They say that home is where the heart is, and it’s undeniable that a person’s home is at the heart of their life experience. It’s a haven in good times and bad, and a hub for the vast majority of the stories that we experience throughout our lives. Our homes are a reflection of ourselves.
The designs of the QVC-exclusive My Home Stories range of chic furnishings and stylish decor are aimed at helping you to write your own story throughout your home with simple and elegant pieces.
We spoke to Pipa Gordon and Alex Kramer about how the My Home Stories range has helped them to express themselves through their home, their own approaches to interior design, and the stories that live with them in their own homes.
Pipa’s Gordon’s My Home Stories coffee table
I changed my office around recently and really wanted somewhere I could put bits and pieces that were still easy to access but equally not in the way. I looked at various console-type tables but nothing fit the bill, until this coffee table from My Home Stories came along which is perfect!
All I had to do was put the legs on and the rest slotted into place. It matches my existing shelves so fits perfectly in the room, and it has wonderful storage which is easily accessible in the pull-out drawer below the glass.
There are six sections of different sizes and I’ve got them nicely organised for magazines, pens and pencils, extra cables and adapters for my laptop and camera, and a section for bits to remember. Even better, I can slide my Homedics heated yoga mat and Cozee Home foot warmer underneath.
The glass came beautifully packaged, so without a scratch, and it makes for the perfect table top… which of course houses more junk when needs be, but most of the time I try to keep it clean so I can enjoy my Bloom flowers and candle holders, I’ve even popped my Neom pod there.
It doesn’t have to be an office table, of course, it would also work brilliantly as a coffee table and the sections underneath are ideal for remotes, game controllers, magazines and papers, games etc.
Tidy house tidy mind, as they say! I wish it were always that easy in reality, but I am convinced we are affected by our surroundings and these little bits make a big difference.
Pipa’s home decorating philosophy
I moved a lot as a child. I’d lived in 13 different houses by the time I turned 18 and so I wasn’t anywhere long enough for a house to feel like a home.
Consequently, I became a dab hand at making a space feel like my own really quickly, but I yearned for somewhere I could live in for long enough that it felt like home, a place that had a fragrance which my heart recognised the moment I opened the door.
Once I settled into my adult life and started a family, this was a top priority. I think because of that, my home decorating philosophy has always been quite emotionally based. Our home is a reflection of who we are as a family, a safe space which is entirely our world.
We have painted most of the artwork on the walls, we designed the kitchen ourselves when we had it done a few years ago (kudos to the very patient kitchen supplier who was convinced it would look awful but then loved the finished article), and I drew up the plans when we first moved in to build shelves in the living room wall, just to ensure they were the right heights to fit our favourite books.
I like things nicely organised, everything has its home, especially in the fridge! Home to me is a sanctuary, a place where people can come to visit, and see us, not a catalogue or a department store, but a home that tells a story, our story.
I don’t redecorate regularly but I do change things around often; I’m not sure that habit will ever go away, change is so ingrained in me now and I do find it invigorating. Fragrance is also really important as it’s so evocative.
I suppose it’s fair to say our home is like an extension of who we are, it’s living and breathing; and most things tell a story, just like us.
Pipa’s fondest home story
It’s so hard to decide which is the best story but I think I’m most proud of the painting that’s in the living room. Trust me, I am no artist, but every now and then I play.
Splitting up with my first husband was a very long journey of uncertainty, sadness and pain. After we eventually got divorced and I got together with Brian, I painted this.
I had a giant canvas and some acrylic paints. I didn’t have any brushes, so instead painted with an old comb, a squeegee and some chopsticks. I just moved the paint around for a few hours and lo and behold, I saw a ship fighting its way out of a storm. I thought it was rather apt, for both of us.
I don’t feel that I painted it, I think it really painted itself, one of those gifts that you know has come from elsewhere. I think one day I might even get it framed.
Alex Kramer’s My Home Stories side table
I love this side table with magazine rack from My Home Stories! The different materials are exactly the type of way I like to style my home. The mango wooden top softens the style, making this a piece that could be a bedside table or a side table, and the size works really practically for the way we enjoy the space in our home.
For example, next to the sofa at our house, a side table needs to be able to accommodate a lamp, our speaker, my Neom and a cuppa or glass of wine! Anything too small just doesn’t work for our family needs.
The brass style finish to the body of the table is so pretty; brass is something that I like to accessorise with – maybe it’s because I like gold jewellery, but I find it a soft colour.
The magazine rack at the bottom is great. I love reading interiors magazines, so having them to hand when you can grab five minutes without the kids is great. It’s also lovely for guests to be able to reach easily for something to look at.
Alex’s decorating philosophy
I love interiors, I’m always reading magazines around the subject, following Insta accounts of homes that are being renovated, and obsessed with Pinterest for inspiration!
Lots of you may have followed my journey renovating my kitchen last year. I’ve now sold our house and we are moving to a house that needs everything doing; EVERYTHING! I’m excited but exhausted already!
My style is quite eclectic, but relaxed. I have two kids, a dog and a Scott! So, I can’t be as precious about everything being perfect as I was pre-kids. There are hand marks on the wall by the stairs and the dog never stops moulting. Scott also seems to think that his bike lives in the kitchen half the time, so I have to be more relaxed or I’d go mad!
I love colour, whether that’s deep dark tones on the wall with neon highlights, like the cushions in our snug, or more neutral tones with colour accents in prints – colour is always at play somewhere.
I also love adding different textures like wood to soften the room. We have wooden floorboards and original wooden doors in our Victorian terrace. I like to respect the original features: fire places, tiles – that’s my jam!
I’m also obsessed with cushions! I have them on every bed, sofa and chair. I find that they’re an easy way to change the look or colour scheme of a room without spending too much, and you’ve gotta have a bunch of blankets on the sofa for movie moments.
I loooove candles too! Probably because my dog can be smelly… and the kids… and Scott! But at night the light that a nice candle creates is so relaxing.
Another thing I love are mirrors and art. A mirror can make it feel like you’ve doubled the size of a space in an instant, and I just love art – there I go again with the colour! Plants are a must, too! Real, if possible, but faux is also good. The green of a good plant is so pretty and can help to soften a room.
A space has to work for you and your family and I want people to come to my home and feel like they can put a cup on the table without a coaster. In fact, our wooden coffee table even has tiny tooth marks in it from where my dog bit it when she was a puppy! I want it to feel like a space where you can dance on the tables and fall asleep on the sofa. I love that when the kids have their friends over to play, they’re comfortable.
I want my home to be pretty but it’s not for show, it’s for living.
