Here are our top 10 go-to blogs and publications for interior design inspiration - we are sure there is something here for everyone in the audience!
We all need inspiration before embarking on a project or approaching a quick refurb. It always pays to get a heads-up on what’s cool, what’s not and even if you don’t care about trends - what’s available.
How To Find a Local Interior Design Blog That Suits You
Interior designers themselves can be a good source of blog insights - go to the Interior Design Association members directory to check out their stable of certified professionals and chances are the great ones have a blog on their websites too.
Check out interior design magazines and publications for their features too, like Houseandhome.ie. for a steer.
Irish blog or digital media awards are also a good place to check as well. These shortlists tend to show up the best-in-class or most popular blogs in any year.
Sometimes boutique or independent suppliers write about their finds on their websites in an associated blog like April and the Bear. They’ve been blogging about their new shop fitout recently and it was a great fly on the wall read!
And of course, there’s us for uber practical advice!
Or just head to Pinterest to discover great blogs via the images they’ve pinned! We write more about Pinterest at the end of this article.
Local Design Publications You Just Can’t Miss
Image Interiors Magazine
The perfect go-to for all things stylish and contemporary in Ireland. You’ll get sneak peeks through the keyhole in celebrity homes as well statement properties in the more salubrious postcodes in Ireland.
They’ll also give you a look at quintessentially Irish Design combined with a global look-see at what’s trending in the wider world. You’ll even find hacks and tips for topical issues relating to the average homeowner - like renovating on a budget, using small urban spaces or maximising your Kitchen space.
The Gloss Magazine
True to its title, the Irish Times supplement provides a look at luxury and some of the higher-end branded products in the market with a strong emphasis on visual spreads and photoshoots.
Always good for inspiration, even if you’re about to emulate the look with more off-the-shelf DIY hacks. For example, their 30 Best Kitchens Guide gives you a whistle-stop tour of the most ‘Au courant’ kitchen styling to draw ideas from in terms of palette, material finishes and layouts.
They’re also a good avenue to interviews and profiles of some of the best design teams and architectural professionals in Ireland.
The Irish Country Magazine Irish Made Blog
Looking for local ways to support Irish Design and get a heads up on what’s happening on the Made in Ireland scene? Their Irish Made section is a great way to scan the current makers making a name for themselves.
Their annual Irish Made awards is a great source and shortlist of the interiors and homewares design talent on the market today.
HouseandHome.ie
For an honest-to-goodness no-nonsense interiors magazine, it doesn’t hurt to go to a publication that just “does what it says on the tin” (to borrow a phrase from a well-known DIY brand!).
They’re great in helping you ’Get the look’ with ideas that don’t break the bank with an emphasis on the affordable and mainstream.
Their thoughtful and timely article on ‘DORM ROOM DECOR’ was an intelligent piece for families and students navigating that transition to studio apartment living or campus accommodation.
They also added a clever prompt to preparing a guest bedroom at the end with even more tips that’ll support the transition.
Herfamily.ie Home Blog
For a more down to earth, familial take on all things home related - you can also take it down a notch with the family-focused Joe.ie offshoot.
They’ve packed their publication with calendar-conscious practical advice pieces like this super handy and motivational ‘Goodbye, clutter: 30-day challenge’ filled with a 30-day checklist of practical tasks.
You’ll probably want to do it now that we’re working from home more often, whilst striving for a more comfortable welcoming family space that doesn’t add to the stress.
Lifestyle Bloggers
diana-valentine.com
Diana has a great visually arresting and topical blog, having been a social media and online content editor in the past for design publications.
She writes about interiors & design, travel, food, stylish wearables and desirable objects for the home, cool and cultured things to do and see, including her recent gardening hobby.
Her articles and interviews have been published in IMAGE Interiors & Living, IMAGE magazine online, THE GLOSS magazine, herfamily.ie, The Irish Independent, House and Home magazine, among others.
aproudhome.ie
The personal approach from Joanne Mooney from Swords Co. Dublin made us warm to this award-winning blog. She is also passionate about creativity, colour and all things handmade and homemade.
We knew this was a blog with a lot of authenticity and homegrown stories when she mentioned handmade dresses and knitted socks in her intro!
She also runs a small creative online business www.tinythings.ie which she set up in 2005.
The whole focus of this blog is really about inspiring people to be creative in their homes, and it shows in the eclectic smorgasbord of visuals in her blog roundup. She’s brimful of ideas and how-to guides when crafting homemade decor and decorations.
Right now we’re pouring over her kooky crafty pom-pom addiction in time for the perfect DIY Christmas as she breaks down ways to make pom-pom wreaths, pom-pom baubles and even personalised pom-pom puddings!
OldVictorianNew.com
There’s a genre of home design blogs that combine the things we find most irresistible - a high-end renovation journey fly on the wall blog, upcycling projects, stylish design on a budget and a look through the keyhole into an Irish period property.
Darra Heaney’s blog about his transformation of an 1890’s redbrick Victorian terraced house does all of the above.
His before and after blogs like his Utility Room Makeover makes for addictive reading. He’s a big fan of easy DIY room makeovers that don’t cost the earth. How could we resist!
Daintydressdiaries.com
Billed amongst the top 10 influencers in Ireland in 2021, it’s hard to ignore Catherine Carton of @Daintydressdiaries who loves posting about Decoration, Design, Interior Design on Instagram and her blog daintydressdiaries.com.
Her blog is populated by natural photography and her passion for transforming the old into the new - something we should all be focusing on a bit more in the ‘current climate’.
DIY and upcycling enthusiasts will spend hours here - we guarantee it! Right now her blog on ‘How to make your home feel cosy in Autumn’ is filled with simple practical things you could do right now, like finding the right coloured light bulbs to sprucing up your bed linen.
kingstonlaffertydesign.com
For a polished professional take on all things interiors, this is where you need to go.
Tipped as one of the top influencers in Irish Design, Roisin Lafferty is a rising design star who is the Creative Director of award-winning KLD design practice and owner of one of the most followed Instagram accounts in Ireland @roisinlaffertykld with is very geometric almost Wes-Anderson like grid.
A visit to kingstonlaffertydesign.com yields a photo-essay view, as it presents the array of work in her portfolio. There is a fresh yet contemporary use of colour and each piece in her portfolio appears unique and not derivative of its counterparts.
Head to their PROJECTS for the story behind each original brief and view its one-of-a-kind results. We love it for its inspiration, originality and the fantasy of beholding what a no-limit budget might possibly deliver.
Ready To Mood Board All Those Great Visuals?
Start a Pinterest account if you haven’t done so. It’s a mood board for online content in the same way we use to cut out and scrapbook magazine cutting.
You can create several “Boards” where you can ‘Pin’ the amazing visuals you may be discovering online using the image links or a Pinterest plugin in your browser.
We love the way you can share your boards or even collaborate with someone online. A great way to communicate your ideas visually to suppliers or designers you may be working with in the next house refurb.
Got Any Fav Design Blogs To Share?
Spotted other great go-to blogs for us interior design buffs?
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