EACH WEEK, WE ask an Irish person with a passion for interiors to share one photo of their favourite spot in their home.
Abigail O’Sullivan and her fiancé are based in Belfast, and they bought their first home last year.
“When we bought our house, it was stuck in the 1960s with orange carpet, dated wallpaper in every room and a lime green kitchen,” says Abigail. “However, I knew it had great potential and could see past the dated decor.”
I created the designs myself with lots of research and ideas gathered over the years from local home magazines and visits to show homes. We tried to stick to a budget and keep to a high standard of finish.
This week, Abigail (@homewithabigail) chatted us through her favourite spot: her lounge.
This is the heart of my home, where I spend most of my free time either entertaining guests, enjoying a glass of wine in front of the fire, or catching up on my favourite box sets. With the French doors, I have the option of opening it up to make it feel more spacious, or I can close the doors to make it feel more cosy. It’s great to have the option of both.
Instagram is a great way of discovering other people’s themes and designs. It’s also a good way of finding out home hacks and discovering bargains, where I bought a lot of items for my house. Pinterest boards were also very helpful in narrowing down my exact vision for each room.
I spent numerous weekends visiting some of Ireland’s high-end home interior stores (all above my budget). I took ideas from these visits, however, and started hunting for items inspired by what I had seen. By looking online and checking out sales in high street stores – and even picking up the odd item from the classifieds online – I found a lot of things at a fraction of the price of what I could have paid.
There are so many things in this photo that mean a lot to me as I spent years piecing together ideas of what my first home would look like. One of my favourite pieces in my house is the fireplace created by my father. This was previously an outdated fireplace surround which we had removed. The new version was created from a design I showed him from Pinterest, from the oak beam to the slate hearth and brick arch. The stove is great for the winter nights, with the fire and a bunch of candles, it looks like it’s been here for years.
The shelves in the corner hold some of my favourite memories – from our engagement, family and holiday photos, and some items given to me by my grandparents and my husband’s grandparents who are no longer with us, which hold a lot of sentimental value.
It’s fair to say there is a clear theme with the decor and the ambiance throughout the house. I started our home renovation from scratch; I had a blank canvas to play with and I decorated each room with a similar design, giving it a fresh, airy, subtle feeling with neutral colours throughout.
I will be honest, I had a bit of tidying up to do in the dining room. At the time, Christopher had just hung up our new mirror above the fireplace (which caused a lot of dust). I may even have lit the fire and fetched the sticks to place in the basket..
Even though I love to create a warm and inviting home where friends and family can gather to relax, everything has to be in place. I am a neat freak and the house is always spotless. That said, nothing organises you more than a daily Instagram home post or impending visitors!
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