There are those who absolutely love the freshness that a plain pale colour palette brings. The neutral shades that blend so easily with almost any curtain or bedding scheme. Keeping that overall streamlined and co-ordinated look is so important in the spring. When working with a refined and restrained pallet, it is very much better to add a couple of pops of another colour in the range but make it a really strong accent colour – if you’re working on a feminine bedroom for example, how about that pop of colour being a very floral bedding set with matching curtains. Then when it comes to choosing a couple of small items that tie it all together, there are loads of shades in the floral pattern. Where I am working at the moment, there are wonderful swathes of florally bright colours on these curtains. They are stunning and really offer that bright pop here and there of mauve, bright cornflower blue, magenta pink etc.

The nature of the neutral wall does make a difference – the aspect too. Many interior designers will be able to look at someone’s existing living space and with a few questions about the family lifestyle, habits and limitations, a scheme can be conjured up that reflects these conditions. A good designer will be able to see at a glance where plants would be a good baffle for untidiness or badly selected furniture. Another thing a decent designer will always do is find those extra special room arrangements in a magazine and find one they’ve worked on in a similar vein. There they will have experimented with the light coming into the room and will know every angle to get the best light cover. To give another example, we can all display plants on a coffee table, or on a mantle piece, but having their own put together plant stand really will set them off as a design feature. With the fashion now for dark wood coloured work stations and counters, a stand with five or six tiers that matches that will really bring a touch of class to any room, but a kitchen/family corner will definitely benefit from the lush greenery element.

Designing a room from a refit can be tricky of course, but there are ways and means. Colour changes can make a tremendous difference, even if not a great deal of space can be created. Calm plain light colour with just a colourful splash here and there will make a huge difference to an otherwise dull, dark space.