We are joined today by our first Australian guest ever! Melissa Penfold is Australia’s foremost authority on style and design, a bestselling author, columnist, editor, and journalist. She calls her book Living Well by Design the ultimate decorating book. Melissa talks about keeping design simple, functional, and uniquely you. We also discuss a lot of pointers from her book to help you create a style that makes you happy. What You’ll Hear on This Episode: What was Melissa’s process and selection for creating her book? Why Melissa doesn’t think design is “hard”. How to play up your home’s strengths. How to differentiate your house especially in a subdivision. What are Melissa’s g0-to design elements? How to shop for quality no matter your budget. Why having a variety of textures is so important. It’s important to use every room in your house; and make them all your happy place! How does design in Australia differ from design in the US? Decorating Dilemma Hi Emily, What would make the biggest difference of all is to open up the entire back as one large door ceiling to floor. I’m not sure if that’s in your budget, but it would make it fabulous! However, if you want to stick with what you’ve got you can correct the window and sliding door by getting rid of the vertical blinds and hanging new curtains from the ceiling. Hang them on the left on a metal rod and use fabric the same color as the walls; it doesn’t have to be expensive but use it in abundance. Go wider than the window and do a proper Roman shade instead of faux. I like the floors and the tulip table, but I would lose the tablecloth and put the chairs around the table in a pair. I would also keep the banquet and the Ikea cabinet. If you want to change the paint just carry it through the whole space. It’s a lovely color, but you could go slightly warmer with less grey and more beige. I would also change the handle on the sliding glass door to something more modern. A very large, rectangular rug in that space would also anchor the whole area. One thing I would do outside is get two large potted trees just outside that door; maybe orange or olive trees. You could even grow something along that fenceline--jasmine smells lovely and grows like wild! Good luck, Emily! You’re 90% there. Please send us photos when you’re done! Mentioned in This Episode: Melissa Penfold Melissa Penfold on Instagram Living Well by Design