Allison is the proud co-owner (along with her husband Christian) of The People Shop (based in Birmingham) and one of the kindest and loveliest people you could ever hope to meet. In fact her whole family, along with her beautiful store, radiate warmth and style and good vibes and I always come away feeling glowy inside whenever I pop by.

I’ve followed Allison on Instagram for a while now where she regularly shares beautifully shot glimpses into her hugely creative day to day life including images of her exquisite home. I just knew that our Rock My Style readers would love to see her house so imagine my delight when she agreed to give us the grand tour of her Victorian style terraced new build. But enough of my wittering…take it away Allison.

I’ve been my own boss for over 25 years designing and making the ‘People” clothing label with my childhood sweetheart Mr C! Over the years my work has evolved to include everything from teaching workshops, writing tutorials for magazines, speaking at events, starting an online craft community, business mentoring for creatives and more recently appearing on TV!

I’m passionate about promoting creative living from the heart and soul and encouraging my blog readers and followers to live creatively their way.

Our House

Although the house looks like a Victorian terrace, it’s actually a ‘new build’ designed sympathetically in keeping with the original terrace houses in the rest of the street. The builders did a really good job at making it look completely authentic. It’s got four bedrooms over three floors, a large open plan kitchen, a through lounge and a courtyard style garden with a grassed area at the back.

Why We Chose It

We chose this house because it was all shiny and new! Ha! And that meant we had no difficult building jobs or structural work to do, just a nice clean blank canvas to style and make our own. It’s always bright and airy and flooded with beautiful light, which makes it the perfect backdrop for styling. I also use one of the upstairs rooms as my studio, as I do a lot of work from home, this means I have 24 hour access to my props and materials for whenever I’m feeling creative! And some mornings I’m so keen, I can start work in my pyjamas!

Colour Schemes

I’m a huge fan of plain white interiors as this gives me the freedom to change the furnishings, artwork and styling around whenever I feel in the mood, which can be quite often. I love to move things around to reflect the different seasons, brightening things up in the Spring and Summer with lots of jugs of colourful flowers and linen and then cosyin’ up in the Autumn and Winter with eucalyptus and snugly sheepskin rugs!

The colour palette throughout my home is fairly soft and gentle. I love pastels teamed with different shades of grey and my favourite colour is blush pink, so that features everywhere! Running my own business means I have a really busy lifestyle, so at the end of a long day I like to come home to a calm relaxing vibe, that feels super comfortable and cosy.

Favourite Pieces

I have so many! I never buy anything that I don’t fall in love with, so my home is filled with vintage finds and things I’ve made along the way. I like to surround myself with things that make me happy. If I had to pick just a few key pieces, it would be my oversized chesterfield sofa, big enough for the whole family to curl up on and the white sideboard in my lounge, always a favourite spot for styling with flowers, plants and ceramics.

Our style is Sadler shaped! I’ve never been a slave to trends, of course as a designer I love to be aware of new things, but I’m much happier mixing it up in my own bohemian way, my home is a unique refection of me and my style and the things that make me smile.

Favourite Rooms

It’s probably no surprise that I love every room in my house for different reasons! The kitchen is definitely at the heart of my home, we love to cook together as a family and entertain our friends here and we spend hours around the kitchen table, brunching, creating, listening to music and talking through work ideas. So much of our family life happens in the space, it’s always full of laughter and happiness.

Then the lounge area is perfect for unwinding and chilling out on the sofa with a bucket of popcorn to watch some trash tv and I love my studio for getting creative, I can get lost in there for hours working on new projects.

I told you it was gorgeous didn’t I! I think my favourite nook has got to be that beautiful dining table – equally perfect for sunny mornings or candlelit evenings and filled to the brim with creativity and love. The perfect family home! Stay tuned for next week when we share the upstairs of Allison’s house; it’s just as beautiful as downstairs!