I recently got a phone call from my niece who was recently married and is decorating the small flat she shares with her husband, Jeremy. Much to my relief I learned that neither of them had lived in the place when they were single. Mainly, I was comforted to know that Jeremy had not been there before she was, as he may have already staked a claim with those quintessentially bachelor items that can take years to wean men off of.

As it turns out, they were working with a clean slate, but were limited when it came to space. She wanted to know what I might suggest to make it look like they had a champagne budget when they were working with a draught beer one. I directed her to layer certain pieces to give the room depth and texture, but to avoid cluttering it with too many things. In addition, to hang curtain rods closer to the ceiling than she normally would to create an illusion of height. Finally, I stressed the importance of using mirrors to reflect light into the room from light sources.

That call was followed up by an email a few days later with two photos attached. The new couple had supplied me with a before and after picture. She had listened to my recommendations to perfection, and I could not have been more proud for her. I hope she puts copies of those pictures in a photo album.