If you are planning a new kitchen in the Republic of Ireland in 2022 this is great news - it opens up more options. Howdens was one of my favourite kitchen suppliers in the UK when clients were looking for a great kitchen solution on a budget.

Our latest podcast episode is about budgeting for your home interiors project. Furniture, lighting, accessories, decorating and other labour costs...

Deirdre and I discuss how to work out what’s involved so you can be realistic about what it’s all going to cost (before you splash out on any impulse purchases!)

John Hall, Construction Director of Jetform Pools is this week’s guest on The DnA of Home Interiors podcast. In this episode, Deirdre and I discuss installing a swimming pool in your home.

I met John on a project a few years ago, where I was designing the interiors of a swimming pool room in the basement of a family home in Barnet, North London. John was the swimming pool installer on the project.

One of my long term ambitions in life has been to have my own swimming pool…so I am very keen to find out how realistic a plan this might be in the future!

In this episode of The DnA of Home Interiors, Deirdre and I are joined virtually by Martin Gill, MD of And So To Bed. Martin and I worked together many years ago during his time as MD of Poggenpohl kitchens.

We discuss bed options, from divans and ottomans, to sleigh beds and four posters.

Thrilled to be in the Irish Independent today in an article about the cottagecore interiors trend, written by Eleanor Flegg.

See article here or read the text below…

What does an Interior Designer actually do? In our latest podcast episode, Deirdre and I discuss this in detail, from that initial phone call or email from a prospective client, right through to finishing a project on site.

Of course different designers work in different ways....and we cover that too. It’s all about finding the right person or company to suit your requirements.

I’ve popped some of the questions we discuss below….Hope you enjoy!

This week in Season 4, Episode 3 of The DnA of Home Interiors Podcast, Deirdre I are joined virtually by Jane Perrone, freelance journalist, presenter and producer of indoor gardening podcast On The Ledge.

This week in Season 4, Episode 2 of The DnA Home Interiors Podcast, Deirdre and I are discussing the interiors trend of Cottagecore.

Cottagecore is one of the biggest interior trends to come out of 2020 and is set to remain hugely popular this year. A trend that sees us return to days gone by and an idealistic rural life this trend is sure to have your home feeling like a countryside safe haven.

Last night I hosted an online interiors workshop, centred around mixing colour and pattern in your home. The aim with all of my workshops is that each attendee can bring their design dilemmas to the virtual ‘Designer’s Table’ (pre-Covid, I use to run these around real tables in all kinds of exciting venues!).

In the workshop I share how I work through these kinds of dilemmas and decision making every day when working on interior design projects, so that you can apply these techniques to your own interior design projects.

The DnA of Home Interiors Podcast is back!

Season 4 starts with Deirdre & I chatting with the most inspiring colour guru I know - Marianne Shillingford, creative director of Dulux.

You can now buy our interior design consultations and workshops as a gift via giftedlocal.com.

Gifted Local is an online marketplace for North Londoners who want to shop locally, an increasingly talked about idea as we enter lockdown 2!

What kind of reviews should you look for? Do they have any photos of their work? How local should you look to find the perfect tradesperson? How do I get an accurate quote? Which quote should I go with? There are so many questions involved when looking for a trustworthy person to come into your home, and we discuss these and lots more with Charlotte, who has some great advice to offer.

You can listen here, or read our notes below.

As we approach a full year of podcasting, Deirdre and I are delighted to see the story behind The DnA of Home Interiors in print!

See the article here, or read the full text below:

When Zita Whalley, journalist at the Ham & High newspaper got in touch asking to do a feature on this subject I told her I had just been through this in my own home! Needless to say my daughters are delighted to have their long-awaited triple bunkbeds featured in the local press…

I’ve only just found out about cottagecore as an official trend…oops…where have I been? Well the funny thing is I have been having my own very real dose of cottagecore over the last few years.

In 2015 myself and my husband (along with our 3 year old daughter) bought a run-down thatched cottage in the West of Ireland.

Earlier this evening I received a comment on my Facebook page from someone who had seen my social media post back in March, asking people to guess what colour Joe Wicks living room walls are painted. She was asking if I ever found out. There were some guesses on my Instagram post at the time, but no, I never did find out the answer.

This person on Facebook has just brought to my attention that this is now a burning question - perhaps the hottest interior design unanswered question of 2020 she is informing me…

Meet Jules Haines, founder of the Haines Collection in our latest episode of The DnA of Home Interiors. Jules is our first ever guest on the podcast so we are very excited about releasing this episode!

This was recorded back in early March, before we knew how badly we were all going to be affected by the Coronavirus pandemic. We were in Deirdre’s new office in London Bridge - the Kuldea HQ. It was great to get together and have such an inspiring conversation about the positivity and success that has come out of Jules’ business idea of reducing fabric waste in the interiors industry.

You can listen to the podcast here, or read our notes below.

As I mentioned in my previous blog post on paint colour tester pots, as interior designers much of our research, sourcing and ordering is done online. When researching furniture, soft furnishing and curtains ideas online, key to our process is ordering fabric samples.

This is a photo of Deirdre and I only last month at Borough Market, on one of our podcast days. We were busy recording episodes for our new Season 2 of The DnA of Home Interiors, but with little idea of how dramatically and suddenly life was about to change for us all.

Today we have released the first of these pre-recorded episodes. This one is all about conservatories and winter gardens. We have lots of guest interviews lined up for release over the coming weeks too. We hope you enjoy the podcast, please leave us a review if you do!

You can listen to the podcast here, or read our notes below.

It is so heartwarming to see ideas around creativity and collaboration emerge within the design industry at the moment. Designers and suppliers coming together in new ways to help and support each other through these challenging times.

One great example of this is the Collaborative Moodboard Project by textile and rug designer Claire Gaudion and I am delighted to be one of the collaborating brands!

Did you know you can order paint tester pots online?

Working as an interior designer, much of our research, sourcing and ordering is done online. Not just now during the coronavirus pandemic but all of the time.

So here are a few online resources which may be useful:

When Helen Robinson of Gifted Local asked me if I would write a guest blog post on interiors trends - it became a very interesting conversation. What is a trend…and can it actually now be described as a trend to be ‘off trend’?

You can read the full blog post on the Gifted Local website here, or see the text below.

Gifted Local is a new online business set up by local entrepreneur Helen Robinson.

Last year I noticed quite a few people attended my interior design workshops as a gift - someone else had bought them a ticket for their birthday or a special occasion.

Gifted Local seemed to me like a perfect platform to capture the imaginations of North Londoners who may wish to give the gift of some interior design expertise to a friend or a loved one!

Check out the workshops on the Gifted Local website here and you will find many other unique gifts on there too!

Ham & High journalist Zita Whalley got in touch to ask if she could interview me about a person who inspires my approach as an interior designer.

I talked to her about Ilse Crawford of StudioIlse. Read the full article here (page 42 of Issue XI Homestead magazine), or see below.

Delighted to be featured in the inspiration section of Kuldea.com (the website where you can search the entire furniture market in one place), in an interview with co-founder Deirdre Mc Gettrick. Deirdre and I first met in July and are now working on a podcast series called The DnA of Home Interiors, which will be launching soon!

You can read the interview on the Kuldea website here, or see the text below.