1. USE A NOOK TO TRANSFORM A TRANSITIONAL HALLWAY
'Hallways are a great opportunity to create a nook; if you can put a piano in – even just an upright one – you can turn it into a music room. Instead of just being a space to walk through, it becomes somewhere to stop. If your stairwell is large enough, our studio likes to add books going up the side. It can look spectacular,' says Kit.
2. CELEBRATE THE NOOKS IN AN ODD-SHAPED ROOM
'Creating nooks can happen in bigger rooms, too. If, for example, you’ve got an odd-shaped room with an alcove corner or a walk-in closet with a bit of space and you can put the smallest writing desk in it, it suddenly becomes a study. It’s a clever way of maximizing the space,' advises Kit.
3. MAXIMIZE ON STORAGE
'People use small guest rooms and box rooms to shove their junk in, which I understand, but a good tip is to maximize on storage, such as having a whole wall of cupboards to store things in, then use the rest of the room for another purpose. We like to put fabric on the front of jib doors, which open with just a clicker, so it doesn’t even look like a cupboard, just a statement wall.'
4. ENHANCE A NOOK WITH COLOR AND CHARACTER
Renowned for her use of color and pattern, Kit shares how smaller spaces are usually some of the best places to embrace bolder, more colorful design ideas in the home. 'You can be really adventurous in a smaller space – it makes more of a statement. Color is a great way of breaking up space and so is introducing a patterned wallpaper such as on the back of a bookcase. If you then style it with some books and a few ornaments, it becomes a very decorative corner of the room.'
5. USE MIRRORS TO CREATE A POINT OF INTEREST
'Mirrors are an excellent way of creating a point of interest in a nook – but go large. We always overscale our mirrors; if they can also reflect the color from another wall or a painting, then that is a bonus,' says Kit. Mirrors not only enhance a room with decoration, bringing in beautiful shapes and materials, but decorating with mirrors also helps to increase the feeling of light and space in a room, so they can be used as a simple way to both styles a nook and help a small space feel bigger.
6. OR, GET CREATIVE WITH ARTWORK
Something as simple as hanging a framed painting or picture on a wall can elevate a nook area with eye-catching visual interest. Kit advises, 'people tend to have boring frames for their pictures – but I like to celebrate the frame, as well as what’s inside. We box frame almost anything, from a pair of shoes to a bunch of keys. You put them on a contrasting background, and they look great – like a piece of artwork, but often something incredibly meaningful.'