An expert in carefully-curated eclecticism, we spoke to Sian from @restore_home_ about her history with interiors and her advice on layering with textures which she does so well. Tinged with vintage-look items and framed with a cool industrial edge, we’ve loved delving further into her home and uncovering the secrets to a successful renovation journey.⁠

Sian, welcome to the Style Journal. Can you tell our audience how you got into refurbishing property?

I’m really just a frustrated lawyer! I wanted to be an architect so refurbish houses as a hobby to fulfil my need for creativity and appreciation of the aesthetic. I guess interiors nourish my soul whereas law feeds by brain and puts pennies in the bank!

We know older homes can sometimes present unusual challenges when renovating. What’s the key to perfecting a period project?

Every project is completely different and I think no matter how many properties you renovate, there’s always something to learn. Keeping an eye on the original details and remembering what you fell in love with about the house is critical. In my latest renovation it was the staircase and proportions that drew me in. In planning the extension, the ideal new floorplan would have meant removing an original window and compromising an existing staircase. I’d fallen in love with the original Georgian windows and staircase – so the compromise had to be in the extension – not the original features. As soon as the structure was up I knew that retaining the details was the right course as that’s the soul of the property.

What is it that makes you choose Jim Lawrence lighting?

Elegant but edgey design, first and foremost. But it’s the quality that never falters that keeps me buying it. The finish is fantastic and they only improve with age. And I’ve had some lamps for over 15 years and still they look beautiful and the finish looks perfect. I’ve honestly never been disappointed with a purchase from Jim! I’ve taken some risks with this property in going for real statement pendants (larger than I’d usually go for) but they’re fabulous and totally make the space. There’s a danger in under-budgeting for lighting. I feel it’s better to save elsewhere as lighting is a game-changer in a room and instantly elevates the space.

You often opt for shade-less light fixtures, why is this?

I love glass pendants. They’re timeless but importantly reflect the light, bouncing the brightness back into the room and complementing the room rather than providing a visual stop. In period properties particularly, enhancing the natural light is really important and glass optimises what you have naturally, even when the lights are off. I love shades too but tend to use them on lamps for more ambient lighting.

We like to think a home project is never really finished, as like our wardrobes, interiors develop and adapt for the seasons and how we feel. How do you refresh your rooms when they’re in need of a ‘quick fix’?

Soft furnishings are a great way of updating a scheme, with a throw or cushions in a seasonal hue, but also artwork is underused in my view. I’ll often base a room around a piece of art, and then when I want something new and fresh, will add a piece that easily be switched in or out and around rooms.

After a year where many of us could only venture the world of interiors by looking online, where do you find yourself sourcing most of your home inspiration these days?

Instagram is a fantastic place to be inspired. As is Pinterest, but you can’t strike up conversations and ask questions as well as you can with Instagram. It’s really such a fantastic interiors community with some very talented people just posting about what they love. But I’m also an obsessive about paper: flicking through a brochure and the medium of print are really underrated now I think. I’ll often use Instagram for inspiration but when creating a moodboard I need to see and feel the images, and nothing replaces a mountain of swatches and samples!

Those of us fortunate to have outdoor spaces have never been more grateful for our gardens, patios and even porches. What’s the key to good (and happy!) garden design?

I think for me it’s evergreen structure. I love John Brookes concepts of gardens being a series of rooms, an extension of our homes. I tend to separate my gardens into 3 zones, for terrace seating near the house, a play area for the children and animals (perhaps with a rewilding area if possible) and then a more formal area for wandering around and outdoor dining.

By having “walls” of hedges, you can create the rooms but also mask some of the not so aesthetically pleasing areas – trampolines, sheds etc. Then you can focus the planting around these areas. I’d have soft breezy aromatic plants for the terrace, such as Gaura, herbs, lavender,  evergreen structural hedges for the format and disguising like Holm Oak or Portuguese Laurel, and then formal and fragrant planting for the seating and dining areas such as topiary, jasmine and cypress.

We really love your eclectic but carefully considered styling. What are three top three tips on how to layer up display areas indoors like shelving and sofa cushions?

Groupings of three are really helpful as it provides balance and doesn’t jar with the eye. Also consider height within that grouping, so there are different elevations. But fundamentally it’s about harmony (which can be through shape, or colour, or a theme) but really it’s about objects you just love and that speak to you.

How do you stay true to your own style when choosing home furnishings?

I’m not sure I could say I stay true! I don’t really have any rules, I just furnish with things I love and that draw me in. I do tend to hide purely utilitarian things in cupboards but that’s about the only rule. Perhaps a new style I’m adopting is to really be intentional about what I buy, and try to buy pre-owned wherever possible. There’s not much that you can’t get vintage and traditional designs, be it architecture or engineering, quite often still hold up as the best. They’ve remained in existence for a reason!

We love your laid-back look, but you’re clearly influenced by elements of traditional or vintage design. Do you have any truly unique old items in your home that you could never part with?

Yes, too many to admit! Some are family pieces which mean so much, but many are new acquisitions with stories to tell. Artwork is hard to part with, and I really love battered tan leather so that features everywhere from chairs, sofas and boxes down to my decades old trusty Filofax!

New or old, what’s the staple homeware piece that every house needs?

A squashy chair for reading alone or with children (and for the dog to snooze in), a beautiful table lamp, plus an array of individual cups and mugs for morning coffee and afternoon tea.

Talk us through your plans for the rest of 2021 and beyond…

I’ve currently just sold my Georgian terrace in Oxford and am moving to the country to be near my son’s new school. It’s a change led by necessity but I think one which will benefit us all as we’ll be able to get into nature more. The house has a stable with exposed stone. And looks out on to the garden and fields. I’m hoping to use it as a study and workshop for a new venture. Constantly searching for that creative outlet! But currently we’re in a stone barn until the purchase on the new place completes. It’s on a farm and is a wonderful transition, with huge tall ceilings, and masses of oak beams. Your pendant lighting would be incredible in this space but sadly it’s rented so I have to make do with my table lamps for now!

To stay up to date with Sian’s Beautiful Home and to see how she styles her new space, be sure to give her a follow on Instagram. We would love to see more Beautiful Homes! Tag your images with #JimLawrenceMade or email to press@jim-lawrence.co.uk so we won’t miss out. For further styling inspiration you can browse our Pinterest.

Pendant Lampholder, Walcot Pendant Light, Orwell Table Lamp, Globe LED Filament Bulb, Thorpe Wall Light

From capturing the essence of your four-legged friends to creating bespoke carvings of your own home, fellow East-Anglian Laurie Cripps prints on beautiful card stock, cotton and linen to create timeless keepsakes for your interiors under the brand name Ratty Golightly.

Laurie’s quaint signature style can be found on many a Jim Lawrence product, so we felt it time to revisit her charming hand-crafted lino prints and share more about them. You can enjoy her designs on a selection of our stylish modern country fabrics, available in a range of original candle shades and cut lengths exclusive to Jim Lawrence.

Laurie, can you tell our audience a little bit about why you started up Ratty Golightly?

Ratty Golightly evolved out of a number of projects. I’ve always been drawn to the process of print from typewriting to calligraphy. I’m also passionate about letter writing and think it is an art to be cherished. There is something so relaxing about putting pen to paper that you cannot replicate with a text message or email. Ratty Golightly designs and creates hand carved linoprints for stationery and fabrics.

Why lino?

Like many people I dabbled with print making at school but it wasn’t until recent years that it became a passion. Lino print produces a very naïve form of the original subject. I love the process of taking a subject and reducing it to a series of cuts in a block. You never quite know how a piece will turn out until you ink the block and transfer it to paper.

What does your typical work day look like?

Running a small business is always busy and varied. A typical day could include a trip to the local post office to send out orders from Rattygolightly.com, hand-printing cards to maintain stock levels and drawing a house in preparation for the linoprint of a client’s home. Depending on the time of year there is also preparation for Pop-up shops and sales. There’s also a lot of time spent creating new prints!

Lino printing is an inky business! Describe your work space, are you a messy or tidy worker?

To make the most of every moment I have to be quite methodical and try to contain the messy bits wherever possible. That said I think its hard to find a creative who works in a totally tidy manner. One of the biggest challenges for me is that I am left handed which means I am a natural ‘smudger’…

As a very dog orientated workplace, our favourite prints have got to be the Labrador fabrics. Which item that you have created do you treasure the most?

I love the print of my own four legged friend, Tatty. She is a Bedlington Terrier X Whippet so it was the first time that I had her in print. This year I also made the time to make a block of my own cottage which I then used as the basis of our family Christmas card. The designs I’ve done for Jim Lawrence are very special to me as they represent something that has been really fun and rewarding.

A close second for us are the bespoke prints of your customers homes. Where did the idea behind ‘capturing the castle’ come from?

Well its a play on a few things, most notably Dodie Smith’s Suffolk-based novel I Capture the Castle, which I love and also the old maxim that ‘an Englishman’s home is his castle’. A Ratty Golightly linoprint of your home is a unique way to capture your own castle to have framed or use in your own personal stationery.

We know about the quirks of Ratty Golightly, but do you consider your own home a creative space as well?

Most definitely. I once read an article where an artist commented that the visual impact of their home is highly important to creative people. I was thrilled to discover this as I think some of my family and friends are sometimes baffled by the constant evolution of our home. I’m forever shuffling furniture and rehanging pictures. There are so many ways to be creative in a home, cooking is a great way to be creative from trying out new recipes to decorating the dining table.

Are there any unique Suffolk spots our readers should know about for finding homeware inspiration?

I had a wonderful shopping trip to Vanil in Woodbridge. They stock genuinely different and unusual pieces that have been carefully made. It can be hard to find unique gifts on the high street so I love it when I find a treasure trove. Suffolk is a wonderful county for quality craftsmanship. Last year I stumbled on a Pop Up promoting the slow craft movement in Orford – there were some amazing items all carefully handmade.

To incorporate her hand crafted designs into your home, shop the entire Ratty Golightly collection for Jim Lawrence here. If you want to take a look at more of Laurie’s bespoke designs, you can browse her official site.

We would love to see any pictures of the Ratty Golightly collection in your home! Tag your images on Instagram with #JimLawrenceMade or email to press@jim-lawrence.co.uk.so we won’t miss out. We love seeing our products in their new homes. For further styling inspiration you can browse our Pinterest.

All of our lampshades are made in our Suffolk workshop by our talented team of shade makers from our range of beautiful fabrics that have all been handpicked as a perfect partner for our lighting range. A new lampshade will instantly refresh your room by breathing new life into your light fittings by helping to tie together your decor with colour, texture and ultimately character.

It has never been easier to click and order items straight to the door, and though a world of convenience has many merits, we still think it’s vital these products are made the best way they can be. Often, that means by hand and with great care. We invite you to join us on on a journey behind the scenes, embracing the hand made quality of our products, and to enjoy what goes on in our workshop once we have all closed the tab or put down the phone. For our first ever How It’s Made, we’ve chosen to share the journey of our popular Royal Osyter Silk Dupion Candle Shade.

Pure silk dupion is a uniquely beautiful fabric that has a luxurious textured quality and richness that cannot be reproduced in other materials. Not surprisingly, it is the most popular silk in the world thanks to its fabulous natural sheen and distinctive weave, making it much sought after in both period and contemporary homes for soft furnishings and bedding. The fabric is made using raw silk yarns that are turned into a fine thread which is tightly woven together to produce a crisp fabric with a highly lustrous surface and a prominent textured slub that is irregular in appearance. This disctinctive grain and gorgeous colourway is what makes the Royal Oyster a go-to for pairing with the warm patina of our Antiqued Brass metal finish.

These petite lampshades are made to mimic an empire-style shape with tapering sides that are designed to fit the majority of our wall lights.They have a candle clip ‘butterfly’ wire fitting that you gently pull apart to sit the shade directly on top of a small bayonet (SBC, B15) or screw i (E14) bulb.

We offer two styles of candle shade – our standard Empire shaped Classic Candle shade that is 15cm wide at the bottom – and our French Drum style that has straighter sides and is a little narrower at 13cm wide. You can also choose from Cylinder, Tapered and even Metal Candle Shades. We have even created Bathroom Candle Shades for our IP rated 44 Bathroom Lighting. We’ve done our best to offer as much versatility as possible, so in turn you can get as creative as possible…

Before we even think about fabrics for all of these shapes and sizes, the wire for all our frames must be cut to length and welded together in the workshop. These frames are then put onto the paint line and painted a crisp white before being stored in the warehouse for our shade makers to ‘pick’ when your shade order comes through. As soon as you have selected which fabric and colourway you are choosing for your home – in this case our Royal Oyster dupion silk – the roll taken off the shelf and cut by hand making sure that the slub or pattern of the material is straight.

It is then carefully stuck to double sided adhesive laminate or card panels. The panels are run through a laminator which softens the glue to strengthen the bonding and flattens out any tiny air bubbles that might have been caught.

They are then put into our Zund, a digital flatbed cutting machine, that is pre-configured with all our shade measurements and is programmed to cut out the required shape of shade and quantity needed.

Our shade makers collect the panels for the shades they are going to make that day and at their workstations, pull off the adhesive along all the shade’s edges and stick double sided sticky tape along the exposed fabric.

First the fabric along the seams is folded over the panel and glued carefully into place. The seam is then brought together and stuck down with superglue before being weighted down for a while for the glue to take.

After 15-20 minutes, the weight is removed and the candle clip wire fitting is placed into the top of the shade along the top rim of the adhesive panel. Holding the fitting in one hand, our shade makers gently fold the stickly taped fabric edge over the wire frame, make sure there are no creases, and using whatever they like – their thumb, a blunt knife or file – they tuck the fabric in behind the wire making sure there are no frayed bits of fabric left loose.

When complete, glue is neatly rolled along the newly folded edge to keep it neat and ‘seal in’ the fabric. Once dry, the finished candle shade is ready to be placed safely in a sealed and labelled bag, ready to be passed on to our dispatch team.

The Royal Oyster Candle Shade is now ready to be packed, sent to you via our courier and paired with your lovely Jim Lawrence lighting.

The finished product, in pride of place atop one of our many hand crafted, hand finished wall lights. If you need a helping hand on choosing sizes and shapes, visit our helpful Knowledge Base for lampshade FAQs, size guides and information on bespoke requests.

We would love to see our lampshades and lighting in your homes. Follow us on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook @JimLawrenceMade and be sure to tag us in your home updates.

We’ve met several makers on the blog, but think it’s high time we introduce our own. We want to start with our talented Soft Furnishings team who make these lovely shades day in and day out. Becasue all of the items are hand made, every one that we lovingly send out to you is that bit more personal, which is why we want to introduce you to the lovely people behind them. We catch up with Supervisor Julie to ask a few questions…

Inspired by the colourways in August’s Home & Gardens Colour Of The Month, we have choreographed an Earthy Pink Edit that really celebrates using blush tones with soft accents of antiqued brass to create a warm welcoming feel in your home.

When we originally put this collection together we absolutely fell for Farrow and Ball’s ‘Sulking Room Pink’. A grown up pastel pink is perfect for offsetting bolder colours (such as a rich teal) and in many respects can act as a neutral in your interior when layered well. We loved this muted warm rose colour the minute we saw it and couldn’t wait to pair it with some of our soft grey textures and antiqued brass pieces.

Blush pink is a delicate update for a space that you want to keep fairly neutral but are after an exciting refresh. Sulking Room Pink is a muted rose tone, with the right amount of warmth to make a room feel cosier, but light and powdery enough to compliment with similar tones and contrast with bright white. See how the Fluted Harleston Lamp with a linen Cylinder Shade blends effortlessly into the space.

We always feel that Farrow and Ball’s hues look gorgeous with our products, but dusky pink and brass is absolutely a match made in heaven.  You may know that we create this traditional look by treating solid brass with an antiquing solution, which simply speeds up the natural tarnishing process. This vintage-inspired look is ideal for Sulking Room Pink, as it is evocative of the colours so often used in boudoirs. Paired, they conjure a romanticised intimate old-timely feel, perfect for bedrooms and living rooms that require a soft touch. We love the way the colour shifts with the light from pink to grey – beautifully reflected here in the glass Walcot Pendant.

Why contain trends to the indoors? We love putting emphasis on the exterior of your home, because as we always say…there really is no need to forsake style for function. We promise you can have it all! This is probably our favourite combination. The bulb of our Peacock Lantern looks like welcoming candlelight, and we think it would look beautiful on each side of a soft pink front or back door. You could complete the look with antiqued brass door furniture, creating a sought after but long-lasting external décor design you won’t tire of.

Our fabrics are all available to buy as cut lengths for when you want to get creative at home. Whether used to create curtains, shades or cushions, you can bring an organic texture into your home in a series of beautifully dusky tones with our soft and tactile Waterford Linens and Hunstanton Velvets. This Dusky Pink Velvet is a beautiful muted pink that will add a touch of drama to any interior, reviving your existing scheme without the need to fully redecorate.

This Vintage Pink is a gentle enough to feel neutral and blend effortlessly into your scheme whilst offering a lightly blush accent for a hint of colour. For a deeper colour, opt for our sumptuous oversized cushion cover in Velvet. Above we’ve paired pink with a timeless soft grey, but it works wonderfully with deep tones like navy or a repeat pattern for further visual interest. All of our cushions are handmade here in our Suffolk workshop by our talented team of cushion makers and are available in a wide range of coloured fabrics.

Waterford Linen Cushion Cover in Vintage Pink, Double Morston Wall Light in Antiqued Brass & Clear Glass, Dusky Pink Holborn Pendant Light in Antiqued Brass, French Drum Candle Shade in Dusky Pink Hunstanton Velvet, Curtis Spotlight in Antiqued Brass

We would love to see how you interpret this new look! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook @JimLawrenceMade and be sure to tag us in your delicious home updates using antiqued brass and pink. We are sure it’s a style that’s here to stay.

Ever wondered how we test the stability of our glass shades, or how hardy our chains are? Have you pondered over how we monitor the perfect paint shade and ensure the trustworthiness of our nuts and bolts? We want you to be confident that your lights, sockets, switches and poles are the best they can be. Just as our products are made by hand, they’re checked by hand too. We caught up with Senior QC Engineer Nick Rogers to find out more about how we test and try our products under the meticulous eyes of our Quality Control team.

Firstly, can you tell us who makes up the team, and how you got into this line of work?

I am the Senior QC Engineer, Mark is Head of Engineering Quality, Lorraine and Shane are our QC Technicians and Harry operates as QC Support to check the glass.

Can you explain what the QC team do at Jim Lawrence?

Well, the overall aim of our job is very simple – to reduce the number of Free of Charge (FOC) items we send out to customer to replace faulty or damaged goods and to reduce the amount of scrap that we produce. If we’re successful, our customers are happy as they have better quality products and the company is happy that we’ve saved thousands of pounds worth of scrap.

There two sides to our QC. One is more of a Quality Assurance role where we come up with strategies to make the company more efficient and cost effective by looking at all the manufacturing procedures we do here to see how they can be monitored to find problems earlier on in the making process. Usually, the earlier you catch them, the easier it is to put right and the quicker we can give everyone the ‘heads up’. This way we prevent mistakes and ensure there is consistency. With a bit of training, everyone becomes their own QC team.

The other side of the job is to test our components and products to make sure they meet the required standards. To do this we work with our suppliers, other Jim Lawrence departments and our customers to get feedback, think of workarounds and solve problems.

Talk us through your typical working day.

I honestly don’t think there is such a thing as a typical day, which is one of the things I love about this job. Any plans you have are usually blown out of the water by about 10.30am! In QC you spend a lot of time looking at problems and how you can resolve them. You’re always asking yourself, is there a problem with this? Why? How did it pass QC first time round? What can I do about it? How can I correct it? How can I stop it happening again?

Every morning we have a meeting with our Returns Dept to go through the FOC orders to see why things are being returned and if there is a genuine quality issue that needs looking at. This is often the issue that dictates what we do for the rest of the day. If there is a problem, we may need to remove the product from sale until it is corrected.

Some days we might find that a shipment of components has arrived that we will sample check and find that they don’t meet our standards, so we have to work with the supplier to see if they can be returned or if we can rework them in the workshop. Other days there may be an issue with a piece of machinery that has affected the quality of a product, or a staff absence which has had a random effect. There is always something to keep you on your feet.

What’s the criteria you look at when testing our products?

Everything needs to be checked to make sure it complies UK standards and our own design specifications. First, we use our own judgement to look at products to make sure the finish is right and that it is consistent. Then we use a range of clever measuring devices to sample check products to make sure they have been made to the standard spec. It is up to us to work with the technical team to make sure the specs are up to date and followed by everyone in the company so that we are all working in the same way. The design team will have considered the durability of the product when designing it, so as long as the measurements comply, it’s a good test that it has been made properly.

What happens if products don’t pass QC?

The first thing we do is put them into ‘quarantine’ so they don’t get muddled up with the rest of the stock, while investigations are under way. If it is a component that is wrong, we have to talk to the supplier to resolve the issue and see if we can correct it in-house or send it back. If it is one of our products, we have to consider how many of them are wrong, whether we should send them back to the workshop to be re-worked or whether they will have to be scrapped. We also have to ask ourselves what we can do to stop the same problem happening again. Do we need new or better equipment? More training? Better components? A new design?

When it comes to more fragile items like glass, how do you go about testing a product without deliberately trying to break it? It must be a meticulous task.

Yes, we can’t go around smashing things. We have a special device that uses a magnet to measure the thickness of the neck of the glass, which is important as that is where you unscrew the shade to change the bulb or clean it. We also use Vernier gauges, calipers and micrometres to check other parts of the glass.

A lot of our job roles are hands on here at Jim Lawrence, but it must be really fun to pick apart our products all day. What’s the best part of the role?

I love the fact it is so varied. No two days are the same. I go home every day having learnt something new, so it is constantly challenging. It’s a funny thing, but no matter how much I think I know about our products and the issues that sometime arise, there is always something new! I enjoy working with the engineering and design teams to investigate issues and working out ways we can overcome them and it’s very satisfying when you get good customer feedback having solved a problem for someone.

With all your expertise, what would you say makes our lighting and homeware high quality?

You can see our products have heart and soul, that’s what makes them different from our competitors. They look and feel better because they are handmade. They may not be perfect, but in my book, they are all the better for it. You can see our products have been made with real care and attention. There are not that many places where you can buy something that has been individually hand forged or glass blown. And everyone, not just the makers, but everyone who works here, cares about our products.

Can you recommend some tips for customers when it comes to taking care of their items? For example, getting the most use out of a light.

A lot of thought and attention has gone into making sure the raw materials are as robust as possible. I’d say you should treat your Jim Lawrence product like a fine wine. It will work happily for years in your room with gentle handling and a bit of care and attention – like using warm soapy water to keep it in tip top condition. If you are worried handling a light, make sure there is someone there to help you.

Finally, what’s the best part of working for a family business like Jim Lawrence?

I like the fact that everyone is very approachable, unlike more corporate businesses, and that you really get a sense of working together. Jim Lawrence is special because here you are part of a fairly small but very dedicated team of people who incredibly good at their jobs and are passionate about what they do. They are always prepared to go that extra mile to make sure our customers are happy with the products we make.

You can browse all of our hand forged products on our website and enjoy other stylish customer homes on Instagram. Don’t forget to tag us in your own imagery on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook – we love seeing our products in their new homes. 

Working with us means joining an ever-growing family of talented artisan craftsmen and business influencers. Having such a cross section of skills and talents under one roof gives us the chance to offer a fantastically broad range of new challenges throughout our staff, and our exciting career development programmes are tailored to help you grow and make the most of every opportunity within the business.

At the heart of this company we still have a ‘roll your sleeves up and get it done’ mentality that means everyone pitches in and helps no matter what the challenge – there’s no corporate boardrooms here! People tend to stay…we have an amazingly high staff retention rate (averaging 90% annually) which is testament to a genuine belief that our business is only as strong as the links that bind it.

So, if you are looking for an interesting job that challenges and stretches you, in an environment where it’s not unusual to be greeted by a friendly dog (or two) at the door then we are the company for you! We are always keen to hear from new talent, even if your perfect role isn’t currently listed above.

If you would like to apply or request further details on any of the roles, please email us your CV to recruitment@jim-lawrence.co.uk

A full-time mum, blogger, Instagrammer, freelance brand consultant, holiday rental property manager and events organiser. Sarah-Jane, or @justalittlebuild as you are likely to know her by, has an impressive roster of skills to her name. We talk to Sarah-Jane about her beautiful home, how to renovate in light of the pandemic and the best ways to translate your personality into an interior…

We’ve long admired your use of our Lovell Pendants in your coastal holiday property (@leathousecornwall) which continues to bring admirers to our website, and were thrilled with some lovely feedback you gave us recently about our lighting. We’d love to talk about what draws you to Jim Lawrence products in particular?

I am honestly so pleased with the Lovell Pendants that we bought for Leat House. Not only do they look great in situ during the day – like glistening jewels hanging from the ceilings – but they completely transform the room to an atmospheric dining space in the evenings, similar to the experience you would have in a high-end restaurant. I think its down to the way the light deliberately shines down on the table below, making it feel intimate and welcoming. Other pendants on the market can disperse the light all around the room through the sides of the glass shade, but these simply don’t do that which makes them rather unique. We have them set up with dimmer switches which allows you to make the space feel more intimate as you can dim the lights right down for a more cosy dining experience.

Not only have you renovated your own home and Leat House, but you offer a design service for others who need the expertise. Have you always been interested in pursuing interior design?

I have always had a real passion for all things homes and interiors. From the early days of watching ‘Changing Rooms’ on the TV and more recently “Your Home Made Perfect’, I enjoy nothing more than immersing myself in design-led makeovers and challenges! Seeing rooms transform into more desirable, welcoming and practical spaces is something I love to see and thankfully now, I have the ability to do myself in my own home(s), and in that of others.

Many of our customers are led to us by their interest in period properties and English heritage, but we are always pleased to see our lighting and homeware tied into more contemporary schemes. Tell us how you blend different trends and styles to make the decor work as a whole?

With any room scheme, determining the overall feel you want to achieve is the best starting point. Do you want the interior design mix of old and new to feel elegant, fresh, lived-in, relaxed, classic or unorthodox? For me personally, I tend to lean towards a more fresh mix – marrying the old and new to give a new design perspective that allows each aspect to shine in its own right. I would say my style is fairly contemporary in design with a classic edge. A nod to the Transitional Design which borrows from both traditional and modern design to facilitate a space that is not “too much,” in terms of one style or another.

Leat House is over 200 years old and has some beautiful original features such as a flagstone slate floor, some exposed wooden beams and a Cornish stone wall within the living room. These architectural aspects lend themselves to the ‘old’. With some sympathetic pieces of furniture such as a large comfortable sofa, a Persian rug and a vintage coffee table, you can embrace the character of this more traditional look and then, (and this is the fun bit!), you can bring in some of the more contemporary aspects to elevate the space and to give a sense of ‘freshness’. I like to do this by introducing some modern artwork that sits within a very simple frame, lighting that has a combination of glass and metal and an accent chair with clean, crisp lines.

Forgive us for mentioning the pandemic, but how do you think the experience of lockdown has changed how we view our homes?

Over the last year, the pandemic has transformed the patterns of daily life. Perhaps one of the most recognisable shifts has been seen in the way we view our homes. Where we once designed them for comfort and security – a safe haven to which we could retreat at the end of a working day – our homes must now take on a plethora of other roles providing space for work, education, fitness, social events and more. In smaller homes, or for homes naturally divided into small spaces, multifunctional rooms offer an innovative approach to creating an adaptive living environment. By combining different purposes into a single floor plan, multifunctional rooms can make small rooms go further – kitchens with islands doubling as workstations, or guest bedrooms that can be transformed into gyms or offices as required.

In a world where flexibility is becoming evermore essential to functional living, multipurpose spaces can allow us to comfortably adapt to whatever changes might appear on the horizon.


It is easy to incorporate our personality into our own interiors, but how to you help translate this for others when you take on a project?

There’s really only one way to successful do this and that is to fully understand your client. Find out about their likes/dislikes, their hobbies, what they like to wear (this can be such a help when deciding on fabric selections for the home), what art they like (and what art they don’t!), how they like to live and where they like to go etc. This will all help form an idea of how your client will want their home to serve them and how it should feel when they are in it.

Alongside this, you can inject some personality into a home by introducing a statement piece of art, some accent furnishings (perhaps an upholstered chair in a statement fabric or some contrasting cushions) and/or a unique item of furniture. These should be heavily influenced by the client to bring out their true personality and resonate with them individually.

You announced that you’re moving from your current home into a new location. Using your experience, how will you take on this renovation differently from your other moves?

Over the last five years we have completed two renovation projects and in doing so have gained so much hands-on experience. The do’s, the don’ts, the things to look out for, the things to not compromise on and the things to not get too worried about! It has been a real learning curve and I hope to take forward all the valuable lessons through to this project.

With our new home, we have the ability to design a space that really works for us. In our last house we were constrained by the square footage available to us so it was difficult to play too much with the space we had. Here though, I hope to create a home that not only provides us with what we want (we have a room checklist…!) but also allows us to have fun with the architectural design to bring in different design concepts, varying heights, textures and materials. And with reference to my answer above on how the pandemic has changed the way we view our homes, this will very much affect our design choices for this project. I think the project style will fall within the Transitional Design that I mentioned earlier but with a nod to a Scandinavian style.

A few quick-fire questions…

What are your top tips for making a house a home?

• Adding plants – they can can bring life, comfort and colour
• Texture – it helps to break up the formality of a space, adds depth, comfort and reduces the need for lots of colours (if colour isn’t your thing)
• Mix of design elements – ‘old & new’ to give character and a sense style

What’s your favourite room to design?

The kitchen, although it can be the most stressful! It’s the heart of the home and where I like to be so for me, its the anchor point of any interior design project.

What’s the staple homeware piece that every house needs?

Task and mood lighting. So often forgotten but extremely important! Not only for practically but for making a house feel/look like a home.

Your favourite Jim Lawrence product?

I love the simplicity of the Club Wall Lights which we also have down at Leat House and I have recently installed in a client’s home.

Finally, what’s on the cards for Just A Little Build in 2021 and beyond?

To fully immerse myself in our biggest renovation project to date!

We are so looking forward to seeing this new renovation unfurl. If you too are inspired by Sarah-Jane’s advice and approach to design, for more of her interior styling and stunning home style follow @justalittlebuild on Instagram or the justalittlebuild blog. To stay up to date with Jim Lawrence, follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest. To shop her style, browse our website to see all of our hand forged and finished lighting and homeware. 

Lovell Pendant in Antiqued Brass, Schoolhouse Drawer Pull in Antiqued Brass, Club Wall Light in Antiqued Brass, Hunstanton Velvet Cushion Cover in Dusky Pink

We are extremely proud of all of our finishes, but it’s no secret that Antiqued Brass is our signature look. Though colour trends may come and go, we are confident our Brass will match any colour combination you want to throw at it, making it a lasting staple no matter your changing decor decisions. This sought after ‘living finish’ can elevate any room and we’d be hard pushed to find a paint colour it doesn’t look lovely with.

We are fortunate that there are so many excellent paint brands to help us discover new colour combinations for our rustic metallic lighting and homeware. Lately, deeper and more dramatic jewel hues are showing up throughout our customer homes, with an emphasis on neutrals and greens inspired by the natural world emerging in others. With more time spent indoors we’ve all been able to reflect on what we really want from our interiors, leading us to make choices we might have otherwise shied away from. Whether a blend of bold and energetic choices or more low key soothing tones, whatever you love we know our brass will be a great fit. We’ve collated some of our favourite customer homes with beautiful palettes, showcasing the best paint colours to complement their brass accents.

Divine bedroom detailing from @charlotteboundy featured in June’s @englishhomemag photographed by @james_mcdonald_photography. Here Charlotte has opted for Farrow & Ball’s Light Blue on the walls with the deeper De Nimes across the woodwork for a quietly elegant regency look. The Burnt orange soft furnishings against the powder blues create a rich but soothing tapestry of colour for this spare room: a truly idyllic backdrop for our Club Wall Lights.

Matching the sockets, switch and a Single Curtis Wall Light for bedside task lighting is a winning trio in this room to remember from @ballintaggart at The Grandtully Hotel. Painted in the since archived Book Room Red, this stunning panneling gives the patina of our brass a beautiful blushing hue. Framed by the soft pink of Setting Plaster, this grown up pastel pink perfectly offsets the aged dusky red.

Everything in this bedroom from @gladyscottage compliments the item before and after it, creating a considered but organic homely country cottage feel that we could just sink right into. Our Hanson Wall Lights look gorgeous topped with a linen candle shade, matched to more rustic oatmeal colours throughout. Painted in Farrow & Ball’s Skimming Stone, this slightly warmer light grey is an elevated alternative to plain plaster, creating a clean slate and allowing for a pleasing jumble of patterns and texture. Look at our Waterford Cushion Covers and layer Limestone and Grey for a similar look.

Our Lymington looks extremely elegant in this rustic french country style bedroom styled by @marthamiddleton. We already know that tactile linen and naturally aged brass is a match made in interior heaven, but we particularly love how the Half Shade blends into the wall here in our Natural Isabelle Linen, helping every little detail in the brass to stand out. This wall colour from Earthborn is Flutterby , described as ‘nearly white but not quite’, a pretty alternative to an earthy clay. A soothing feel radiates effortlessly from this room: exactly what you want for a laid back bedroom setting.

A gregarious green close up from @far.interiors painted in Invisible Green by Edward Bulmer. This grass green is inspired by the 19th century idea of painting ironwork in the landscape to ‘vanish’ it, truly bringing the outside in. The Victorians were particularly taken by shades of emerald like this, using dyes and paints made with arsenic to create similar vivid green hues. You certainly won’t find anything frightening in these beautiful colours from Edward Bulmer, who are utterly transparent in making eco-friendly paint. Doesn’t knowing this make the room feel even more lovely? Get the vintage look using distressed brass tones, adding warmth for that lovely lived in feel. Give your kitchen cabinets, cupboards and drawers an instant update with our handcrafted Gilby Drawer Pull: made with a quality you can appreciate with every touch. ⁠

A wonderful option for those of you who prefer a more relaxed palette: Green Smoke by Farrow & Ball lends a dusky antiqued charm to this beautiful bathroom featuring our Cheltenham Wall Lights. A vintage vanity unit, scalloped tiles and beautiful brass detailing make for a showstopping space from designers @charnleyandcharnley. What’s not to love about burnished details against this weathered sage green? ⁠⁠

Off-Black by Farrow & Ball is the perfect choice in this striking kitchen from @warehouse_townhouse. Dark and brooding but softer than a too-intense true black, this colour really makes our brass sing. A stylish backdrop for a shaker kitchen that has an industrial edge, this room is proof that daring decor choices can really pay off. The lights featured are our Fisher Wall Lights, inviting a touch of elegant art deco design with its fluted glass shade.

Whatever your home style, we are confident you will find inspiration to pick up a paint brush and try something new. Opt for dynamic jewel tones for regency inspired period detailing, or go neutral for something a little more modern rustic. Moody dark rooms will always be favoured by some, naturally suiting those who sway towards industrial luxe. Our Antiqued Brass may be versatile enough for all of these looks, but one thing is consistent: we know how much you love it! As with things that take time and effort to make, they need to be cared for accordingly to ensure longevity. Find out more about how to care for and maintain your antiqued brass finish below.

This is our most popular finish and deservedly so. We create the Antiqued Brass look by treating our solid brass with an antiquing solution. This solution simply speeds up the natural tarnishing process and means that you are able to take home an authentic aged brass product from day one that will only improve and darken over time.

In the trade this finish is often referred to as a ‘living’ finish because of the natural oxidisation process that occurs to the brass over time leaving it to dull down to an authentic antique look. This darkening and dulling is accelerated outdoors or in damp environments.

To clean the brass, we recommend using a small amount of soapy water and/or buffing it with beeswax or a good quality wax polish to help protect the finish. To remove smudges or finger marks, gently brush the entire surface of the product with a Scotch-Brite pad so there is an even tone over the whole surface. If you concentrate the brushing in one area, it may look patchy. Then buff with a soft cotton cloth.

If you are wishing to slow down the natural tarnishing process then we recommend regular polishing with a good quality brush and a soft cloth. One thing we do have to warn our customers about is that chemical polishes may strip away the original antiquing solution too so take care.

We know it is a tough decision deciding on which finish to go for, which is why you can request a free metal swatch of any of our finishes, not just Brass. Alternatively, our sales team not only see all the finishes on a daily basis but also are extremely knowledgeable on which ones work best in certain environments. So, please do not hesitate to give them a call on 01473 828176 or email us at sales@jim-lawrence.co.uk for any advice.

For even more home interior ideas, keep up to date by following us on Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook. Don’t forget to tag us in your home updates– we love seeing our products in their new homes.

Searching for that wow-factor light for your renovation or revamp? Or perhaps just in need of something bold and beautiful to refresh a stale interior? Look no further. We are delighted to showcase some of our favourite pendant lighting for your hallways, home entrances and stairways. Each of the following designs make for a striking feature, perfect for boosting naturally dark areas with a variety of shades and fixtures to best suit your home style.

First up, our Greenwich and Richmond Pendants. These eye catching pendants feature oversized, hand blown clear or reeded glass shades. Designed to take centre stage in larger rooms or homes with high ceilings, both styles look fantastic in a pair or hung solitarily.

Originally popular in kitchens as countertop lighting, pendant lights are now found all over the home. No matter where you chose to put them, they are an excellent choice for creating an even distribution of light for tasking purposes and to add to ambient lighting. The Greenwich with its lovely fluted cuves and the Richmond with a plain highly reflective shade are equally beautiful suspended from your ceiling. Anywhere you choose, these oversized lights are a show-stopping statement for the modern country home.

Whether a traditonal bell style, a modern metal cage or ornate period detailing, a lantern is a go-to feature for a high up hallway or entrance. Whether hung alone to produce a striking statement piece or in a row along a hallway or landing, they are an excellent choice for creating an even distribution of light for tasking purposes and to add to ambient lighting. For more contemporary spaces we suggest opting for out sleek glazed beeswax or matt black designs such at the Wilton (above) or our angular Stanton. With clean lines, straight glass sides and an ironwork frame they are beautiful in their pared back, simple style.

Bell jars were originally hung in vestibules and entrance halls of Georgian homes where the jars stopped the candles being blown out when the door opened. In those days, candles were expensive so the jars where only lit when guests were expected, but our designs like the lovely Bonham Lantern features three bulb fittings to ensure there is plenty of light where it is needed.

If you are putting wall lights in a long hallway or corridor a general rule of thumb is to position them about 250 to 300cms or between 8′ to 10′ apart. The top of the wall light should be at eye level so that you are not looking directly into the bulb. But first, choose the look you love. Shown above, our Single Station Wall Light has a large rectangular backplate with an upwardly arched arm, an ideal choice for bringing both elegance and rusticity into the home.

For something a little more classic and traditional, the Double Rowsley still has a vintage feel that lends itself to country modern living and particularly to a smaller space. Pair with our Tapered Candle Shades for a compact but equally striking look. For Wall Lights, as a very general rule we suggest positioning your wall lights about 152cms or 60″ above floor level. If you are putting wall lights in a long hallway or corridor a general rule of thumb is to position them about 250 to 300cms or between 8′ to 10′ apart. The top of the wall light should be at eye level so that you are not looking directly into the bulb.

Create a stand-out space with our collection of luxury chandeliers – a sure way to invite an ornamental interest into your home. For more modest entryways and halls, our smallest chandelier is the Rococo (in name and nature), a handmade solid brass pendant chandelier hung with crystal beads and glass droplets. With a lightly antiqued finish, it is a beautiful pendant light for adding classic period detailing to your decor.

The chandelier has a long history, but it was during the 18th century where developments in glass manufacturing meant that lead glass was able to be made fairly cheaply, leading to the expansion in popularity of the crystal chandelier. Inspired by these historic designs, our most decorated droplet pendant is the Queensbury (shown above in Beeswax), delicately draped in droplets of glass to reflect and cast a magical glow around your home.

Create a talking point in your home with our spectacular seven pendant ceiling rose, featuring a tiered drop of our fluted glass Ava shades. This multi pendant light would look magnificent suspended in a stairwell, grand hallway or in any room with a high ceiling. Designed to be a showstopper, we have taken our most popular individual pendants and created new and beautiful designs to really show off the quality of the workmanship and the beautiful reflective lustre of hand blown glass.

For something a little more low key but equally as effective, our Fulbourn Triple Pendant Rose is smaller in stature but still packs a stylish punch with three pretty fluted glass shades. The same basic rules about hanging pendants at least 7ft off the floor applies to entrance halls and foyers, but if you have are looking to light up a landing, the guidelines are a little different. If you have a double height ceiling over two floors then the light fitting should ideally not hang below the second floor. If you are hanging your light higher to compensate for the two story setting, you may wish to consider one of our multi pendant lights to ensure it does not look too small for the setting.

It is important to consider how you are going to change the bulbs if you have a pendant hanging from a vaulted ceiling as it will become very expensive if you need to hire a scaffold tower every time a bulb requires changing.

Firstly, we’d recommend you invest in LED bulbs as they have a very long life – usually around 25,000 hours – so will not need changing often. A light that can be accessed by a ladder will make changing the bulbs a lot easier, as would be one that could be reached by the upper floors if you have a galleried landing.

If your light will be totally out of reach, another option is to consider installing a specialist winch or hoist. There are a number winches on the market which will enable you to lower your light fittings to the desired level for maintenance to be carried out in total safety. Most are fairly compact and can be easily fitted between joists. They are available with different cable lengths and carrying capacities and with remote controls.

Inspired and want to see more? Browse all our Glass Pendant lighting here. If you love the look but want to save the idea for later, follow our Pinterest and pin these images to a mood board. Share your styling with us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook – we love seeing our products in their new homes.

‘Country Style’ can encompass many things. Wherever you live you can infuse your homes interiors with an authentic country style with high quality items. You don’t have to be tucked away on remote farmland or in a cobbled village to enjoy antique-inspired textiles or vintage light fittings. You can blend and contrast any look you like, which is why designing home decor is so much fun. Due to the sudden change in nature of our nation’s cities because of the pandemic, more and more folks are seeking a slower pace by literally upping sticks to the countryside or simply wanting to incorporate a relaxed cottage look into their modern homes. English country cottage style has never been more in demand. Wherever you are we know you want the real deal – and we’re here to give it to you.

Cottages tend to carry the connotation of being old or at least old-fashioned looking. Usually considered a modest and cosy dwelling, typically placed in a rural or semi-rural location. Like any house they come in all shapes and sizes. So what is the universal signifier of cottage style? The first things that come to mind for us are natural colours, well-loved rustic finishes and as is often the case with period homes…items with a little curiosity and ‘quirk’. We think in order to get the look you need to patch together all three (much like you would an antique quilt).

Soft muted colours say Cottage to us. In Suffolk we’re particularly used to seeing pretty blush houses washed in Suffolk Pink, a paint that dates back to the 14th century. These shades were developed by local dyers by adding natural substances to a traditional limewash mix. Additives used in this process include pig or ox blood with buttermilk, elderberries and sloe juice. Though we might be more inclined to turn to modern methods of adding colour to our walls these days, we still tend to be swayed towards staying in keeping with the surroundings when it comes to what we put inside. Often, it can help to let the building lead. Also inspired by the honey-hued stonework in our second home of Bath, we have many fabrics and finishes that blend seamlessly into the natural neutrals that are synonymous with historical homes.

When it comes to exterior design, start with a stylish welcome. What better place to enjoy a hand forged heart than the one place your guests will reach for first? One of our most sought after products in all its beautiful finishes, the Heart Door Knocker is as elegant as it is sturdy: a quality addition to your door furniture collection. Made to be used, this weighty knocker with matching striker plates is crafted from solid metal and created using traditional techniques for a long lasting product that you can love for years to come.

This Georgian style wall lantern is one of our most popular outdoor wall lights as its design features a hand blown mirror at the back that will reflect the light from the bulb at night and the beauty of your garden during the day. Wall lanterns should be the go-to for period homes, emulating the traditional candle sconce style of 17th century wall lighting. Updated for modern usage, our Peacock Wall Light is decidely modern rustic without compromising on elegance – a beautifil additon to tie together your stylish welcome.

Complete your door furniture collection with matching handles and other finer details. Our timless door handle designs work in properties new and old, but feel most at home as part of a country dwelling. Shown above in Antiqued Brass, our Holkham Door Knob on a Rowley backplate is just one of many available combinations for your door. Browse our full collection of lever handles, door knobs and wide range of backplates.

If brass is not for you, why not try a contrasting matt black? Some products that will help you instantly add cottage style to your home inside and out with ease, and proof that simple additions can still be packed with charm. A smooth matt black finish can be contrasted against pastel colours, incorporating a hand forged traditional edge to your door furniture.
Whether you are planning to restore a genuinely old door or want to crank up the classic country style on a newer model, our Suffolk Latches and Hinges are an easy way to instantly achieve a cottage-inspired look.

If your cupboards, drawers and desks are looking a bit tired, a quick lick of paint and some new handles is an easy way to refresh the room. Our Forged Ball Knobs in Matt Black have a hammered surface bringing a handmade, organic texture to your room – a practical and tactile finish that will make your space feel new with something the looks authentically old. Our beeswax finish creates a bold, unique look that can be contrasted against pastel colours to finish your room off perfectly.

So where to begin with the country cottage look in your lighting choices? Our first ever light fittings were rather aptly named the Cottage Wall Light, so we’d say that’s a good place to start. Still one of our most popular designs, these flush backplates have a sharp cut ribbon design with generous drip trays, both elegant and rustic in equal measure.

Similar in stature is the lovely Double Smugglers Wall Light, with strap and ‘rivet’ detailing on the backplate which harks back to the leather straps that were used to hold candle sconces in cottages and inns during Georgian times. Both of these are fabulous placed along hallways or to light up your living areas, with scope for choosing a variety of fabric shades to match or kick off your colour scheme.

Task lighting refers to the places where you work the most so need the brightest lights, such as worktops, over the cooker and sink. There are many options to choose from, such as compact fluorescent strips or LED downlighters, flexible LED strip lighting and more. It can be frustrating, however, when these aren’t really in keeping with a heritage look. We’ve designed our own versions of downlighters, wall lights (like our Club pictured above) and a collection of spotlights to ensure you can enjoy the practicality of directional bulbs without missing out on Jim Lawrence style.

The Curtis Spotlight is scaled to work in a small space as well as a large one and features a head that can be angled through 90 degrees and rotated through 350 degrees so you can focus your light wherever you want it. Shown above in our lightly Antiqued Brass finish, it is dimmable if used with a dimmable GU 10 bulb and dimmer switch and is available as a double spot version.

The Edgeware Flush Mount Ceiling Light is a traditionally styled, hand crafted, fixed spotlight that combines the practicality of a spotlight with the beauty of our Edgeware light, with which it shares a similarly shaped shade. It is ideally suited as a downlighter for your kitchen worktops and kitchen islands.

There are no better fabrics to fly the country cottage flag than tweed and wool. Synonmous with our Great British heritage this hardy close weave is as tough as it is attractive – both rugged and refined – a perfect amalgamation for country style. We’ve teamed up with Lovat Mill, based in the Scottish Border town of Hawick and known as the Home of Tweed; where the artisan craftsmen follow in the footsteps of generations of tweedmakers to create beautiful, contemporary tweeds. Taking inspiration from the rich colours of the surrounding countryside, Lovat Mill design and weave estate and country tweeds of the highest quality. Choose from a range of colourways and weaves for your shades, such as our beautifully textured Blue Herringbone Tweed above or the rich colours of our Talisker Lovat Wool pictured below.

Understanding the provenance of our products is crucial to appreciating their quality, so knowing the rich background of these products makes them all the more beautiful…Adding texture and colour to your home decor in this way doesn’t get much better than that.

Botanical, insect and animal prints have long decorated country homes, and you can enjoy their delicate motifs thank to these designs by local Suffolk artist Laurie Cripps. We love Laurie’s softly quirky style and were delighted to be able to incorporate her charming handcrafted lino prints into our collection. Available in a range of shades and cut lengths, these designs can be effortlessly combined for a complete country modern style. Choose from a palette of gentle natural colours with a variety of countrysid

e motifs like wheat, pretty honeybees and more.

Known for its versatility, cotton is one of the most commonly used fabrics for lamp shade making as it is lightweight, durable and has a softness which is ideal for diffusing light evenly around a room. We recommend our classic and tapered candle shades as the perfect partner for your Jim Lawrence wall lights. All our shades are handmade in our Suffolk workshop by our talented team of shade makers and many of our fabrics are available as cut lengths and cushions if you are looking for a coordinated look.

We are very proud to say that our metalwork has been hand forged and hand finished by us in our Suffolk workshop for over 20 years now, using tried and tested traditional techniques. Our items are made to be used. That is, of course, the core reason for lights and hooks and switches: they are an answer to a question. A lot of companies will try and sell you our Great British Country Style as exactly that: a style or a trend. But the provenance and heritage of your home is not a commodity, it’s history. Some of our techniques have remained largely unchanged since the Tudor times, and whilst we have grown in many ways, we’d like to keep it that way.

It is our belief that doing things this way we can guarantee that every product we sell meets the exacting quality control standards we have set and for which we are renown. We have come a long way since our farm days and you may no longer have to bump down a track to find us. But our ethos remains the same: to provide individually handmade products to a high quality. Read the full Jim Lawrence Story.

Don’t forget to tag us in your Jim Lawrence interior updates, we love seeing your products in their new homes! You can find us @JimLawrenceMade on Instagram, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

Spring cleaning is not just about taking out a mop and duster. At a time of year where our outside spaces are changing and growing is also an opportunity for our interiors to blossom too. Rather fitting for the growing season, earth tones are a focus right now. Organic, relaxed and with a focus on comfort, turning to natural neutrals for Spring is one way to transform your home from somewhere you might be tired of into a sanctuary you can continue to enjoy.

Does it get more organic than that? We can’t always rip out our interiors whenever we want a change, but there are plenty ways we can enhance what we already have. It’s amazing what a bit of elbow grease can achieve. Our Antiqued Brass products are created from natural, un-lacquered solid brass that have been treated with antiquing solution to speed up the natural tarnishing process and create a lovely aged look that will darken naturally over time.⁠ In the trade this finish is often referred to as a ‘Living’ finish because of the natural oxidisation process that occurs to the brass over time leaving it to dull down to an authentic antique look. This darkening and dulling is accelerated outdoors or in damp environments.⁠

⁠With more time spent indoors over the past year, there’s no doubt there’s going to be a little more wear and tear. Overhaul the forgotten parts of your home; lightly wash down your switches and handles, for example, instantly freshening up the room. Don’t forget to spend time taking care of your light fittings – take a look at our Knowledge Base to find out how best to take care of your Jim Lawrence product finishes. A buff and a wipe down will make your existing Jim Lawrence products sparkle like new. Take a look at our cupboard and drawer pulls like the Larder Pull above and the Napier Knob below.

You can also choose our Heritage Copper finish, made using a similar technique to create a warmer blush tone. Match your drawer and cupboard handles to your switches and sockets – elevating the details makes a huge impact on the room as a whole.

Paired with the copper finish and vintage-style braided cable, this Glass Walcot Pendant combines the best old fashioned styling with modern trends for warm metallic fittings in kitchens and dining space. A simple yet impactful way to invite a more rustic feel into your room.

Linen is a beautifully leightweight but hardy fabric made from flax, often used in soft furnishings and clothing for its breatheable, luxurious quality. A textile traced back to the times of ancient Egypt, linen has always been used within the home and out, but has become synonymous with our decor. ‘Bed Linen’ is an umbrella term for sheets and covers in our bedrooms, whether made from linen or not. There’s no questioning that this dreamy fabric is a interior staple. We’re fortunate that it’s an easy way to update our homes with  modern rustic and earthy tones using cushions, throws and shades. We love the grain of linen when lit up as a lampshade, highlighting the sought after textured weave whether in its natural oatmeal hues or dyed a soft colour to match your decor. View our full soft linen available to buy as a cut length to get creative with, a ready made cushion cover or one of our luxury lampshades.

When it comes to talking about natural fibres, we have to wax lyrical about our heritage wool and tweed collections. Historically Tweed has always been in earthy colours since the 18th century, used for hunting, shooting and fishing. A hardy close weave, the fabric is as tough as it is attractive, both rugged and refined – a perfect amalgamation for country style.

We’ve teamed up with Lovat Mill, based in the Scottish Border town of Hawick and known as the Home of Tweed; where the artisan craftsmen follow in the footsteps of generations of tweedmakers to create beautiful, contemporary tweeds. Taking inspiration from the rich colours of the surrounding countryside, Lovat Mill design and weave estate and country tweeds of the highest quality. Incorporating between five and forty individual colours to produce a range of specially selected herringbones and checks that will add subtle reflections of the natural world to your interiors. Understanding the provenance of our products is crucial to appreciating their quality, so knowing the rich background of these products makes them all the more beautiful… Adding texture and colour to your home decor in this way doesn’t get much better than that.

We love a textural, rustic coastal-inspired room, and @beech.tree.cottage has served up everything we adore on a plate…⁠⁠ The Scallop Wall Light in Antiqued Brass is a winning choice in this space, inviting a perfect glow for the bedside. Weighty brass adds depth to the lattice of shade thrown onto the walls by the distressed threads of rattan.⁠⁠ Layering up with different textures adds depth to any room, but in a largely stone-coloured space this really lifts the area from potentially plain to multi-dimensional. Match your soft furnishings with your window dressing for the fully finished look – find out more on how to order our made to measure curtains and blinds.

Natural neutrals in the Greek Street @sohohouse as photographed by @mad_about_the_house. We’ve long loved distressed vintage glass alongside brass, and this bathroom has taken that pairing and run with it, supersizing the look with a trough basin and railway inspired mirror. Our flush fitting Gladstone with frosted glass panes adds further architectural, Art Deco lines and vintage inspired function to this room.

Proof that details DO matter. Everything in this image from @gladyscottage compliments the item before and after it, creating a considered but organic homely country cottage feel that we could just sink right into. Our Hanson Wall Lights look gorgeous topped with a linen candle shade, matched to more rustic oatmeal colours throughout. Look at our Waterford Cushion Covers and layer Limestone and Grey for a similar look.

If you can’t re-do your room entirely, incorporating smaller details is a sure way to enhance what is there. We adore this kitchen from @the_english_lodge, showing exactly how to blend old and new in a balanced and forward thinking way. If you want to add depth to a white room, using warm wood is a tried and tested way to make our other finishes sing. If you prefer to opt for a more contemporary metal finish like our Lovell Pendants here in glossy Nickel, bringing in vintage inspired woodwork will help you weave together this sought after modern country style.

Jim Lawrence is a truly family business, still run by Jim and Sheena and employing up to three generations of local families. By focusing on quality of materials, craftsmanship, outstanding customer service and the well-being of the Jim Lawrence community, our mission is to create stylish, designer quality fixtures and fittings for the home made with natural materials. It is our belief that by selling directly to our customers, we can guarantee that every product we sell meets the exacting quality control standards we have set and for which we are renowned.We have come a long way since our farm days and you may no longer have to bump down a track to find us. But our ethos remains the same: to provide individually handmade products and the highest possible levels of customer service. Read the whole story here, and view our full collection of products.

Have any questions? You can find everything you need to know including styling tips and technical information about all of our products in the Knowledge Base. Pop up on our live chat via our website if you need any more advice. Alternatively you can email us on sales@jim-lawrence.co.uk for quotes and order enquiries, or ring us on 01473 826969 Monday to Friday 9.30-5pm and speak directly to a member of our helpful sales team.

Don’t forget to tag us in your Jim Lawrence interior updates, we love seeing your products in our new homes! You can find us @JimLawrenceMade on Instagram, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.