Christmas at Baliol House
Another Christmas feature for us this year was for Homestyle magazine and again it felt like a real win, as it was with Instagram superstar, Helen Sellwood from @baliol.house
Helen is a freelance retail buyer with a gift for display. She has decorated her family home using an eye-popping palette of colour and has gathered over 150,000 followers to enjoy her journey.
She has a glorious collection of pastel toned prints on display throughout her home and has added richly coloured cushions as punchy accents in her living room.
Helen has created a colourful cocktail corner in her converted attic…
The room doubles as the guest bedroom. There is a definite Mexican twist to the decor. I love the pretty start light from Lights4Fun
Helen has used a dazzling fluorescent yellow in her welcoming hall.
Her son’s bedrooms are full of fun as well!
This room has a fun circus theme!
She pulls out all the stops at Christmas, of course, creating a fabulous festive scene, with the zingiest colour combinations and gorgeous collections of ornaments, overflowing with nostalgia and sparkle for all her family to enjoy.
The dining room has a bright palette of oranges and greens.
Her home is a large Victorian semi, amazingly, she dreamt of living in her home as a teenager, as she passed it daily on the school bus. Helen has styled the interior with stunning, theatrical panache.
When she first bought the house, she began by playing safe, sticking to neutrals, thinking that the beauty of the original period features offered enough interest, but slowly, she started getting bolder, partly to entertain herself during lockdown.
Research has taught her that actually she has handled it very traditionally, Victorians loved to decorate with rich colours and patterns, but her vivid choices definitely have a contemporary edge and even a hint of Art Deco, especially in the master bedroom and the ensuite bathroom.
The master bedroom
The ensuite bathroom, the Terrazzo effect floor tiles were cleverly created by Helen, as was the pleasing ombre effect on the tiles around the bath.
Helen had her kitchen cabinets ‘wrapped’ in the pretty pastel pink for a clever budget refresh recently. The result is very effective, it is hard to believe the cabinetry was indigo beforehand.
I am very honoured that Helen has agreed to do an Instagram live with me on Friday 20th December at 6pm to talk Christmas, interiors, family and having fun with your décor!
Do please listen in! I cannot wait to find out more about her creative process.
The image below shows the display of family photographs in Helen’s dining room that I was so struck by when we were doing the shoot - it is the only monochrome moment in her home and tells the story of her and her husband’s family for several generations. I found it fascinating and really moving.
Do please get in touch if you feel your own home might work as a Christmas shoot, it does not need to be as lavish and colourful as Helen’s! We are just looking for homes where owners have embraced Christmas and have uplifted their home with their decor!
