Cults interior designer shows us round her bold and beautiful home

Julie Daly, owner of Verano Interiors, shares her hints and tips on decorating as she shows us round her attractive five bedroom home.

By Rosemary Lowne

September 28 2023, 11:45 am

Interior designer Julie Daly has used bold colours to transform the new build property she shares with her family. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

Painting her dining room from white to black was a bold move but one that Julie Daly does not regret.

Cutting edge in her approach to home decor – and upcycling – Julie, a Cults based interior designer believes the power of paint can transform the look, mood and feel of your home.

Here she shares her home decor journey and encourages people not to be afraid when it comes to colour.

Friarsfield Place, Cults

Julia Daly's home in Cults — Julie Daly has used bold colours and upcycling to add character to her new build property. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

Who: Julie Daly, 43, an interior designer who runs Verano Interiors, her husband Karl, who works in renewables and his children Kian, 19, and Orla, 13.

What: A five-bedroom new build CALA home.

Where: Friarsfield Place, Cults, Aberdeen

Julie Daly, Cults interior designer and owner of Verano Interiors — Julie Daly, owner of Verano Interiors, shares the inspiration behind her home decor. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

As told to Rosemary Lowne

“When I told people I was painting my walls black, you wouldn’t believe the looks that I got. I just wanted to do something really bold so I painted all the walls in the dining room black. I just thought I can change it if I don’t like it.

Cults interior designer – do what makes you happy

When it comes to interiors, I think you should do what makes you happy. You’re not decorating your house for someone else you’re decorating it for yourself and that can always be changed if you need to sell as you can put everything back to a neutral.

The living room features a black sofa and grey sofa facing each other with a modern wooden coffee table, a brown beanbag chair, a grey carpet and a burnt orange feature wall. At the far side of the room are some glass doors leading to the garden — Warm orange/brown tones mix beautifully with greys in the living room. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

Two orange greek-inspired busts on a windowsill in the Cults interior designer's home — Pops of colour add vibrancy to neutral spaces, says Julie Daly. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

It’ll be nine years this December since we bought our new build home. It was a total blank canvas with magnolia walls everywhere. The first room I worked on was the open plan kitchen/diner as we’re in there the most.

It was a neutral space so I put brick effect wallpaper above the kitchen units to give it a cosy feel and I painted the walls using a Dulux shade called Perfectly Taupe. As this room is at the back of the house we don’t get much sunlight in there so I kept the décor light.

the open plan dining/kitchen with a glass dining table, four cream dining chairs, white counters and a kitchen island with black bar stools. — Julie has kept the open plan dining/kitchen area neutral but added some colour with vibrant artwork. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

Three golden monkey ornaments, a string plant in a white pot, a white framed clock and a plant mister on rustic wooden shelves with black metal brackets. — Little details like this cute shelving duo add personality to the home. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

I also put in copper lighting from Pagazzi and there’s a sofa, TV, dining table and chairs – it has everything we need.

Living room

In the living room, everything was white and grey but I wanted to move away from that. As I already had the grey sofas and a silvery/light grey coloured carpet, I worked with those elements but I painted two of the walls an orange/brown colour – Lick Orange Paint 02 – to tie in with the fence outside.

The dining room in the Cults interior designer's home. There is a black dining table with eight black chairs, black walls and a grey patterned feature wall — Go bold or go home: Black adds a sultry gothic feel to the dining room. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

Julie, Cults interior designer, sitting at her dining table — The dark dining room is Julie’s favourite room. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

I really like that room as it’s so cosy and is the perfect place to watch a film. In terms of furniture, I got the sofa and the coffee table from an online retailer called MADE and I got a leopard print floor lamp from Rockett St George. I also added some more pops of orange with textured cushions and I have a lovely gold piece of wall art.

The dining room is probably the room I like best as I painted the walls black to give it a gothic feel with pops of yellow. I used a pure matt blue/black paint – Lick Paint Black 01 – and I hung some black and white prints, a Jackson Pollock print and Vogue magazine covers from a company called King & McGaw, which really stand out against the dark walls.

The home office with blue walls and organised file storage — The home office has been colour drenched in blue paint, a colour which is good for stress relief. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

Two dark wooden shelf with vases, plants and framed prints on them. There are two small matching wooden desks underneath. — The clever use if shelving and colours makes the home office the perfect place to work. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

I also made a little reading nook in an awkward space at the top of the stairs. I found a small chaise longue online and added a lamp, an artificial plant and a few pictures. So it’s a nice spot to read a book as it’s right beside to a south facing window.

I’m very passionate about the environment so I like to upcycle when I can. In our bedroom, the bed had a black faux leather headboard which didn’t really work but instead of throwing it on the skip, I upcycled it.

The bedroom in the home in Cults, with a double bed, cream carpet and deep purple walls — Deep purple: The bedroom’s deep colour palette is broken up by softer pink and silver accents. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

The garden of the Cults property — Julie’s husband Karl built a pond in the back garden. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

I ordered a marshmallow pink velvet fabric from Alison Millar Soft Furnishings in Cults and used that to cover the headboard. I also got some MDF panels online, cut them to size and then me and my husband just glued them all onto the wall so it’s created a grid style design.

For the home office, I chose blue paint – Selvedge by Farrow and Ball – because blue is a good colour for stress relief and it helps you think. I’m quite into colour psychology.

My next project is probably my step son’s room.”

For more on Julie’s interior design projects, check out her Instagram page @veranointeriorsaberdeen