Where did the idea behind Material Girls start? When did the blog begin?Well, it was actually my boyfriend who suggested that I start a design blog back in September 2007—so I definitely owe a lot to him! The blog’s original name was “Dear Designer” and it started as a general design blog (not categorized by cities). I never thought anyone would read the blog and mainly started it as a creative outlet for myself. A few months later, Lauren (our Houston blogger) started blogging for Dear Designer also. I went to design school with Lauren at The University of Oklahoma and our design styles were so in sync and we got along so well, that it felt only natural to blog together! About a year later, we decided to expand Material Girls into different cities, as we felt that we couldn’t cover the local content ourselves and big interior design cities such as Chicago, LA and New York needed more exposure on our blog! Jill (LA) joined our blog in September ’08, Julia (Chicago) in November ’08 and Hilary (NY) in April ’09.
I like that you give out interior design information and tips from the perspective of your love of materials. Are you a details person or a big picture person?Personally, I am a details person. I tend to be more of a perfectionist and end up focusing on all of the little things in a room. I think that you need all of the interesting little things in order to create a fascinating “big picture”. Adding in intricate patterns, textures, materials and accessories to a room really give it its character and helps it all come together. It’s definitely the little things that count!
What's a typical reader of your blog like? What are they looking to gain from reading your site?We find that about 90% of our blog readers are women between the ages of 18 and 44. Homeowners, designers, architects, magazine editors, artists—you name it. There is definitely a wide range of people who read our blog, but they all seem to have one thing in common—they love a beautiful space. I think people are looking to gain design ideas, inspiration, tips, and “eye candy” in general from our site. There are so many fascinating interiors and home products out there, which is why reading design blogs is so interesting. I have a handful of design blogs that I am addicted to myself!
What's your best advice for people who are afraid to experiment with different materials, patterns, and textures?A lot of clients can’t envision the end results of a room just by looking at a busy piece of fabric. They need to see the big picture. I will often make design boards for a client that shows the complete design of the space. This way, they can see where each fabric will go and can start to envision the outcome of the design. Usually, after they see the total picture and how it all makes sense, they aren’t as afraid to experiment with unique fabrics!
Have you ever tackled a project and it turned out a failure?No comment…ha. I wouldn’t say that any of my projects have been a complete failure; I am usually pretty happy with them…but I definitely have regrets on some projects—things that I would have done differently. But I guess all you can do is live and learn!
What's your biggest/best interior design project success?I think you are most successful when the client ends up loving the end results. You want them to be happy with the finished design and also to feel comfortable within their own home. Their own home needs to be a reflection of themselves—not a reflection of their designer.
What's in store for the future for the Material Girls blog?Within the next year, we hope to add another city to our blog. I have one city in mind, which has been on my radar for a while now and I think they just have so much to offer design-wise that it would be a shame not to blog about it! We also hope to do more with our weekly newsletter, “The Weekender.”
And finally, what's your favorite part about running/writing a blog about home design?My favorite part about running a design blog is the people that you encounter each and every day. There are so many talented people who live all over the world, which I have gotten to virtually “meet” through our blog. Now I just wish they lived closer so we could share ideas in person!
Thanks, Emily!And, you can also check out some of the previous design bloggers we’ve profiled, like Tina Roth Eisenburg of Swiss Miss, Grace Bonney of Design*Sponge, Jane Freiman of AtticMag, Erin Loechner of Design for Mankind, Anh Minh Le of anh-minh.com and Holly Becker of Decor8.
