Soft Blue Seat at www.japanese-home-gardens.com

The Table and chairs i look stylish and timeless. The chairs' rounded shape and carved backs give them classic elegance, while their soft blue seat covers tie in with the blue walls. The white Table has a dark wooden top to add a welcome note of warmth to the scheme. Its legs are slightly tapered at the base to give it a lighter feel.

Soft blue is an easy-to-live-with shade that gives this plain and simple kitchen heaps of style. A slightly paler blue than the units has been painted on the walls to create a little depth and glass splashbacks have been fixed in place, allowing the colour to be seen while adding a little sparkle. White, chrome and plum accessories lift the look and a wooden worktop adds warmth, which is important as some shades of blue can be cold.

There's plenty of white in this room but, rather originally, not on the walls. The table, chairs and shelving unit are all in clean white, as is the Mirror frame. Floorboards are pale and subtle and the walls are where the soft lilac colours are introduced. Cool tones make walls appear further away and here, the soft grey and misty lilac enhance the feeling of space. A lilac tablecloth and napkins, plus the odd splash of blue and purple on glassware and china, add more soft colour.