Lou Watkins, an HR manager by day and a DIY enthusiast by night, lives in a 1930s house in Kingswood in quirky Bristol. Lou’s home is an eclectic mix of vintage pieces she’s picked up from local antique markets next to high street items. And she has so many books she’s created a library garden room. Minimalist, she is not.

Lou has also filled her home with beautiful artwork she’s collected over the years, from various places like markets to scouring Instagram for upcoming artists: “I love gallery walls, but invariably can’t afford frames. Rather than wait, I stick up prints like posters and enjoy them. Not much finesse, but they make me happy in the now, rather than waiting for tomorrow.”

My Style: Mid-century eclectic.

Inspiration: The crisp, chic aesthetic of designers who embrace simple style—Eames, Frank Lloyd Wright—with a touch of Emporium muddle.

Favorite Element: My mix of vintage finds with high street buys. I love how vintage tells its own story and imbues a room with character to complement modern purchases.

Biggest Challenge: The downstairs is open plan—so creating a color flow, whilst still wanting to be greedy with multiple palette choices has taken thought. A key color in one room segues to an accent color in the next to harmonize the rooms, but allow them to have their own defined color character.

What Friends Say: “Why would you do THAT?”

Biggest Embarrassment: My bathroom—The Room the Eighties Forgot.

Proudest DIY: Torn between hand-painting my kitchen units or living/dining room floors—both involved the same amount of prep, painting, and pain!

Biggest Indulgence: The bricks and mortar mortgage of my home! Which is why everything else in it has to be budget, vintage, sales, upcycled, or saved for!

Best Advice: Don’t hold things back until you can do everything just as you want it—perfection is overrated, so allow a room to evolve and add to it gradually rather than seeking the ideal from the outset.

Dream Sources: Instagram, magazines, hotels, restaurants—all give me creative inspiration.

PAINT & COLORS
Farrow & Ball – Downpipe, Clunch (Living Room) Inchrya Blue (Dining Room and Study), Wevet (Floor)
Dulux – Polished Pebble (Garden Room), Dusted Moss (Kitchen), Chalky Downs (Main Bedroom)
Valspar – Color Match for Vardo (Kitchen Cupboards)

LIVING ROOM
Sofa – Sofa Sofa
Yellow Chair – Cult Furniture
Bronze and Black Lamp – BHS
Vintage Portrait – Brave Fine Art
Portrait – Grace Spiegel
Rug – Modern Rugs
Pouffe – Loaf
Blue Stool – Suburban Salon
Cushions – John Lewis
Yellow Fringe Cusion – Haus
Artwork – Mostly vintage
IBride Tray – Tin Design

DINING ROOM
Cocktail Trolley – Rockett St George
Gold Table – Audenza
Blue/Pink Lamp – Oliver Bonas
Rug – Modern Rugs
Vintage Maguy Sarrangne poster – Mustard Vintage
Pink Lamp – Astella Hrela
Crow Lamp – Abigail Aherne
Landscape above Gray Unit – Tipperley Hill
Abstract on Gray Unit – Georgie Mason
Hanging Lamps – Made.com
Faux Plants – Blooming Artificial
Neon Sign – Light Up North
Adams Family Artwork – Nan Lawson
Dining Table – Secondhand; eBay

KITCHEN
Kitchen Cupboards – Valspar color match for Vardo
Wallpaper – Lucy Tiffney
Gray Table – Melody Maison
Blue Cushion – Divine Savages
Green Cushion – Wild Rice Designs
Feed Your Soul Artwork – New Icons of Print
Faux plants – Blooming Artificial
Gray Chair – Burford Garden Company
Rugs – La Redoute & Luxeology UK
I Licked It It’s Mine Artwork – Tipperley Hill
Plate Artwork – Alijoe Designs
Pink Vase – Homeplace Online

GARDEN ROOM/LIBRARY
Chairs/Sofa – DFS
Cushions – Tin Design, John Lewis, Sainsbury’s Home
Rug – La Redoute
Lamp – Loaf
Artwork – Sian Jordan Designs, Brave Fine Art, Florence Lee, Curious Egg
Table – Vintage Island
Square Table – Venoor Living

HALLWAY
Chair – Oliver Bonas
Table – La Redoute
Artwork – Ruben Ireland
Basket – Heavenly Homes & Gardens
Cushion – Marks & Spencer

BEDROOM
Wallpaper – Laura Ashley
Cushions – John Lewis, Wild Rice Designs (Frida cushion)
Chair – Made.com
Drawers – Boogaloo Boutique
Headboard – OWO Living
W Artwork – Arbol House
Gallery Wall Artwork – Junique, Society 6, Vintage Playing Cards
Sheepskin – The Kate Edit

GUEST ROOM
Wallpaper – Graham & Brown
Bed – Loaf
Artwork – Victoria Bradley Studio
Pink Lamp – Made.com
Sheepskin – The Kate Edit
Cushion on Chair – Tin Design

STUDY
Chair – Nathalie Gagneux Creations
Blue Vase – Mustard Vintage
Floral Artwork (small) – Tipperley Hill
Rug – La Redoute
Cushion – Stitched