate out of wintery associations. Choose flowers and plants that are in season in your part of the world. Not only does this reduce the air miles and cost of your flowers but they’ll also offer greater associations with the changing of the seasons.

Paint your furniture

Don’t be scared to alter your furniture, it really is worth the effort and can be easily changed again next season. Side tables or dining chairs can be painted white or in pretty pastel shades to give them an instantly summery appearance. It makes such a difference to clear away any dark shades during summer helping to give a light and airy impression even when it comes to heavy furniture.

Drape coloured throws over dark sofas and chairs- they don’t have to completely cover them, imagine a shabby, thrown together appearance of many colourful things on top of each other.

Tidy up outdoor areas

Anticipate and facilitate outdoor dining and summer evening drinks by tidying up your outdoor space (if you’re lucky enough to have some). Sweep up leaves and debris and invest in a table, however small, to put outside. Stock up on plenty of candles and inexpensive oil lamps so you have beautiful soft lighting when the sun finally goes down. Provide cushions to sit on and light blankets- remember everything can be cleaned. Throw windows and doors open (putting screens in place to stop bugs getting in) and merge inside and out.

When it comes to design don’t be afraid to try things out. With these small changes it’s easy to change up the design of your home regularly at very little cost.

We’ll give you more hot tips for transitioning from summer into autumn next year!

The post Quick Seasonal Interior Design Changes for Summer appeared first on Larson Interior Designs.

There are lots of tricks in the furniture industry to create a leather-look sofa which can be made and sold at much lower prices. These can in some cases be partially made of leather but very often are made of artificial materials. Here we’ll examine several forms of faux leather and partial leather sofas and give you some tips on how to identify the genuine article.

Partial leather

If the manufacturer claims that the product is leather but doesn’t state that it is 100% leather then it is probably a mixture of leather vinyl. Depending on how much real leather is present you’ll see various descriptions such as the ones below:

• ‘Leather match’ couches mean that there is real leather on the main seating areas but vinyl has been used for the rest of the surfaces.
• Vinyl coated leather is what is sounds like, leather that has been coated in a layer of vinyl. This is sometimes done so that the leather can stretched in which case it will be referred to as bicast leather. Although there is some real leather in the composite material you should be careful about just how much because the cheaper the couch the more likely it is that there is very little real leather.
• Bonded leather is leather fibres that are bonded to clear vinyl. The leather fibres are combined with the vinyl in a way that achieves a very close match to the appearance of ‘split’ leather (the lower layer of natural leather hide) and is also quite strong but won’t quite have the feel and smell of real leather.

Faux leather

The leather-look can also be achieved without any natural material at all. Such sofas may be described as faux leather, permeable leather, pleather, leatherette, Naugahyde, Ultrasuede, or leather cloth. These are generally made of some form of plastic. They may be made entirely of plastic or have a base of woven fibres that is then covered in a shiny plastic coating to complete the appearance of leather.

Identifying real leather

The first thing to do is check what material is listed which, if it is real leather, will say nubuck, suede, sauvage or ‘genuine’ leather. Don’t accept any substitutes. If you’re unsure then follow these simple tips to identify genuine leather;

• Touch it: 100% genuine leather feels very soft to the touch and supple under your hand. Press your thumb into the leather on the arm of the couch or chair and look at how the leather depresses and bounces back. Real leather will press in easily and come back up slowly whereas artificial materials are more rigid and will not take the imprint of a thumb.
• Smell it: Real leather has a distinctive smell that you should familiarise yourself with. Knowing what this smell is will ensure you don’t end up with an artificial substitute.
• Examine it: If the grain of the leather looks too uniform, artificial or a pattern is repeated then it’s probably a fake grain. You should also examine the couch for signs that there is no cloth backing on the cover. This is because artificial covers are very often cloth-backed. By lifting up the couch to look at the underside you may be able to see the cut ends of the cover and check for the presence of a backing cloth.

Laura Harrison Architectures can source furniture and soft furnishings that transforms your living room. We’ll work with you to come up with the perfect design aesthetic for your home or commercial property. Contact us today!

The post How to identify genuine leather sofas appeared first on Larson Interior Designs.