Why do I love wood so much?  Apart from its lasting natural beauty and it’s sense of timeless tradition, I mean.

It’s because it has a never-ending knack of lending warmth to any interior scheme.

 Take the room above for instance.  The plush fabrics and the sophisticated colour palette would be several shades cooler without that wooden floor and that gorgeous sideboard.

And the high ceiling and tall window in the room above might cast a rather chilly draught without the sociable grouping of wood and leather furniture.

This sunny corner also might look a little twee without the wooden table to ground the scheme.  It’s also a good lesson in how to break all sorts of rules.  Woods do not have to match.  Mahogany, pine, or oak furniture can all be used together especially when liberally mixed with other materials such as mirror, glass and plastic.

Imagine the temperature of the kitchen above without the wooden tops.  Brrrr.

In fact there’s nothing quite like a piece of lovingly polished wooden furniture for raising the barometer and adding that much-needed bit of extra character.

All images from Living Etc