How to create fabulous finishing touches

When designing a room scheme, it's important to take the time to choose the colour palette and materials for your walls and floors, and to get the size and scale right for your big ticket items. Yet more often than not it's the smaller pieces that actually pull the room together and give it character.

The design may be spot-on and the room filled with expensive furniture but without the knick knacks, family heirlooms and unique pieces that inject personality your abode can look like a soulless developers' show home, and who wants that?

Inspiration in this area can be found in the homes on our House Tours, sponsored by by Little Greene, Nespresso and Yves Delorme, which took place on 6 & 7 June.

Buy tickets for House Tours, September 2019.

Julia Thompson of Frank Interiors is a former fashion stylist turned interior designer with an eye for the unusual and a knack for marrying modern with vintage. Her schemes are individual and stylish, with a wry dose of humour.

See more of Julia's home here.

We love what she has done in her own home and for her client, Claire, (both on House Tours), so for those not able to attend the tour...

See Julia's ideas up close and personal in the video and get the lowdown below.

1 plant life

'Plants are living things, so they instantly bring a scheme to life,' says Julia. 'The vibrancy of their leaves looks great against so many colours - and they improve air quality - essential if you live in a city.' Obviously big plants like palms or a Swiss cheese plant can fill an empty corner but a collection of little plants on a table or shelf, mixed in with other decorative objects can look great.

2 Art Attack

Julia's rule when buying art (and any furniture and accessories) - is that she has to absolutely love it. 'Because of this, my own personality comes through naturally,' she says. 'Adhere to that and yours will too.' Julia places each piece where they work colour wise and also where they fit. 'I've just found an incredible new company, Projekt_26. They sell vintage Polish posters and they are amazing,' she says. Check them out on instagram.

3 off the wall

Julia says people often forget to 'style' a room. This for her is where the magic happens. 'Add a couple of little tables to a corner, chuck in a few plants as a start. Or lean stuff on the floor - you don't have to put things on the wall,' says Julia. 'Art for example looks great leant on cabinets, shelves or the mantelpiece. It's just thinking outside the box.'

4 mix it up

When you're putting things together there are a few general loose rules. Items often look best in odd numbers - generally 3 or 5 pieces together. 'Go for different heights and shapes that work well together and get the tones right too,' says Julia. 'I like using a lot of dark items together and then throwing something bright into the mix - keep the items interesting too.'

5 vintage dahling

Julia loves vintage fairs and markets for finding quirky furniture, art and accessories. 'My favourite is Midcentury Modern, which started at Dulwich College and now has events at various venues throughout the year,' she says. 'Kempton market is always good too. When you're buying vintage pieces, you may see something so amazing that it can actually change the scheme.'

See more modern homes here.