Purple and yellow

I'm a real homebody and whilst I've learnt to let some things go now I have a crawling one year old who's interested in everything on my hands, I still try to keep my home nice and tidy. If everything has its place, I feel much better and as long as it finds its way back there, I can relax.

Recently, I've not been 'feeling' our lounge. We only decorated it two years ago, with one bright purple wall and a big Ikea Expedit bookcase / entertainment centre. We also got a new sofa this time last year. The lounge didn't need a big change, but it was just a little dull and tired looking and in turn, this made me feel a little dull and tired. I'm very affected by my environment and I was keen to bring some of the fun, colour and personality that we have in our dining room into our lounge, which is the most used room in the house for all of us.

I was having a general browse of some of my favourite blogs when I came across this home decor post from Mummy Daddy Me. Katie had just decorated her bedroom and linked to a post about her lounge which she had also updated recently. When Katie said it was a mix of purple and yellow, I was keen to see what her lounge looked like.

It was completely up my street, not least because she had chosen Orla Kiely wallpaper (I love her prints!). The purple in her lounge is the same as mine and yellow is my favourite colour - it really is the colour of happiness - so feeling inspired, I immediately started collecting yellow items from around my home and looked online to see what else I could pick up to brighten up my lounge.

I took some of my Oliver Jeffers picture books and grouped them together. I gathered some vintage style drinks bottles on the windowsill and added an artificial flower stem to each one. I played with picture frames, candles and added a couple of new cushions.

I also had the rather inspired idea (if I do say so myself) to order some free Orla Kiely wallpaper samples online which I then cut to size and added to the picture frames on our blank white wall for a flash of colour.

A couple of new lamps, a new geometric rug, and in one weekend, my dull lounge was transformed into a much more bright and inviting space. I didn't spend very much but it seemed to make such a difference. Last weekend, we popped to Ikea, the store of dreams, and bought a square bookcase to match our entertainment unit, plus a couple me yellow cardboard boxes that are compatible with the range and magazine files in the same colour. We replaced our old, dark coffee table with this bookcase and it's provided a nice nook for Ethan's toys and books which again adds a flash of colour and interest.

As Katie said, purple and yellow won't be everyone's cup of tea but it sure is mine.