Get lost in Dublin's New Design Triangle - Portobello

Stop what you're doing. You read right.Move towards the kitchen area. Turn on Kettle. Make beverage of choice. Breathe. Relax. And let me take you on a little journey around Dublin's newest Design Triangle of Portobello. This is where I spent some wonderful hours with one of my BFF's last Saturday. 

It'd been a month since we caught up, so it was a really nice opportunity to get together & join one of our combined passions of Design, with a Cuppa + a good ol' gossip! Ah, dontcha need one, every once in a while?!S.& I have the same taste in restaurants/hotels, so, when she suggested Wall & Keogh for our meet, I was delighted to see a gorgeous Café in front of me, when I descended the bus, across the street.

www.wallandkeogh.wix/wallandkeogh

Cool Table Art greeted me both outside & in

As i cosied into this corner by the window, I couldn't help but notice the interesting Interiors surrounding me + took a few snaps while waiting for my coffee & S. Here's just a taster...

It was no hardship to sit awhile, listening to soft tunes playing on the stereo, drinking this... 

...as S. & I started what would be a two-part catch-up. But we were concious that there was an exciting venture to go check out around the corner, on Lennox Street:

www.dust.ie

The Reason we were in this neck of the Canal was I had entered a competition run by the girls, Lisa + Sarah, creators of DUST and won! Yay! It was the first of their competitions {they very generously ran a few} and i was extremely excited to spend my winnings, but also see this new Interiors Pop Up for myself. We were there on the opening day, but it runs until the 27th of October, with plans already for a Christmas Pop Up + a permanent space in  the new year. So, without further ado, I present to you my new favourite space in Dublin -

 

Lid on Candle Bottle ON...

...Lid on Candle Bottle OFF!

Wallpaper: House of Hackney | Balston Rose

Hard to choose, but My own personal favourite!
Because it's true.

 

And this was just the FIRST room! I was chatting so much to the girls, I didn't take any pics of their Faux Flower Shop in the next! I may have uttered "Give me a sleeping bag & I'd happily spend the night here", upon exiting. Or not. Depends on how embarassing you think that was.

And so we left, ready for lunch {It's hungry work searching for pretty} and ended up right back where we started, for 'Catch up Part Two' in Wall & Keogh. But, not before popping in to Picado Mexican Pantry just right next door to the Café. 

www.picadomexican.com

I had a little extra interest in the Interiors here as i follow an Interiors Blog www.hydrangeagirl.com and Alex recently completed the design for the Pantry. I've been following her for a while now, and although we've never met, She has been encouraging + lovely. I could see some of her signature style in the space...

Girl loves her Skulls! And she told me this Sugar Skull belonged to her.

The lovely Daili, who was there on the day

Well, it was pretty much the end to a perfect design day .

And what did i choose in DUST? Another amazing Irish Design Duo, Ail+El, came under my radar a while ago. I found out about DUST and the competition through their Facebook page, so it was only apt that i would come away with one of their, becoming iconic, Concrete Planters -

www.ailandel.com

All photo's my own. If you'd like to use them, i'd be more than chuffed but please credit me with the appropriate link. You can also also follow me on:

Facebook: Hilda by Design | Twitter: @mcevoyhilda | Pinterest: Hilda by Design

Thanks for stopping by! Let me know what you thought of the blog below 

An Inspirational Talk: Diarmuid Gavin, Gardener Extraordinaire

Well, this blog has been a looooong time coming! I attended a talk with Gardener Extraordinaire, Diarmuid Gavin's at the Ideal Home Show in the RDS, Dublin in April. The show will be coming back in October and I guess it got me thinking about the blog that never was.

I was the eager beaver. I arrived at the seated area waaaaay too early, Coffee in hand of course, wanting to get a spot before they were all taken. I was ready to hear about Gardening. I know NOTHING of the subject, so I really didn't know what to expect. What I didn't expect was to hear one of the most Inspirational talks that I have heard relating to MY passion: Design. And this is just a little summary:

Diarmuid Gavin {DG} jumped on to the stage and the energy was palpable. He started to talk about his own influences and here's where it gets really cute. He shared a photo of a garden in Rathfarnham he knew + loved when he was a kid, which made a statement...

"We all want to make statements" {Quote + Photo: Diarmuid Gavin}

Can you just about make out the gnomes?? There's a statue of Budda in there too. I don't know why but it's not exactly what I was expecting! But, it stands out. He spoke of other influences such as Landscape Architect, Capability Brown, and the possibly more kooky examples of Star Trek + Willy Wonka to name a few. "Shadow, Light and Natural Landscapes" {DG} were highlighted also. He introduced me to a 'garden' that I hope to visit one day. It's a Repurposed Train-Track in New York City, called the 'High Line'...

"Anything that's dramatic, I love" {Quote: DG | Image: Pinterest}


It took my breath away. He mentioned that he loved "...gardens that float or are in unexpected places" {DG}. He shared some images of gardens he had designed...

His Chelsea Flower Show win is probably one of his most famous designs + words can't express how much I love it! "Creating Gardens is all about Controlling Space" {DG | Image www.interiorsdirectory.com}

2 designs also stood out for me: A Coastal Retreat in Ireland and a Penthouse Terrace in Altringham, Cheshire (...designed for a famous footballer, but he couldn't reveal who!!) and can be viewed at www.diarmuidgavindesigns.co.uk . And I was so inspired that I've added two more books to my ever-growing-wish-list (which just happen to include another Designer I admire!) :

He spoke of so much more: showing + describing his plans for his OWN garden at home in Ireland & talked about the designing of the challenging space for the garden at Temple Street Children's Hospital, Dublin. He finished the talk with some advice: to create something that suits you, to have fun with gardens and "...if possible, make people smile" {DG}. And what does the early bird also catch? Well, Diarmuid was only setting up when I arrived and very kindly posed for a pic, so, this budding Interior Designer went home with a smile xx

A little Monday Morning Chat!

Good Morning! I normally start off my week on my Facebook page with a little 'Hi' after the weekend & this mornings was getting pretty chatty, so I decided to pop it into a blog! Hope your weekend was fab? Ours was a flurry of Birthday parties {Yay!} and a Goodbye party {Sniff!}...So, it's a tired Hilda greeting you today!

It's Our Bedroom that I'm concentrating on this week. It needs an 'Autumn Clean' as I just realised that, out of all of the areas in the house, my vision for this room is the foggiest...I have some ideas of course, but I have chopped and changed on just how much colour I want to introduce. I had thought of a beautiful blast of Chinoiserie wallpaper behind our bed, but then, as I lay in bed one morning, a little "over tired" {Irish Code for Severely Hungover} from the night before, I felt maybe it may be a little too much. I enjoyed the Calm & Serenity that our nearly All White Bedroom was giving me...So! I'm going to Chronicle my little Bedroom Journey. There may be chops & changes but hey, that's the process and I may ask your advice a little along the way too. For the moment, I'm thinking mostly Neutral with some bursts of Colour but it's exactly HOW much colour that will remain to be seen. Here's my first glimpse of 'Pinspiration' - I love the Lamp, the Textures, the Glam feel it's evoking...You? And I've also popped up the original image that made me a Chinoiserie convert. So, See you back here soon for more bedroom fun! Oo'er Missus!!

www.decorpad.com

www.housebeautiful.com

Share It Friday #2

Friday? Again? Hope you've had a great week. Mine's been busy but good and here's a little round up of what's caught my attention + what I've been up to!

The lovely Marian from www.herbicarni.com has just announced a list of very exciting cooking demo's with Miele at City West Business Camp. Hope to make at least one myself! To book, click on the above link.

Candle Crush #1 from amazing Irish company www.gildandcage.com And they are €3 each. Yup. You read that right!

Candle Crush #2 is a limited edition and a collaboration from two of my favourite companies: Dyptique  +  Liberty London. Photo Source: Dyptique

Tiger Stores Ireland came up trumps yet again with these Ceramic knobs, retailing at €2 each. There is quite a selection. This is the combination I choose!

...And here's one in situ! On the door under our stairs which shall be  'made over' further; just haven't decided exactly what to do yet! {It will most likely involve wallpaper/paint!}

When I saw these Geometric Bowls from Dunnes Stores on line, I instantly fell in love with them.  They fit in beautifully with the Colour Clash that is occuring in my Dining Area!

I just couldn't resist popping up a pic of the beginnings of my Paleo breakfast the other day-just to show you how pretty everything looks in them + I love the deepness!

I repurposed a frame I recieved at the recent wedding I attended and popped a postcard in it that I  got at the Parisian Costume Exhibition at the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin Castle way back in March. I have 3 other postcards and they are going to go up in my downstairs loo!

Just to show you what the frame will look like against a sample of Farrow & Ball's Silvergate: my chosen wallpaper

#fridayfunny Courtesy of Clontarf Wines; photo taken by me!
Have a great one!! And, as always, I love to hear your feedback xx

A Country Church, A Family Wedding & Waterford Castle

Once Upon a Time...A girl who loves Design went, with her little family to a family wedding. They were blessed and privileged to be invited. The wedding was in a Country Church in Crook, Passage East, Waterford. The reception was in Waterford Castle {www.waterfordcastleresort.com} and they stayed in the Golf Lodges there. The Bride is French - Canadian and the beautiful motif on their Invitations, Wedding booklet & Cake reflected this. The happiness + love filled the Castle. On the way home, she stopped at a café and took a photo of some words on the wall which seemed apt & rang true. This is her story. They are only beginning theirs♥

All photo's © Hilda by Design