Interior Style at The Gables with Emma Blomfield

Emma Blomfield has recently ran an interior online styling class for residents of The Gables, and for customers who are currently choosing their internal finishes on their new homes. Emma is an interior design specialist, whose passion is helping her clients create beautiful and meaningful spaces within the home. If you missed her online classes, read on below for some of her top tips and tricks for amplifying your interior style! 
  

1. What is the first step in understanding what your own personal style is?

Spend some time looking through interior sites, magazines or Pinterest and save anything that jumps out at you. After you've collated 20-30 images, go back and try and pinpoint any common elements. Chances are you'll find a pattern, such as all lounge rooms you saved feature navy sofas or all the bedrooms feature grey bedheads. This will help guide your style direction when it comes to making decisions for your home.

2. When it comes to choosing finishes, what are the main things to consider? Would you recommend any special order of importance?

Practicality and durability are the key elements when selecting finishes. If you know your family will be heavy-handed with things like taps and sinks don't go for pieces that require a lot of maintenance or something you have to be really careful with to avoid breaking them. Be realistic about the usage from the start so you aren't paying to repair something sooner than you need to.

3. Apart from finishes, what other core elements help to create a personalised space in a newly built home?

Soft furnishings and art are the perfect way to inject some personality into your home. You can use texture or colour to do this and have fun with it!

4. What is normally the most important part of the home to get right, or focus on first?

Focus on the overall look and feel first, this will help keep you on track when you start making purchase decisions and will mean you know which trend or style to stay within, to keep the entire project on track. Eg. if you opt for classic silver tones you'll do that throughout the house or if you want a more modern look perhaps a powder-coated black for door handles, tapware and doorknobs.

5. It could be up to a year from the time the finishes are chosen until the build is completed - what are your tips on how to future proof styling and interior design?

Buy what you keep getting drawn back to. You're obviously drawn to it for a reason so you'll make it work when you really love it.

6. What are your tips for personalising or styling outdoor spaces?

Colour! Outdoor spaces can be a bit bland but adding colour with plants, pots, rugs, dining table centrepieces or sofa cushions will help personalise the space and add character.