Exotic prints, vibrant paint schemes, talking-point furniture and warm metals are easy ways to refresh interiors this season, writes ALANNA GALLAGHER
Blue or green?
There are two schools of thought on the colour walls and woodwork should be wearing this season. Some say emerald green, an intense colour that looks wonderful in two- dimensional photo shoots but doesn't look quite as jewel-like in the cold northern light that is the Irish reality. At our latitude cobalt blue is the warmer option and works really well in both period homes and contemporary settings. Try Dulux's unromantically entitled 70BB 67/096 ( dulux.ie) or Farrow Ball's Drawing Room Blue in estate emulsion ( farrow-ball.com).
Paradise found
Exotic prints will immediately enliven tired walls and soft furnishings. The Little Greene Paint Company's London III wallpaper feels fresh and zesty, especially when teamed with citrus-yellow paintwork. The Crowne Hall Lane paper, Paradise, pictured right, costs €75 per roll. The citrus painted woodwork is Trumpet 19 in intelligent eggshell finish. It costs €52 per 2.5 litres. Little Greene ( littlegreene.com) stockists include MRCB (01-6798755); Stillorgan Decor (01-2885824); Salmon Interiors (01-2865950); and TileStyle (01-8555200).
Show some metal
Copper is the base metal to use if you want to add warmth to contemporary interiors. Exposed copper pipework in bathrooms and kitchens can add a rustic sense of colour to rooms that have become overly sanitised.
This is available in a variety of sizes from good hardware stores and builders’ suppliers.
A contemporary take on the carriage clock is a smart way to add a copper accent. The Mantel by French designer Cédric Ragot costs €179 at Article Dublin (01-6799268, articledublin.com).
Brass is another preference. The Classicon Bell tables by Sebastian Herkner come in both side- and coffee-table styles with amethyst, emerald or topaz glass tops. Prices start from €1,644 at Lost Weekend (tel: 01-2140711, lostweekend.ie).
Or choose the solid-fuel C-Series stove by Charnwood at Greystones-based Fenton Fires in bronze-effect paint (tel: 01-2871069, fentonfires.ie). Prices start at €1,261.
Texture in tiling
Graphic designs, intense colour and texture are the new trends in tiling. Antica (tel: 01-4089132, antica.ie) has an art deco-inspired French hand-made 3D design that will create a dark and moody ambience in your bathroom. It costs €30 per 24cm tile.
Fired Earth (01-6636160, firedearth.com) has two great collections for texturists. Paris Cabaret is a teardrop-shaped tile that is available in up to five colourways or as a single colour. Choose from cream, silver, opal, sage and turquoise mixes. It costs €818 per square metre.
Fired Earth’s white hexagonal iridescent glass mosaic is great for adding interest to neutrals. It costs €516 per square metre. There is 25 per cent off both these lines until January 31st.
Au naturel
The Zartan chair by Philippe Starck for Magis is a stacking chair that is suitable for indoor and outdoor use. The basic model is made in injection-moulded polypropylene. The Raw style is manufactured from what the designer calls "liquid wood", a blend of non-toxic biodegradable wood pulp, natural hemp fibres and fish oil. It comes in three colours: beige, a soft marine blue and lime green. Prices start from €257 at Lost Weekend (tel:01-2140711, lostweekend.ie).
The Harrison bed, available at Arnotts (tel: 01-8050400, arnotts.ie), features natural fillings from the brand's sheep and hemp farm. The Pearl is a 6,000-spring design that is currently reduced from €1,799 to €1,499 for a 4ft 6in plain bed.
Hip and home-grown
One of the few good things about this recession is the fact that we've realised we need to support our own. We now want Irish designers and product-makers to work in our homes. There are several names to watch in 2013. Jude Cassidy (tel: 0044-7788 676062, judecassidy.com) is a Belfast-based textile designer whose hand-woven fabrics have attracted the attention of London-based Irish architect and designer David Collins, interior designers Katharine Pooley and Kelly Hoppen, furniture maker and designer David Linley, and property developers Candy Candy.
Farmer's daughter Donna Bates's new range of lighting products, Parlour Lighting, under her company name I Do Cartwheels (tel: 048-44828740, idocartwheels.com), take inspiration from the traditional glass jars found in milking parlours and come in pendant and desktop options.
Bates's lighting and the Ovis stool-cum-side-table (€480), a collaboration between Ben Harris and feltworker Jamie Lewis ( Facebook.com/Ovisdesign), both debut at Showcase Ireland, which opens tomorrow at the RDS, Dublin ( showcaseireland.com). Emmet Rock (tel: 087-749 8425, eaglewolforca.com) is a Donegal-based designer whose Medusa mirror, €150, and origami and aluminium-plated Donegal red-deer trophies are ultra-covetable.
