There’s every chance you’ve inherited other people’s mistaken attempts to create mock-period features, so just try to get the interior architecture – skirting, cornices, fireplaces etc. – back to as close to its original bones as you can.
Your eye should move around a room, so tempt it to travel by making sure tables, chests of drawers and taller case and glazed furniture, along with pictures and paintings, occupy space at different levels.
…but then stand back and look at all of the rooms as a whole and be prepared to sacrifice your favourite design for balance and harmony’s sake.
You need to be standing in the room, ideally at about 11am, to really see how the colour reads on all of the different surfaces.
Smooth, soft, rough, velvety, coarse; it’s all a balancing act across textiles, walls and flooring. Get the best quality you can afford and it will last.
You’re composing a picture but flow and function are paramount.
And all the better if it brings a story with it.
It might have felt like a steal when you bought it but good quality restorers are hard to come by and charge accordingly.
The cross-head just makes me feel a bit sad.
I was always told never to use more than a 40W light bulb. It’s stood me in good stead.
Max Rollitt is a member of The List by House & Garden, our essential directory of design professionals. Find his profile here.
