19 bright buys to cheer up your home when the clocks go back

Studio Alexandra interior design space
Ali Childs, founder of interior design space Studio Alexandra (pictured above), recommends introducing colour into your home for a mood boost during colder months - Studio Alexandra

How do you combat the gloom that sets in when the clocks go back and the nights are drawing in? “Adding colour into your home is a great way to pep you up,” says Ali Childs, founder of the interior design practice Studio Alexandra. And there’s no need for wholesale redecoration: she advises that brightly coloured textiles, art and lampshades are all “an easy way to bring new life to an existing space”.

The advantage of adding a few pieces of colourful homewares is that they are a low-maintenance way of injecting more personality. “The whole aim of home interiors is to make you feel happy, relaxed and comfortable – so include things that bring you joy, just for the fun of it,” adds Childs. From mugs to throws, lights to vases, read on to get your easy wintertime dopamine hit.

And last but not least, something for your pet...

Upgrade your beloved pet’s cushion to a bespoke, striped bed, in a fabric made from recycled plastic bottles and created at a family workshop in Cheshire. You can pick your own colours on the website; we like this handsome deep rust colourway with green piping.

Dog on bespoke pet cushion, Colours of Arley from £150
Dog on bespoke pet cushion, Colours of Arley from £150

Striped bespoke pet cushion, from £150, coloursofarley.com