I don’t know exactly how I found Kay Prestney but I do know that I fell in love with her Instagram account, Kinship Creative very quickly. Her distinct Modern Rustic style and Scandinavian inspired interiors had me returning time and time again for inspiration. Kay is a talented interior designer and stylist who lives in Essex with her husband Andy, her children Bella and Finn and their dog Flash.
Inspired by nature and her travels, Kay has a knack for repurposing and up-cycling unique pieces in a way that is both practical and beautiful. The Kinship Creative family home is welcoming and full of character.
Every room is styled to Scandi perfection yet the space is functional and perfect for Kay’s busy family. Vintage finds and newer pieces of furniture hang together harmoniously against a backdrop of whites, pale greys and blacks. The addition of natural materials and textural elements such as blankets and sheepskins ensure the space is calm and inviting.
Every object and piece of furniture has a story to tell, delightful surprises and pretty vignettes can be found in every corner of this home. Kay has a wonderfully inspiring talent for styling in a way that breathes life into the house.
My favourite part of this home is the loft space and mezzanine floor which doubles up as a den where the family play card games and extra sleeping space for guests. This is such a successful room, a multipurpose space for work, play and relaxation.
The abundance of plants, soothing colour palettes and natural materials contribute to the sense of wellbeing that makes this feel-good home unique.
Home Styling Tips from Kinship Creative
I asked Kay to share some of her home styling tips with me, here’s what she had to say:
What are the key elements to your style and what are you influenced by?
How I want to feel at home is key to interior design for me. I want to feel relaxed, happy and calm, a neutral colour palette with a pop of colour works really well here. I can achieve this by painting a piece of furniture for example or by introducing some greenery and seasonal flowers.
Bringing the outdoors in is also important to me, I am inspired by nature and house plants have a good effect on air quality. I love a flash of green against the natural materials in my home. Introducing nature into the home at different times of the year can help to update the overall look of the home. In the spring you’ll find more greens and yellows, dusky pinks in high summer and shades of white and silver through the winter months.
I’m a huge fan of texture, I like things that are tactile like a chunky rug or a furry cushion, a blanket that you can wrap round your shoulders.
I love this quote by William Morris ‘Have nothing in your home that you do not believe to be beautiful or useful’
Sourcing vintage pieces and up-cycling can be daunting, do you have any tips for the uninitiated?
Charity shops, car boot sales and at vintage fairs are always a good place to start. Save the Children and The Red Cross have shops dedicated specifically to second hand furniture and are well worth a look. If you are in France, the brocantes are a brilliant source of quirky one-off finds. You can even design your holiday around them with the help of this guide!
Look for multipurpose items and think laterally about furniture when you are sourcing items for your home. The trunk I use as a seat in my home office space doubles up a storage for Finn’s train set. Having a place for everything is important in order to retain that sense of calm.
Finally, how can we easily update our homes for spring?
I like to look outdoors for this, blossom and branches from the garden are very decorative. For Easter you could make some pompoms with the children and attach them to branches you have painted white with a glue-gun – it makes a lovely centrepiece and fun to make.
You can buy inexpensive primulas, hyacinths and daffodils from the garden centre for a splash of colour.
It’s also a good time for a clear-out. Reassess what you have and get rid of the things that you don’t use or don’t love anymore. The objects and furniture that you have in your home should spark joy or be useful, if they don’t it’s time to move them on.
With thanks to Kay Prestney for welcoming me into her home. I hope you enjoyed this post and feel free to leave comment at the bottom of the page, I love to hear from you!
Antonia x
You can find Kay on Instagram and see more of her work here.
Oh, this house looks totally amazing! Beautiful, when can I move in?
I know! It’s incredible! A dream home if ever I saw one.
Thanks so much Elena, glad you liked the tour ✨
Lovely photos! X
Fabulous really enjoyed the tour thank you xx
Thank you so much for reading the post and I’m so glad you enjoyed it Helen!
Thank you so much for featuring our home Antonia, what a fun day we had and it was so lovely to meet you! Xxx
It was one of the highlights of my year so far! Thank you so sos much for having me. I hope you are happy with the post, so many photos I just couldn’t fit in!
I love this post Antonia! I’m a HUGE fan of Kay’s style on her Kinship Creative Instagram feed – so much inspiration so it’s great to have a peek at her beautiful home and I love her style tips too. I’ve got some new ideas for a few things to do around my house now! Philippa x
So glad you enjoyed it, I came away feeling really inspired and I’m now itching to get the paint brushes out and indulge in a bit of DIY!
Thank you so much for the lovely comments Philippa ✨
What a beautiful home & a great interview! I love being nosey in other people’s gorgeous homes. #HomeEtc
Is there anything more fascinating than seeing how other people live? Just found you on IG, such an interesting project you’ve got going on at home xx
This is exactly my kind of style – absolutely gorgeous and SO stylish!! LOVE. What a fab space. Thanks for joining in & sharing 🙂 Great to have you!!
Jess xx #HomeEtc
Thank you so much for taking the time to read the post. That house is an absolute dream!
Just wow, total #homegoals right there!! I love how she styles everything and it looks so cosy and lived in, just beautiful. The more interiors I see the more I get so impatient to get on with our renovations!! Xx #HomeEtc
Thanks so much for the lovely comments, hope the house renovations go well! ✨
Oh I love this, what a beautiful home! It looks so tidy and ordered too. I need Kay to pop round and out our home out for us. Thank you for linking up! x x
I think we all need Kay in our lives for a bit of styling!