Colour, character and confidence: A designer spotlight with Emma Kosh

How would you describe your overall approach to interior design? Are there any principles you always keep in mind when starting a new project?

Every client for us is a new chance to learn, we want to give the client what they love by using our expertise to extract the right information and provide them with a bespoke service that suits them uniquely. We do not have a signature style so every client is a fresh approach with fresh eyes. This is our key principle as it has the client at the heart of everything we do.

We want clients to embrace their uniqueness and be unapologetic, not follow a trend or what their neighbour has. Our creativity and flexible approach allows us to offer clever solutions that give the most stunning outcomes for the budget, however big that may be.

How important is colour when designing a room? Do you typically start with a specific palette, or does it evolve throughout the process?

Colour is our creative life blood and we love it but it is not for everyone, with the client at the heart we are led by them. What we do very well is show people how they can be brave with colour and pattern – give them the confidence to break away from their ‘safe beige’ and create spaces that they love. Clients have said that the rooms they love the most they would never have got to on their own as they would never have been brave enough to experiment like we do.

The palette usually evolves around a key piece – such as a tile, a wallpaper or piece of art, we then use this to layer the scheme and balance the areas. It is much like starting with a blank canvas and creating the right balance around the space, you can always add more as you layer up the fun.

We have noticed a growing trend for ‘Loud Luxury’ interiors at the moment – is this something you’re coming across more and what’s your take on it?

I’m not going to lie, I had to google this term but after some research I discovered that I have accidentally been doing this trend for years. This style is focused on the personality of the client and being unapologetic about uniqueness. This has been at the forefront of my ethos since I started my business over a decade ago.

Personally I am ‘more is more’ and I can always run with that should the client be open to it. Like I said I don’t really follow trends but it is great to start with these things to inspire how a concept can evolve. If a client has seen something in a magazine or online that they love, it all helps start building a picture for us.

Radiators are often seen as purely functional. How do you incorporate them into your design vision? Do you prefer to match radiators to the wall colour, or do you like to create contrast?

We long for a client with the budget and the vision to make a real architectural statement with a series of colourful radiators, we would be like a kid in a sweet shop pouring over all the vibrant options. With our design we like to consider every element, we like to play with functional items taking centre stage. It is another opportunity to make something more beautiful and we are really into that. We like the radiators to form part of the palette and if it is appropriate for it to stand out then we will absolutely take that opportunity.

What’s your best advice for someone who wants to refresh their interior colour scheme but isn’t sure where to start?

Buy some interior magazines or take to Pinterest and explore images that you like, that way you have some visual inspiration to start reimagining your space, you will start to see a theme and connections. Create a virtual board or a physical one from everything you like, this doesn’t need to be interior images, it can be travel, art, images that give the atmosphere you want to create, then you can start building a scheme around that. Have fun and play without the commitment – and then contact me and I will pull it all together, (wink, wink).