At home with Lynn O’Rourke

Published on 15/07/2012 15:40

I USED to think I lived a fairly pared-back existence, but having children and an attic have put a stop to all that.

Actually, I’ve probably always had those hang-on-to-it-it-might-just-come-back-into-fashion-next-decade tendencies and am just fooling myself that I ever lived a clutter-free existence. I may blame the kids (all those artworks and cute little baby clothes they once fitted into), but attempting to pack for our holiday threw up some horrors of my own. It seems I don’t throw anything out. Ever.

So, inspired by many of the homes we feature, I have decided to clear the clutter. I start by looking for that book I have that lists how to clutter-bust in ten easy steps, or something equally 
unrealistic. I know I have it, but despite searching late into the night when I could have been 
doing something far more enjoyable (I still have the 
final Inspector Montalbano to watch), I couldn’t find it. How on earth am I going to get my house, and therefore my life, in order if I can’t even find the book to tell me how to do it?

The next day my sister asks to borrow the very same book. She remembered it has some good tips on organising workrooms. I mumble something about looking it out. Now I’ve got to find it. I can’t admit to losing the ‘getting your life organised’ book. I sense an evening with the good inspector is going to have to wait.

This week we take a look at a fantastic property in Edinburgh’s Duddingston area. For owners Anna and Eric Paterson it has been a 25-year project transforming the space into a stunning house and garden. Dawn and Richard Bell were sold on the location of their Jedburgh home and have created a lovely living space. Designers Keith Stephenson and Mark Hampshire, the duo behind interiors brand Mini Moderns, which produces fabulous wallpapers, fabrics, cushions and ceramics, 
always use their stylish home as a testing ground for new designs.