Hello friends,
It’s been a little while since we last popped into your inbox: life swept us up in the best possible way (we got married! 🥂). But we’re back at the Chartreuse and so excited to share our latest progress.
This week’s video feels like a real milestone:
- We’ve finally started putting up frames and, for the first time, actually decorating. I’ll admit, I’d been putting this off for far too long. After months of filling, sanding and painting, the idea of drilling holes into freshly finished walls was terrifying. But I’m so glad we took the plunge, adding much-loved art and family photos has already transformed the house into more of a home.
- We’ve also begun designing our dream bedroom, scroll down for a peek at our mock-ups. As ever, Hugo is busy building all the cabinetry from scratch, while outside we’ve been tackling autumn garden work (because, as they say, a spring garden is made in autumn!).
Decorating a new home with art
When you move into a new place, or renovate one, facing those huge blank walls can feel daunting. Here are a few things I’ve learnt along the way:
- Start small and personal. If you don’t already have art, head to antique markets and charity shops. Look for postcards, quirky frames, tapestries, or have favourite family photos printed to a high standard. Steer clear of mass-produced prints and instead build a collection that feels true to you. It takes time: Rome wasn’t built in a day.
- Mix textures and mediums. Combine paintings with photos, textiles, sketches and watercolours for richness. Hunt for inexpensive frames but don’t skimp on the mounts – they make all the difference. Be bold with coloured or patterned mounts too.
- Gallery walls need intention. Controversial perhaps, but I often find them cluttered if not carefully considered. If you do go for one, choose a contained space (like a hallway nook) to give your arrangement purpose and boundaries.
- Think in layers. Place furniture, lamps or vases in front of framed art to add depth and interest.
- Don’t forget lighting. You don’t need fancy picture lights, but a few warm, well-placed sources will make key pieces sing.
And since you’ll notice them in the video, two quick shout-outs: My dad is a brilliant artist, and I’m lucky to have so much of his work in our home. He shares some of his digital drawings on Instagram – it would mean the world if you gave him a look. Our friend Thomas Vergne creates beautiful drawings and paintings, do check out his work too.
Creating our dream bedroom
If you’ve seen our home tour, you’ll know our only bedroom so far is rather… underwhelming. It’s a clean, painted cube – functional, but far from inspiring.
Since it’ll be a while before we move into our parental suite upstairs, we’ve decided to spend a few months turning this bedroom into something both functional and beautiful.
The challenge? It’s a square room with soaring ceilings but not much floor space. Our solution is to build two custom wardrobes on either side of the bed, connected by shelving and an integrated headboard. Hugo has already started on the cabinetry, while I’m still torn on the colour:
- Aubergine
- Light green
- Light blue
- Darkreen
Which would you choose? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
That’s it for this video, but if you’ve missed some of the earlier episodes, you can catch up on:
(And yes, the wedding — which is why things went a little quiet here!)
Coming up soon: a garden update, plus our most ambitious project yet -transforming the attic into two bedrooms and a bathroom. We’ve been dreaming of this stage since day one, and it’s finally around the corner.
Thank you, as always, for following our journey. Sharing these moments with you makes the long days and endless dust so much more fun.
À bientôt,
