The Do’s and Don’t’s of home styling trends with Darren Palmer – Ep.39

This week’s guest needs very little introduction. Darren Palmer joined television show The Block in 2011 as one of three expert judges. He is considered one of Australia’s most influential interior designers and in addition to his TV role, Darren founded Darren Palmer Designed in 2006, providing interior design services and homewares for clients. Darren joins Mike in this week’s podcast to share his secrets on the do’s and don’ts of home styling.

In this episode Darren explains how he made his foray into the world of television from his initial audition eleven years ago. He talks through what novice home stylists typically get wrong when it comes to preparing their properties for sale and explains the importance of a comprehensive brief which takes into account the desired mood and style to be created, as well as budget and timeframe.

Mike and Darren discuss how easy it is to be overwhelmed by choice and Darren explains how beginning with the end in mind can serve to simplify the design process. Discussing everything from how the geographic location may influence the design aesthetic, to how to create a sanctuary with broad appeal, Darren shares his top tips for staging a property for sale. He also touches on how to avoid over-capitalisation, and the importance of design fundamentals such as using both complimentary and contrasting textures and finishes to bring a room together.

Whether you’re ready to put your property on the market and need some design tips, or have been an avid follower of The Block for years, this is a conversation you won’t want to miss. With an infusion of good humour and practical examples, this episode has something for everyone.

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This week’s guest needs very little introduction. Darren Palmer joined television show The Block in 2011 as one of three expert judges. He is considered one of Australia’s most influential interior designers and in addition to his TV role, Darren founded Darren Palmer Designed in 2006, providing interior design services and homewares for clients. Darren joins Mike in this week’s podcast to share his secrets on the do’s and don’ts of home styling.

• Darren’s introduction to The Block
• What people typically get wrong in design
• Beginning with the end in mind
• Having regard to geographic location
• Designing for the market that you’re in
• Avoiding over-capitalisation
• The fundamental theory of compliment and contrast
• Darren’s top tips for staging for sale

“If you start without the end in mind and you buy a bunch of things that you like, without an idea of whether they’re going to fit into your budget, timeline, style, and mood specifically…then you could end up with a whole bunch of things that are really nice and that nothing work.“ Darren 7:27

“There’s lots of things you can learn in terms of…writing a brief, having visual reference, in terms of a Pinterest board or you know a scrapbook or whatever it is – those things keep you on track”  Darren 9:30

“if you are creating a space without regard for what the geographic location is and you’re trying to force a country aesthetic onto a city apartment or a penthouse aesthetic onto a country home then…you’re trying to tart something up but what’s underneath is still what’s underneath”  Darren 12:55

“I think it’s more important that it’s appropriate to the market that you’re in, it’s appropriate to your needs, it meets your brief and you know you’re spending the right amount of money to achieve that, so that should something happen in the future that you need to sell, or if your objective is to sell that there is still margin, there’s still fat, in your property value after you’ve done any improvements” Darren 17:15

“That’s really the idea, is to create that kind of sanctuary feeling and a sanctuary at one point in time might be that cosy sort of nana style, another one might be – I want everything sanitised “ Mike 25:12

Links mentioned

https://www.darrenpalmer.com/masterseries/

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