NEW RTE star Siobhan Lam has revealed the surprising reason she got into design and opened up about her home decoration inspiration.
The acclaimed interiors pro joined Amanda Bone and Hugh Wallace as the newest face on RTE’s Home of the Year this year.
Siobhan offers her top tips for designing your dream home[/caption]
Siobhan and her husband Jamie own April and the bear in Rathmines[/caption]
The show pairs Ireland’s leading architects and interior designers to crown the home of the year.
But what does the taste of an interior expert consist of, or how do they design their own home?
Siobhan spoke exclusively to The Irish Sun about the thought process for designing portions of her own house and where she got the idea to open up an interior store.
She explained the predominant factor when it comes to her taste in design, saying: “I definitely adore colour. I think colour, when you bring it into a space, it just energises it.
“It’s fun, it’s playful, like if you see my door, it’s pink. I think that embracing colour is the way to go.”
Siobhan owns and operates, April and the Bear, a home interior store, with her husband, Jamie, with whom she purchased her first home over a decade ago.
However, with her love of bold colours, do the pair ever disagree on their visions for their home?
Siobhan said that isn’t always the case: “No, we’re actually pretty similar. We do like the same aesthetic. We’ve been together for a very long time. We met in school. So our personalities and our tastes are very aligned.”
And this is evident from the first steps any guest takes within her home they are greeted by her pink door and an even bolder hallway.
She added: “I drenched our hall in yellow. And any time I go up the stairs now, I’m just instantly smiling. And that is the power of colour. It’s not for everybody.
“It’s a really vibrant yellow as well and I left everything else white, so it’s basically just a tunnel of yellow from the ceiling to the wall to the floor.
If some fans want to recreate Siobhan’s love of colour in their own home, she has some words of warning, saying: “You do have to consider the other colours that are around. Are they going to work together?
CONSIDER COLOUR
“If you’re going to go super bold with a colour like yellow, you might just leave the other wall white.”
The vibrant yellow that consumes her hallway is a tactical approach, fed by her love of colour and the emotions that colours can evoke.
Siobhan explained: “Well, the colour spectrum is huge and some colours are cold, some are warm. The warmer colours, like red, feed passion and emotion.
“Whereas the cooler colours, like green and blue, will instantly calm you down.
BEST EMOTION
“It doesn’t matter what colour that you are embracing in a room. Just introducing a colour instantly changes the mood of a space, as opposed to kind of leaving it bland. Introducing it adds drama, some vibrancy, some energy.
“And I love yellow. It is not something that people really bring into a home.”
And it’s the couple’s love for a unique pop of colour that inspired them to open their shop.
Just over ten years ago the couple bought their first home and during their hunt for the perfect interior pieces, she found none of it was available in Ireland.
EAGER DESIGN
She explained: “Myself and Jamie bought our first home, and we were renovating it ourselves.
“At the time, this was over 10 years ago, there wasn’t that much available in Ireland in terms of home accessories and furniture pieces that were a little bit different.
“Everything was a little bit generic. And so I thought there was an opportunity there for a store that was affordable, but different and unique.”
She added: “It’s such a personal thing, filling your home with pieces that you love. It’s such a personal expression of you. I don’t follow trends. I don’t suggest that people do follow trends when it comes to your home, because ultimately, it’s your place.
“It doesn’t matter what anybody else thinks. It’s just for you. So, embrace what you love. Follow your gut.”
Siobhan’s top home interior tricks
RTE Home of the Year judge Siobhan Lam offers her top tips for cheaply doing up your dream home.
She says: “The first thing is to sit down and identify what jobs you can actually do yourself; that’s a great hack, straight off the bat.
“If you can do any of the physical work yourself, safely, do it because everything costs so much now a days- anybody can pick up a paintbrush so you can paint. So take the painter off the list.”
Once you have listed your priorities, she says to “identify your number one”.
She adds: “If you only have a certain amount of cash to spend, per month, break it down.
“Can you survive in your kitchen for six months? Or is that the first one that you have to tackle?
“Which spaces need attention now, or can they wait six or nine months? Prioritise what needs attention first.”
Slipping in her own personal favourite style hack, she continued: “Finally, don’t underestimate the power of paint.
“Often, when you buy your first home, the amount of work can seem daunting, but more often than not, you can live in it while you work.
“Sometimes, all you need to do is paint the room, sit back, and ask yourself, ‘Do I need to do all these things?’ Or can I just do some cosmetic work?”
