Abigail Ahern, for those that don't know, is an influential interiors designer whose work is synonymous with eclecticism, decadence and glamour.
Encouraging us to be fearless with decorating choices, Abigail's own home champions a dark and brooding interior style. Her home is haven filled with convincing faux foliage, tactile textures, tribal prints and characterful animals. It's easy to see how she was inspired to create her new collection of super-glam, audacious designs for Hillarys.
Related: Four new ways with window dressings – and you'll never guess where they come from!
Talking us through the inspiration behind the 19 hand-picked fabrics, Abigail has made us rethink blinds and curtains.
Abigail Ahern in collaboration with Hillarys
1. Trim with embellishments
A delicate fringe detail, in a contrasting colour, is all the embellishment you need as Abigail's new collection of blinds proves. 'Fringing can add instant pizzazz to blinds,' explains Abigail.
A fringe detail can help to break the hard edge that the straight line of a blind creates. Tactile textures play a huge part in Abigail's designs – 'fringing adds a subtle element of cocooning softness at the window,' she elaborates.
2. Remember the lining's on show
How often do you think about the view from outside? It's all very well that your curtains and blinds looking gorgeous indoors, but how do they look from the exterior?
'Introducing coloured linings on curtains is a real game-changer,' explains Abigail. 'Why shouldn't your home look as amazing from the outside as it does inside?' All of the new designs have a thoughtfully considered lining to ensure your windows are dressed inside and out.
3. Create a layered look
Often it's a choice between curtains and blinds as a window treatment. Abigail makes us think about combining both to create more of a design focus. 'Take rooms to whole new levels by adding multiple layers with curtains and Roman blinds. Especially effective if they're in a different fabric or texture,' she advises.
4. Add interest with texture
Abigail has a bordering-on infatuation with texture – her home is filled with tactile Mongolian wool cushions and Berber rugs, demonstrating this.
It was important to Abigail that even the plain fabric options aren't lacking the same wow-factor as the patterned designs. 'The fabrics in the collection play up my obsession with texture and pattern,' exclaims Abigail. 'The new fabrics feel tantalisingly tactile, in a beautiful but reigned in colour palette.'
Related: How to measure for curtains; for perfectly dressed windows
This new collection opens up a world of possibilities for dressing windows – with a touch of designer flair.
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