C4 Homes predicted that 2011 would be the year of colour, and that meant bright colour! Strong greens, pops of cerise and flashes of orange.  Throughout 2011 shops were adorned with multi coloured bathroom accessories, bright orange clocks, and a whole rainbow of paints and wallpapers.  Plumbs Verdict: accurate trend prediction.

On the opposite side, Linda Barker’s hot favourite for 2011 was grey:  to be termed ‘the new neutral’.  Out with the beige and in with the charcoal!    This year seems to have be governed by the new look monochrome, adopting grey and cream as a warmer alternative to the traditional black and white.  Plumbs Verdict: accurate trend prediction.

For C4 Homes, 2011 was going to be all about the big, bold florals.  And with top designers such as Sanderson continuing to produce beautiful modern takes on the floral design, it’s no wonder that the lavish look has found its way into our homes in the past year.  Plumbs Verdict: accurate trend prediction.

Linda Barker swore by a more feminine approach to the floral in her prediction that 2011 would see the revival of vintage.  Restoration of beautiful furniture was to be a top priority for home décor enthusiasts.  At Plumbs, we can more than vouch for the latter and agree that an emphasis on vintage chic has been apparent throughout 2011.  Plumbs verdict: accurate trend prediction.

It was off to the beach for C4 Homes in 2011 as they predicted a rise in all things seaside!  This year has seen shells, driftwood and seaside stripes making their way from our bathrooms to our living rooms. Plumbs Verdict: accurate trend prediction.

Finally, Linda Barker favoured a more industrial design with metallics being her colours of choice for 2011, primarily bronze and gold as opposed to the more classic chrome and silver.  Plumbs Verdict: accurate trend prediction.

So it would seem that 2011 trend predictions were a success.  As we eagerly await the experts’ opinions on 2012 design trends, tell us what you think.  What would you like to see in 2012?

If you’re stuck for ideas on how to revamp your living room, or give your bedroom a new lease of life, the experts from Plumbs are here to bring the warmth and colour of Summer into your home.

Windows are the focal point in most rooms; Modern, minimalist interiors shun heavy fabric treatments and instead favour the simple, straight lines of Roman or Roller blinds. Blinds offer a perfect mix of security, shade and style.

Plumbs Merchandise Director, Linda Hindle says: “if you prefer plain walls then bold, dramatic blinds using an eye-catching patterned fabric is very effective. You can really enhance the effect by adding a co-ordinating cushion or two.”

Linda continues: “Our home consultants always advise people to pick colours from their existing furnishings as a starting point. They will bring along samples and swatches so that people can match their new blinds to their carpets, upholstery and wall colours”.

Plumbs offer a free measuring and free quotation service by a fully trained home advisor. Plumbs can also provide curtains to co-ordinate with blinds – again a free estimate service is provided.

What is so striking about the exhibitions is that everyone who comes onto the stand is amazed – Plumbs in real life aren’t what they think.

The event was packed and we were busy on the Plumbs stand at Country Living Spring Fair. Lots of people were attracted by the live reupholstery demonstration taking place.

Around 600 people visited the stand and took samples and brochure. A further 84 requested a home consultant visit.

Lots of positive feedback from customers who came onto the stand to tell us how delighted they were with their recent Plumbs purchase.

More exhibitions on the way – come and see us……

Badminton Horse Trials – Badminton – 21/25 april
Malvern Spring Gardening Show – Malvern – 12/15 May
Holker Garden Festival – Holker – 3/5 June
BBC Gardeners World Live – NEC – 15/19 June
Hampton Court – Surrey – 5/10 July
Great Yorkshire Show – Harrogate – 12/14 July
RHS Tatton Park – Cheshire – 20/24 July
Burghley horse trials – Lincolnshire – 1/4 September

The award was made by Managing Director Sarah Page, who also handed over a large cheque and warm congratulations from everyone at Plumbs.

This is a great achievement after only two years as a consultant. Well done Sheryl!

Retirement Show: Manchester Central (G-mex) 11-12 March 2011

The hugely-successful Retirement Show is the unique forum for all who are retired, semi-retired or who just aspire to retire. At each Retirement Show visitors can find out how to make the most of their retirement (or simply have a great day out!).

All you have to do is be one of the first 50 people to enter the FaceBook promotion and share it on your profile wall with your friends.

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Today is the last day in the office before the Christmas break and many people are looking forward to their holiday. Plumbs have been busy over the last couple of weeks with many Christmas activities including office parties, a Christmas meal served by the production managers in fancy dress and a Christmas raffle.

We hope that everyone has a wonderful Christmas!

Plumbs regularly celebrate long serving employees of 25 years. To achieve a 34 year run however really is something to be very proud of.

Maureen joined Plumbs in the seventies, and has worked in many departments over the years including the shops and exhibitions. More recently she worked as Showroom Manager. She has always been a great “people person” and will be greatly missed. Congratulations Maureen and best wishes for your retirement!

The finished chairs and recliner (centre in the final photo) will be returned to the customer in time for Christmas too. Please remember that these photos have not been taken in a photography studio so the final picture is not a true reflection of the fabric colour! Apologies for the lighting and colour variation.

We even managed to find some history on the chairs after the original tag fell out one of the chairs. Originally made by Pole Manufacturers H.J. Searle & Son Ltd, the ‘Berkley Chair’ was sold for many years. Look at this poster that we found on the internet that was featured in the newspaper advertising a later model of the chair!

Much like decorating your own living room, we gave the showroom a lick of paint, new lighting and new furniture showing the very latest Plumbs collections as well as some old favourites.

If you want to visit us, details of our opening hours and where we are can be found here. But travelling to Preston to see us isn’t an option for many people, so I thought I would share some pictures of it with you. Have a look and tell us what you think! (Sorry about the photo quality, they were snapped on my phone!)

Winter is a time when everyone has plenty of visitors so making it warm and welcoming on dark nights is an essential. The key colours for winter are traditionally red, gold and green but this year Plumbs are pegging deep purples in violet and mulberry.

Our newly launched Autumn and Winter ranges consist of the ‘Palazzo Anniversary Collection’, the ‘Bijoux Collection’ and our ‘Timeless Classics’. When we launched them we made sure not only did they have plenty of these on trend colours that would be perfect for the winter season but lots of other colours that would look great throughout the year.

A great fabric for the winter is out Luxury Cord Velour design in Mulberry. It is a sumptuous chenille fabric meaning it offers outstanding washability with no shrinkage, quick drying technology with no need to iron and is so soft to touch, making it perfect for snuggling up to on a cold winter’s night. It is also available in other wintery colours such as chocolate, purple, and for the brave, black. With such a wide range of fabrics available, there is a massive selection of warming colours to choose from.

For a more subtle change to your living room, our made to measure curtains can offer instant warmth. For the winter months you can have thickly lined curtains in a wide selection of fabrics, beautifully lined to keep the heat in.

If you don’t want to make drastic changes to you room decorate it with scented candles and seasonal flowers, cosy scatter cushions, and fleece throws. Spiced apple and cinnamon are the key fragrances for the wintertime. Lighting is important too so use lamps for more intimate ambience with warm luminescent light bulbs or burn candles to create that cosy atmosphere.