How Authentic Style Will Elevate Your Home Decor
Interiors and Design Penelope J. Herbert Interiors and Design Penelope J. Herbert

How Authentic Style Will Elevate Your Home Decor

Understanding and identifying your authentic interior design style can feel like navigating a maze, but it’s a journey worth taking.

Your home should be a reflection of you; a space where your personality, preferences, and lifestyle shine through. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you uncover your authentic style and transform your home into a true sanctuary.

Read More
The Lust-Worthy Art of Luxury Design: Creating a Luxurious Home with Dark and Moody Colours
Interiors and Design, Colour Penelope J. Herbert Interiors and Design, Colour Penelope J. Herbert

The Lust-Worthy Art of Luxury Design: Creating a Luxurious Home with Dark and Moody Colours

You’ll love creating a luxurious home with dark colours! Dark colours have long been misunderstood in the realm of home design.

Too often, they’re seen as sombre, drab, or even oppressive. However, when used correctly, dark hues will infuse a home with elegance, luxury, and a sense of dramatic sophistication. Let's explore how you can transform your living spaces with rich, dark colours, creating a stunningly chic and inviting atmosphere.

Read More
Adopt This White Paint Guide; Your Walls Really Need It!
Colour, Interiors and Design Penelope J. Herbert Colour, Interiors and Design Penelope J. Herbert

Adopt This White Paint Guide; Your Walls Really Need It!

In this white paint guide, we'll delve into the nuanced world of white paint, exploring the differences between various shades, how to test them on your walls, what to watch out for, and ultimately, how to select the perfect white paint for your home.

We demystify white paint and help you find the perfect shade for your home renovation. Adopt this white paint guide; your walls really need it!

White paint may seem like a straightforward choice for your walls, but any experienced interior designer will tell you that not all whites are created equal. The subtle nuances in undertones and finishes can drastically alter the mood and aesthetic of a room.

Read More
The Free E-Book That Will Change How You Use Colour in Your Home (Not Just on Your Walls)
Interiors and Design, Colour Penelope J. Herbert Interiors and Design, Colour Penelope J. Herbert

The Free E-Book That Will Change How You Use Colour in Your Home (Not Just on Your Walls)

When you walk through your front door, do you feel something? Or do you feel… nothing? The interior design equivalent of a firm handshake. If that's your home right now, I wrote ‘Colour Without Apology’ for you.

Colour Without Apology is my free, complete colour guide — and I want to be clear about something from the start. This isn't just a paint guide.

Read More
Room Decorating Ideas for Small Versus Big
Colour, Interiors and Design Penelope J. Herbert Colour, Interiors and Design Penelope J. Herbert

Room Decorating Ideas for Small Versus Big

When it comes to room decorating ideas, most people want to know how to make a space appear either bigger or smaller. That's the way of the world so I've got a few tricks up my sleeve for you.
Successful decorating often revolves around trying to trick the eye. This includes visually manipulating the size of rooms and to hide architectural features or perceived defects.

Read More
Why We Love Living Room Fusion… and You Should Too
Colour, Interiors and Design Penelope J. Herbert Colour, Interiors and Design Penelope J. Herbert

Why We Love Living Room Fusion… and You Should Too

Living room fusion is what happens when you stop apologising for having more than one taste. Hollywood Glam and Art Deco in the same room? Absolutely. Southern California ease layered with ornate antiques? Why not. The design world will tell you to "pick a style and commit" — which is useful advice if your personality fits neatly into one box and wildly unhelpful if you're a more interesting person than that.

Read More
The Biggest Interior Design Mistake You Don’t Even Realise You’re Making
Interiors and Design, Colour Penelope J. Herbert Interiors and Design, Colour Penelope J. Herbert

The Biggest Interior Design Mistake You Don’t Even Realise You’re Making

Your home is not a waiting room for the life you're planning to live one day. It's not a showroom for buyers who might come along in seven years. It's not a safe, inoffensive backdrop designed to offend nobody and delight nobody in equal measure.

It's where you live. Right now. Today. And it should feel like the most honest room in your life — the one place where nobody else's opinion gets a vote.

The biggest design mistake is choosing everything from fear. The fix is choosing one thing — just one thing — from joy instead. Start there. See what happens.

Read More
How To Add Value by Designing Bedrooms The Right Way
Interiors and Design Penelope J. Herbert Interiors and Design Penelope J. Herbert

How To Add Value by Designing Bedrooms The Right Way

Designing bedrooms was originally only to create functional spaces – a place for sleeping and changing clothes. They were often tucked away in corners with minimal consideration for sunlight or panoramic views. Now, times have truly changed. This post details how to design bedrooms that add real value — from timeless adult retreats to flexible kids' rooms that grow with them.

Read More
How to Choose a Sofa Colour That Won’t Bore You to Tears
Interiors and Design, Colour Penelope J. Herbert Interiors and Design, Colour Penelope J. Herbert

How to Choose a Sofa Colour That Won’t Bore You to Tears

Forget “safe” grey. Here’s how to choose a sofa colour with personality that actually works in your real-life living room.

It’s the colour of safety, of “good taste,” of not offending anyone. And yet, have you ever sat in a beige room and felt your brain quietly fall asleep? Here’s the uncomfortable truth: your beige sofa might be gently murdering your creativity.

Read More
FIFTY SHADES OF WHITE: Why I’m Breaking Up With Resale-Obsessed Design
Interiors and Design Penelope J. Herbert Interiors and Design Penelope J. Herbert

FIFTY SHADES OF WHITE: Why I’m Breaking Up With Resale-Obsessed Design

I’m breaking-up with resale-obsessed design because “timeless neutrals” are just code for “I gave up.”

The Interior Design World Has a Problem

And no, it isn’t your unapologetically bold rug or slightly extra lamp. It’s the global epidemic of homes smothered in fifty near-identical shades of white, beige, greige and “stone” — all looking like undercooked porridge in different lighting.

This isn’t calm. It’s design sedation. Somewhere between “quiet luxury” and “minimalist chic”, a dangerous myth crept in: if your home has personality, you’re doing it wrong. Spoiler — that’s utter rubbish.

Read More
Tiles With A Pulse: How To Use Bold Tiles On Floors, Walls, Curves And Splashbacks
Wet Areas, Renovating and New Homes, Colour Penelope J. Herbert Wet Areas, Renovating and New Homes, Colour Penelope J. Herbert

Tiles With A Pulse: How To Use Bold Tiles On Floors, Walls, Curves And Splashbacks

Stop playing it safe with white subway tiles and start using tiles as architecture, artwork and attitude.

Tiles are where the renovation stops being polite and starts being interesting. Forget “just a floor” or “just a splashback”—tiles are architecture, artwork and attitude rolled into one. In this first installment of five in our finishes series, we’re turning tiles into the main character of your home, not the understudy.

Read More
Why “Cloud Dancer White” Isn’t the Future We Ordered
Interiors and Design, Colour Penelope J. Herbert Interiors and Design, Colour Penelope J. Herbert

Why “Cloud Dancer White” Isn’t the Future We Ordered

The 2026 interior trend ‘Cloud Dancer White’ claims to be calm and timeless — but it’s really design-on-autopilot. Here’s why this overused neutral needs a rethink, and how to create richer, warmer spaces with real personality. White has quietly become the answer to everything: calm, resale, minimalism, safety.
But here’s the truth — at this point, white isn’t a design choice. It’s a design default.

Read More
2026 Interior Design Trends: Neo Deco, Cool Blue and Opera Aesthetic for No-Vanilla Homes
Interiors and Design, Colour Penelope J. Herbert Interiors and Design, Colour Penelope J. Herbert

2026 Interior Design Trends: Neo Deco, Cool Blue and Opera Aesthetic for No-Vanilla Homes

The 2026 interior design forecast is full of noise, but three 2026 interior design trends have real staying power:

Neo Deco, Cool Blue and Opera Aesthetic interiors. Used well, they are bold, liveable and fiercely anti-beige—and they play beautifully in Australian homes, from city apartments to Adelaide Hills retreats.

2026 Interior Design Trends: Neo Deco, Cool Blue and Opera Aesthetic for No-Vanilla Homes

If 2025 was the year people finally admitted they were bored of beige, 2026 is the year they actually do something about it.

“Safe” interiors are quietly dying; homes with backbone, glamour and personality are stepping into the spotlight as the new standard, not the exception.

Read More
5 Signs Your Home Needs a Redesign
Interiors and Design, Renovating and New Homes Penelope J. Herbert Interiors and Design, Renovating and New Homes Penelope J. Herbert

5 Signs Your Home Needs a Redesign

Your Home is Crying Out for Help! (And No, More Beige Isn't the Answer). Alright, rebels, rule-breakers, and lovers of homes with actual SOUL. Let's have a brutally honest chat. Your house? It’s talking. And if it’s whispering "safe," "inoffensive," or (God forbid) "greige," then it’s basically screaming for an intervention.

These are the Top 5 Design Demons we're slaying.

Read More
Kid-Friendly and Chic: Living Room Ideas That Work for Everyone
Interiors and Design, Child-Friendly Penelope J. Herbert Interiors and Design, Child-Friendly Penelope J. Herbert

Kid-Friendly and Chic: Living Room Ideas That Work for Everyone

If your living room looks like Toys ‘R’ Us exploded, this is your sign: the toys can stay, the ugly can’t. For parents juggling the demands of family life and a love for stylish interiors, finding that balance can seem impossible. But what if we told you it doesn’t have to be? In this guide, we’ll show you how to create a beautiful, functional living room that works for the whole family. From clever storage solutions to furniture that can handle sticky fingers, you’ll discover easy design tips that make your space feel chic, even with little ones around.

Read More
Globetrotting Renovations Inspired By Your Dream Travel Destinations
Renovating and New Homes, Wet Areas Penelope J. Herbert Renovating and New Homes, Wet Areas Penelope J. Herbert

Globetrotting Renovations Inspired By Your Dream Travel Destinations

When Adelaidians travel, they are often inspired by the places they visit. Bring some of those ideas home with globetrotting-inspired Adelaide renovations that have been inspired by where you have been OR your dream travel destinations. Why not bring travel destinations to your doorstep through an exciting home renovation. This is a beautiful way to spice up your space and create your own escape. However, the best things is you won’t even have to get your passport out!

Read More

Our blog is a treasure trove of knowledge, filled with valuable insights, expert tips, and insider secrets.

We delve into a wide range of topics that cater to renovators of all levels, from the novice DIYer to the sophisticated homeowner looking to transform their space.

Whether you're in the early planning stages or about to embark on construction, our blog covers it all.

Additionally, we keep you updated on the latest building and renovation techniques, as well as innovative products that can elevate your space to new heights.

We believe that informed clients make the best decisions, which is why we take pride in sharing our knowledge and expertise with you.

Our blog is designed to demystify the interior design and renovation process, making it accessible and understandable for everyone.

So whether you're seeking inspiration, practical advice, or a deeper understanding of the art of renovation, you've come to the right place.

Join us on this exciting journey as we empower you to transform your home into a space that reflects your unique style and personality.