GQ South Africa — May 2017

66 GQ.CO.ZA MAY 2017

TAK E N OTE

Craig Raeside,

proprietor at Créma

Design, shares fi ve

pieces of golden

advice he wished

he’d known when

he was younger

1 Don’t buy pieces of furniture or lighting

immediately, as you see and like them.

Decide on a style (starting a Pinterest

board will soon steer you in a direction)

and stick to it.

2 Less is more. Rather than fi lling your

space with average pieces, take your time

and save up to buy investment, quality

pieces that will stand the test of time.

3 Try to avoid investing in quality pieces

until you’re in a home you feel you’ll be in

for a while. The space itself infl uences the

pieces you end up buying to a large extent.

4 Keep the space neutral and introduce

up to two accent colours only.

5 Be careful when mixing timbers – rather

contrast them than try to match.

YOUR BEDROOM SHOULD BE AS WELL

DRESSED AS YOU ARE

It’s the last stop – and your last chance – for taste

Some of the most stylish guys we know have a bad habit of

ignoring their bedrooms: humdrum sheets, suspiciously

off-white pillowcases, and duvets so threadbare they look like

the same ones their moms bought them before they went

to college. But overhauling your bedroom is easy: when you’re

shopping for bedding, look for the designers you’re already

wearing. Whether they’re vibey geometric shapes, classic chalk

stripes , or enough palm fronds to shade all of Bermuda , you ’ll

give your favourite patterns more real estate than your tie rack

ever could.

A LITTLE LOVE FOR THE

BATHROOM, PLEASE

Designers know their way around

a renovation. Learn from Jessica

Helgerson on how to elevate

your lavatory

Replace your hardware

Swap out plastic towel bars, rusty shower

fi xtures and banged-up faucets for natural,

unlacquered brass – the right kind of patina.

Throw in a few plants

They provide visual texture, bringing softness

and giving the eye a refreshing pause from the

hard surfaces throughout most bathrooms.

Make your towel a design piece

It’s a way to add colour and pattern without

committing to a more long-term fi nish, such

as paint or tiles.