How your design philosophy sets the stage for life at home. The way you think about your home affects the way you feel about yourself and your life. Unfortunately, the dominant philosophy on interior design in the Western world has driven a wedge between us and our homes. Convenience and speed have taken priority over individuality and meaning. We’re losing the essence of home and who we are in the process. By philosophy I’m referring to “a theory or attitude that acts as a guiding principle for behaviour” (Oxford Dictionary). Your philosophy of home is your beliefs about what your home shoul ..read more

How to avoid over-styling the personality out of your home Interior design has become highly commoditised. Fast furniture, design influencers on social media and now AI generated designs are increasingly leading to cookie cutter homes with minimal personalisation or individual character. It’s easy to go down a generic styling path for your home because it’s the path of least resistance (read more about this here). But if you’re yearning for your home to be a haven, to restore you and uplift you, then it needs to be more personal. One of the biggest barriers I see to achieving an inviting, pers ..read more

A lot of interior design “inspiration” feels like it’s missing something to me. Take this image below for example.   I see this design style everywhere. Now don’t get me wrong, I think this is a nice space. It’s uncluttered and the plants, curves and texture bring a sense of warmth and comfort. But it’s just not a particularly interesting or inspiring room. It tells me nothing about the people who live here and hence it feels flat and aloof – more like a showroom than a home.   I call this approach to decorating the “Path of Least Resistance” interior design style. Here’s why: It ..read more

The psychology of making a hybrid bedroom office space work. Have you heard these comments: “Avoid your bedroom as your remote workspace” “Why you shouldn’t do work in your bedroom” “Don’t work in your bedroom when you work from home” … Internet headlines are all doom and gloom when it comes to combining your bedroom with a home office/ study space. Sleep specialists are adamant that sleeping and working in the same room is a recipe for disaster. But what if you work from home and have limited space? What if you’re a high school or university student studying for exams in your bedroom? With no ..read more

Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is diagnosed in about 1 in 20 Australians - that’s around 1 million people. But ADHD is often misunderstood or misdiagnosed, so this figure is thought to be much higher. That means you probably know someone with ADHD. If you, or someone you love, is living with ADHD, you’ll have experienced first hand the impact your home environment has on emotional wellbeing and day-to-day functioning. ADHD brains are more sensitive to their surroundings than neurotypical brains. For example, my daughter is very particular about the colour temperature of light ..read more

Paint has magic powers when it comes to freshening up your home. With a relatively small investment, you can transform the look and feel of a space in just a couple of days. Not only will paint make your interiors look new again but, with the right colours, your home can become your haven … a calming, joyful oasis. However, choosing paint is one of the most daunting design decisions you’ll have to make! There are thousands of colours, tints, shades and tones to choose from. Not to mention a multitude of paint brands, formulas and finishes. To narrow down your options and make the right paint ..read more

What does it really take to love your home? To feel proud of the spaces you’ve created. To experience contentment and joy when you walk through your front door. What’s stopping you from feeling good about your home right now? When I have conversations like this with women, there are a few barriers to loving their home that come up again and again: I don’t have a big enough budget, I feel overwhelmed by all the choices and don’t know where to start, I’m not creative enough. These feel like big obstacles and when we can’t do what we think we need to do to love our home, it impacts our em ..read more

What is it and does it change how you feel about your home? Have you ever found a lone Christmas decoration in your home in February? I carefully pack my Christmas decorations away in January, walking through the house a few times to make sure I collect them all. So, the discovery of a Christmas cushion on my sofa this week made me think I was possibly going a little bit crazy! How could I have missed it? It was hidden in plain sight! This is a clear cut case of ‘domestic blindness’. A quick survey of my friends suggest I’m not alone though. A few of them have found at least one Christmas dec ..read more

People often ask me what the difference is between Feng Shui and Design Psychology. I love this question because it tells me that you’re looking for a deeper, more meaningful connection with your home, beyond the superficiality of popular trends and glossy magazine spreads. You are thinking about how your home can best support you and your family. Most people (even the ‘experts’ in home design) undervalue the importance of creating spaces that nurture and inspire us to live our best life. Design Psychology and Feng Shui both seek to remedy this – they are different approaches to the same probl ..read more

I’m pretty sure we all have a space in our home that isn’t working exactly the way we want it to. Most people I talk to about their homes have rooms that are underutilised or not meeting their needs in some way. Life’s busy, so redecorating often gets relegated to the bottom of the pile. But issues in your home have a funny way of poking at you until you become frustrated enough to do something about them. Every house has its foibles and design psychologists are expert in trouble shooting layout and design issues in your home that are driving you nuts, especially if you can’t quite put a finge ..read more