Decorex Loves Bloggers

Winner of the Deocrex Loves Bloggers competition, Andrew Dunning, kept us in the Decorex loop regularly blogging throughout the show. See below for the winning blog and more highlights @ Decorex 2011…

In just a couple of hours the doors of Decorex 2011 will close for this year. There has been a great buzz about the show with everyone agreeing that the organisers have surpassed all expectations. This was proven by the full aisles every day, and even this afternoon there are still people coming into the show for the first time.

The special features this year added to the luxury feel of Decorex and proved incredibly popular. Visitors were greeted by a fantastic living wall when they arrived at the show, which is still looking fresh as the show closes. The Decorex Foyer providing many interesting reactions as visitors passed into the main hall. It was designed this year by NH Designs who drew on this year’s theme of Cherished Places to create a surreal welcome to the show.

The hospitality venues had all been given the designer touch and provided suitably fabulous places to sit and rest tired feet. Martin Hulbert designed the champagne bar that was located right in the middle of the show, but still managed to retain an intimate feel. With a large chandelier featuring the word ‘LOVE’ and decorated with champagne glasses it quickly became a popular meeting point for the exhibition.

The Ranelagh Restaurant featured wonderful wallpapers from Fromental and was busy every day with people enjoying the fine dining on offer. It was also the location of the first ever Decorex tweet up on Monday. The murals of Surface View were on display in the Riverside Café, complimented by wallpaper from Tissue d’Helene.

The seminar programme this year proved very popular. On Sunday attendees were sitting in the aisles for Nicky Haslam’s talk with Sue Crewe, the editor of House and Garden magazine. Martyn Lawrence-Bullard spoke to a packed house yesterday about his experience designing homes for the Hollywood elite. He also revealed his dream client would be Lady Gaga! Today Martin Redmayne of the Superyacht Report and Superyacht Design spoke about the things you need to consider when designing a yacht – a completely different type of interior!

The quality of the stands this year was outstanding. Some of the suppliers had really given a lot of thought into the design and style needed to pull people onto the stand. The large colourful objects on the Little Green stand made everyone smile. The colours of the Harlequin stand confirmed that colour, and lots of it, is very much a current trend. The large stand of And So to Bed proved to be a show stopper – though maybe this was also helped by the free ice cream?

I hope that you came to Decorex and found something that will help you to create your own Cherished Places. Don’t forgot to put next year’s dates in your diary – the show opens on 23 September 2012, see you there?

The doors have just opened at Decorex 2011 for the final time, and the crowds are still pouring in. If you haven’t visited yet you have until 5pm today before the show closes its doors until next September.

Surprisingly I am still making new discoveries at the show and visited the Media library for the first time this morning. The library has a variety of upholstered furniture from The David Knight Collection and is a perfect place to rest weary legs during your visit. There is a wide selection of magazines available for you to browse, some with special Decorex subscription offers! You will also find the Maggie’s Cancer Caring Charity stand here.

Another find this morning is the French Garden at Decorex. This large stand showcases the work and designs of twelve French manufacturers who all share a passion for Decorative Arts. Created by the designers Patrick Pagnon and Claude Pelhaite, the garden features products in some very eye catching colours – it’s a total colour fest!

The twelve manufactures featured in the French garden are: Atelier Alain Ellouz, Baguès, Collinet, First Time & Hughes Chevalier, Grange, Henryot & Cie, J.H. Furnishing & Collection Pierre, Ligne Roset, Moissonnier, Object de Curiosité, Soca and Taillardat. With a wide range of styles and products you are bound to find something that appeal to you. I particularly like the scale and colour of the products displayed by Moissonnier shown below.

Although the show is focused on interior products there are also several exterior product suppliers on show. A big favourite of mine is the David Harber stand. For almost 20 years David has been designing contemporary water features, sundials and sculptures that are found in gardens all around the world. The Mantle sculpture seen on the stand is made of bronze ‘petals’ that are welded together to represent the broken nature of the Earth’s crust.

On the final day there are four remaining seminars on the Seminar Programme. Continuing on a garden theme there is a talk this afternoon about the elements of good contemporary garden design from Rosemary Alexander.  Rosemary is the Principal of the English Gardening School at Chelsea Wharf.

With the sun shining on the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea this morning it’s a great day to visit Decorex - and then maybe have one last glass of Champagne in the Martin Hulbert designed bar.

With over 300 stands at Decorex it can take a while to see everything.  Also however many times you walk around the show you still find something new – after 3 days at Decorex I know this from experience!

To help you discover some stands you may have missed, in today’s final post, I have featured a few of my favourites.

It is SplinterWorks first time at Decorex and the first public exhibition where they have shown their furniture.  The Stiletto Table and Tipsy stool shown below have been launched at the show.  The table can be whatever you want – it might be a writing desk, or a console table or a fabulous dressing table.  Hand sculpted from solid walnut it takes a craftsman seven weeks to create the Stiletto Table.

Morris & Co have provided this year’s show bags given to everyone arriving at Decorex.  Their wallpaper can also been seen on the back wall of the seminar theatre.  William Morris was one of the most influential designers of the 19^th century and the company produces authentic versions of the original designs.  In addition there is an extensive range of new designs interpreting the original Morris ethos.  The full depth of their range can be seen at Decorex this year.

The amazing fringe detailing on Spina Design stand is exquisite and draws you to the stand.  Shown below on an ottoman the fringe is also available on light fittings.  Their stand also features a subtle tie dye rug that attracted Nicky Haslam’s eye during the Press tour on day 1.

For a full-on luxury interior go to Alsans Furnishings.  The stand showcases their range of bespoke handmade soft furnishings and upholstered furniture.  With a muted grey interior featuring splashes of berry colours it highlights some of this year’s colour trends.

The Andrew Martin stand is one of the large signature stands at the show this year.  On display are their new collections that embrace vintage and retro glamour.  The Archive range features a treasure trove of 1950s and 1960s images as shown below.  Their stand even includes a giant ice sculpture!

You can see the wallpaper and fabric from Fromental around the show and their stand lives up to all expectations.  Featuring luxurious velvets, wallpapers and fittings it is definitely one of the most colourful stands of the show!

If you still haven’t been to the show this should hopefully wet your appetite to visit tomorrow on the final day. 

Tomorrow Decorex 2011 will open at 10am and then finally closes the doors at 5pm for another year.

This year Decorex is supporting the excellent work of Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres.  There are now eleven centres open in the UK and also one in Hong Kong offering free support for anyone affected by cancer.

Maggie’s was founded by Maggie Keswick Jencks and Charles Jencks.  Maggie thought of the idea of cancer caring centres during her own treatment in Dumfries in 1983.  She wrote an article for a medical journal about cancer treatment from a patient’s perspective, explaining what patients required to take an active role in their treatment.  Her article also included her views on the things people need to help them live with cancer. Maggie lost her battle with cancer in July 1995, and the first Maggie’s Centre was opened in Edinburgh in November 1996. 

Over the past 15 years many of the world’s leading architects have designed Maggie’s Centre.  In 2009 the London centre, shown below, designed by Richard Rogers won the RIBA Sterling Prize for the best building designed by a British architect.  Frank Gehry has designed the Maggie’s in Dundee, and is currently working on a design for a new Hong Kong centre.  Zaha Hadid designed the Fife centre, it was her first built work in the UK.

Yesterday afternoon Nicholas Chandor, the Head of Interiors at Paul Smith and the architect Piers Gough gave an interesting talk about the process of designing the next Maggie’s Centre that is currently been built in Nottingham.  Piers explained that the project is the perfect collaboration between architect and interior designer.  Everything in the centre is designed to allow patients to be comfortable and as stress-free as possible when dealing with their illness.  The Nottingham centre is due to open in November of this year.

Further information on the work of Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres can be found here.

 Day 3 of Decorex 2011 has just got underway and people are again flooding through the doors.  The show will be open until 7pm tonight with the Consumer Private View taking place this afternoon from 1pm.

Yesterday afternoon the bloggers of Blog Tour 2011 visited Decorex.  Presented by Modenus, the mission of Blog Tour is to further the understanding and awareness of design in the US, UK and Europe.  They also aim to support networking and information exchange between design bloggers, designers, artisans and manufacturers.  A party of US bloggers have been visiting the London Design Festival and their visit to Decorex included a meeting with Martin Hulbert and a Q&A session with Nicky Haslam.

As part of the visit of Blog Tour 2011, the first ever Decorex tweet up took place in the Ranelagh Restaurant at 4pm.  Among the fabulous Fromental wallpaper over 40 regular users of twitter got together for a tweet up, with many people meeting in person for the first time!  Bringing together interior designers, architects and suppliers the tweet up proved just how powerful twitter is for business.

Two book signings will be taking place at the show today.  Martyn Lawrence-Bullard will be signing copies of his book Live, Love and Decorate.  Recently named as one of Elle Decor's ‘A’ List of the World’s Top 25 Interior Designers, Martyn will also be giving a talk in the seminar theatre at 2:45pm.

Holly Becker will be signing copies of her book Decorate after giving a talk about blogging at 4pm.  As the founder and editor of www.decor8.com Holly will be giving an insight into her blogging skills that have helped her to grow the site into an invaluable design resource with over 45,000 readers daily.

After the torrential rain of last night the forecast is for a bright sunny day.  Hopefully the grey clouds will clear and it will be perfect weather for grabbing some lunch at the Riverside Café and enjoying it outside on the grass by the Chelsea Embankment.

Another reason to visit Decorex this year is the extensive seminar programme.  Each day there are five or six seminars covering a very broad range of key industry topics.

One of the highlights of today’s programme was the talk given by the architect Piers Gough and Nicholas Chandler, who is the head of Interiors at Paul Smith.  The two have recently worked on the construction of a new centre for Maggie Cancer Caring Charity in Nottingham, the home town of Paul Smith.

Piers Gough explained that the site had to be full of nature, and the proposed building is the size of a large domestic property.  He explained that the project was an example of a great collaboration between an architect and an interior designer.

Nicholas Chandler explained that they wanted the centre to be as comfortable as possible, with the feeling of a home rather than a treatment centre.  The centre is due to open on November 2^nd and most of the fabric, furniture and lighting has been kindly donated to the project.

This afternoon Samantha Towle from Goodweave discussed Ethical sourcing in interiors.  She stressed that although your client might not actually ask you about the ethical history, it doesn’t mean they aren’t interested.  Samantha encouraged anyone specifying to always seek out information on the products they are buying.  Ask your supplier where and how their products are made, and if they are not willing to share the information you might want to look elsewhere.

There will be six more seminars tomorrow in the Seminar Theatre. 

11:00 – 11:45 Pecha Kucha with Crafted Design

12:15 – 13:00 Tara Bernerd discusses What is Luxury?

13:30 – 14:15 Angus Gibson teaches us about Home Technology for today’s savvy client

14:45 – 15:30 Martyn Lawrence Bullard gives a talk called Live, Love and decorate! 

16:00 – 16:45 Holly Becker will be sharing her thoughts of Blogging your way for designers

17:00 – 17:45 A panel session with representatives from Bright.Bazzar, Heart Home magazine, mydeco.com and made.com will discuss From blogs to shops: finding inspiration online

The Decorex team have put together a very wide and varied seminar programme so make some time to attend a seminar or two while you are at the show.  It’s also a good reason to rest your feet – just get there early for the popular presenters.  People were even standing in the aisles for the Nicky Haslam talk yesterday!
 

As lunchtime approaches there are numerous eating opportunities this year at Decorex.  In the usual traditional way they have all had the designer touch lavished onto their interior.

If fine dining is your style you should head to the Ranelagh restaurant at the river side of the exhibition.  The room features the beautiful wallpaper of Fromental which is a perfect backdrop to the high quality food served.  The upmarket style and the relaxing natural of the room make this the perfect place for a long relaxing lunch with your friends from the interiors world.

For more casual dining the Riverside Café offers a wide range of food options including sandwiches, jacket potatoes and soup.  The café this year has been designed by Broosk Saib and features two large sailing themed wall murals from Surface View.  The murals are complimented by the China Seas wallpaper shown below that is available through Tissus d’Helene. 

For afternoon tea you can head to Aunt Mame’s Tea Room.  The beautiful hand-made wallpaper of Fromental are used again here and complimented with their rich fabric used for the curtains and light shades.  The Tea Room is this year sponsored by idFX.  Tucked away in one of the river side corners of the show, table service is offered here and it is the perfect quiet place to recharge before you tackle more stands.

If you are in need of stronger refreshment, go straight to the Champagne Bar.  This year Martin Hulbert has cast his magic over the bar.  The centrepiece is a fabulous chandelier featuring the word ‘LOVE’ and festooned with champagne flutes.  Exquisite over size flower displays are another focal point to the bar.  Comfortable chairs and sofas help to create an intimate interior, creating another perfect place to catch up with friends.

Wherever you choose to eat at Decorex take a few moments to stop and consider the interior.  Each one has been designed to represent the spirit of Decorex and all feature furniture and fittings from suppliers at the show.

After a very busy day yesterday at Decorex, the exhibitors headed over to Pimlico Road to Jamb for the annual Exhibitor party.  A red carpet welcomed the exhibitor’s and VIP’s to the showroom with a much needed glass of champagne waiting by the door. 

With a worldwide reputation for dealing in the finest quality antique fireplaces the Jamb showroom had the perfect luxury feel for a Decorex party.  As well as selling antique fireplaces, Jamb also has a huge range of reproduction fireplaces, artwork, lighting and ornaments.  Among the many different rooms at the showroom I found this striking giraffe below standing next to an ornate stone fireplace!

The Decorex awards were announced during the day with the full list of winners on show at the Exhibitors party.  de la Cuona scooped two prizes; the Decorex award for Outstanding Contribution and the Elle Decoration award for Most Stylish Stand.  Other winners include Fromental, And So to Bed and Golran.  The winner of this year’s Decorex Best New Exhibitor was Bronzino, who are showcasing some new large scale pieces of their range of planters at the show.

This morning the day started at 9am with a VIP Breakfast in the Champagne Bar designed by Martin Hubert.  Morning canapés were served to the invited guests who enjoyed breakfast underneath the dramatic chandelier featuring the word ‘LOVE’ and champagne flutes.

With the crowds already flocking into the show I think it will be even busier today than yesterday.  With everyone needing refreshment I am off to review the hospitality options for the next blog post. 

We all love to see the design features of Decorex, the wonderful restaurant, tea shop and the Champagne Bar but the reality is we all come here to see the stands.

After walking around the show probably four or five times today (if not more!) I have selected a few stands to feature in this post that really stood out as some of the most interesting stands.  This is either due to the design of the stand or the wonderful products.

The amazing colours on the Whistler Leather stand just drew me in.  The company has a product range that includes over 400 luxurious, top quality leathers and hides.  From a traditional tan brown colour through to Sydney Pear via Petrol Blue and Anthracite if you want any colour of leather you will find it here!  They even had an iPhone app to allow you to browse when with a client.

Dominic Schuster is a leading manufacturer of specialist finishes for furniture and interiors.  The company has just launched a collection of antique mirror glass panels.  The finish is available in varying degrees and colours to suit the look you are trying to create.

If you are in the market for some colour in your interior head to Elitis at Abbott & Boyd.  Since their formation over 20 years ago Elitis has earned the reputation for producing modern contemporary wallpapers and fabrics.  Their designs often include animal skin, silk, line and stone effects and are available in a wide variety of exciting colours.  Check out the purple animal skin on display.

For pure fun you can’t beat the display on the Little Greene stand.  Highlighting their new collection Retrospectives, the stand features large objects in some of the 32 colours of the range.  The collection is inspired by the colours of the 1960s and 1970s, a perfect choice to add some retro colour into an interior.

If you are a lover of contemporary design another must visit stand is Pinch Design.  Very modern in design but built to last, their furniture is very graceful, and suitable for any environment – either contract or domestic.  They also offer a bespoke service and their range also includes lighting.

One of the standout stands of the show has to be the And So to Bed display.  Using a theme of ‘And So to Beach’ it features a beach hut with four signature beds displayed around the exterior.  This is the launch of their new collection of 1930’s inspired Charleston Collection designed by Nina Campbell.  They also have an ice cream cart giving away tubs of ice cream!

These are just a few of my favourite stands.  With over 300 exhibitors it is hard to decide who to feature – and there are still many stands to discover! 

 

Sunday 25th September - 2pm 

Every year Decorex asks well-known designers to cast their magic over different areas of the show to create special features.  Each of the hospitality features has been designed by a different designer and we will showcase the design of these tomorrow.   Other areas of the show where the designers touch can be seen include the Sloane Square entrance and the Decorex Foyer.

The Sloane Square entrance this year features a wonderful living wall, bringing some exterior elements into the show’s interior.  Over 3m in height it gives a wonderful entrance to the show before you have even reached the registration area.  

After registration you pass through the Decorex Foyer designed by NH Design.  Featured in the blog earlier today you can see another sneak peak below.  Colette van den Thillart, the Creative Director of NH explained during the press tour that the exquisite velvet seen here was made bespoke by Fromental.   NH often work with Fromental as they can handle ‘anything we throw at them’!  The inspiration of the Foyer is of an underwater grotto, the main features are huge shell shaped beds and there is a Surreal theme running through the display.  The rough plasterwork shown (it is designed to be like this!) is by Solomon and Wu Ltd – a company that continues to push the boundaries on the use of plasterwork in interiors.  You can see more of their work on the Fromental stand – remember to look up at the amazing cornicing.

These features both embrace the theme of this year’s show, Cherished Places.  We all need to have places we can retreat for some rest and relaxation and the use of good design can enhance these space.  It may be a fabulous hotel where you have stayed or something closer to home.  Martin Hulbert, the designer of this year’s Champagne Bar, says his Cherished Place would be "The view from my kitchen window - sometimes cows, sometimes golden evening sunlight, always a landscape of oak trees under a big sky." 

The next blog later today will feature some of the interesting exhibitors I have discovered at the show.  I just need to decide who to feature – there is such a great selection at Decorex 2011!

Finally, after months of anticipation, Decorex 2011 is now officially open and ready to welcome visitors.  The show was opened this morning by Nicky Haslam of NH Design, who gave the press a tour with Colette van den Thillart, the Creative Director of NH Design.  As every interior designer knows the devil is in the detail, and nowhere is that more apparent than in the tents at The Royal Hospital, Chelsea.  The stands of over 300 exhibitors are built to the finest specification with every finish polished to perfection.  The acres of carpet are spotless, every inch of fabric steam pressed – and just as importantly, the Champagne bar is fully stocked!  The crowds have already started to flock into the site and it looks like it will be a busy day.

As you arrive at Decorex today you will pass through the Decorex Foyer, this year designed by NH Design.  Nicky and Colette have created a stunning entrance to the show.  Collette explained that the inspiration for the feature came from some of the images of grottoes that she has on her office wall.  NH Design promised they were going to ‘go crazy’ with this feature and it really looks stunning!  Combining interiors with fashion it is the perfect entrance to the show.  A small part of the display is shown below, I didn’t want to spoil the spectacle too much!

This year’s theme is Cherished Places, and how the role of design can help to achieve these special places.  From my walk around the show early this morning it is obvious there are many great suppliers here, both old favourites and new discoveries, who can help you design and create Cherished Places.

Today's programme of seminars has just started.   First up in an extensive programme is Dan Hopwood talking about the Confessions of an Interior Designer. This is sure to be very entertaining - we must all have some interesting stories to share about life in the Interiors Industry!  Nicky Haslam will be in conversation at 12:15 with Sue Crew, the editor of House and Garden - this should be highly insightful given Nicky's vast industry experience.

Later this afternoon Rene Decker will be discussing what the word ‘Sanctuary’ really means in today’s luxury homes.  Gyms, spas and saunas are now commonplace in many prime residential homes, so what are people asking for now?

The quality of the stands at Decorex 2011 is very impressive.  Stands that caught my eye this morning include Fromental, the Rug Company, Little Green Paint Company and Harlequin – shown below.  We will be featuring some of the 300 exhibitors in another post later in the day.

Enjoy your time at Decorex 2011, come and find inspiration for making your own Cherished Places.
 

Decorex 2011 … where you can find the inspiration for Cherised Places
It is almost Autumn. The marquees are on the lawn of the Royal Hospital Chelsea. The champagne fridges are being stocked. This can only mean only thing, it’s time for Decorex International 2011 with its theme, this year, of Cherished Places. Showcasing the very best in high-end interiors products it covers everything a professional designer could ever need.  It also heralds the launch of many new exciting products onto the market.

The style of the show will be evident as soon as you arrive at the Sloane Square Lobby, designed this year by Nicky Haslam and Colette van den Thillart of NH Designs. Drawing on their experience designing luxury interiors around the world, with Nicky’s sense of fun and wit you can expect to see something fabulous as soon as you arrive!

There will be over 300 exhibitors at this year’s show, the majority of them from the UK but also many from overseas. Every style is catered for – if you want contemporary furniture head to Ligne Roset; if traditional French is your style Atelier du Brou should be your destination. Home-grown personal favourites include Julian Chichester for gorgeous furniture, Paris Ceramics for their exquisite natural stone and Fromental for their stunning wall coverings.

This year’s theme is the role of design in creating Cherished Places, the secret places we go to escape and recharge our batteries. My own cherished place would be the beach, a place where you can appreciate the colours and textures of nature that inspire us when we are designing interiors.

While Decorex is known for the product displays it also runs a very varied seminar programme. This year’s sessions include Tara Bernerd questioning What is Luxury and the charity GoodWeave teaching us about Ethical sourcing. One seminar not to miss will be Piers Gough and Nicholas Chandor talking about their involvement with Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres, who Decorex are supporting this year. On a lighter note Dan Hopwood will be baring all when he discusses the Confessions of an Interior Designer!

Before you leave Decorex catch up with industry friends old and new in the Champagne Bar. This year the bubbly is served Martin Hubert style as the bar has been designed by the award-winning designer himself.  After viewing wonderful interior products what better way to end the day?  Just don’t drink too much and leave your brochures behind…

Whatever you do at Decorex, whether you visit every stand, attend a couple of seminars or simply catch up with friends – enjoy your day.  Let your annual visit to Decorex become one of your Cherished Places.

Decorex 2011 is now only a few steps away – and we can’t wait to meet everyone this Sunday!

Exhibitors are now arriving on-site to build their stands and present their designs. We have already seen a multitude of stunning products: bespoke designs made of the most exquisite materials, with perfect finishes.

Decorex 2011 opens iys doors at 10am this Sunday, welcoming our first visitors. Remember that you have time until the end of today to register for Decorex to get instant access to the show. It only takes a minute – click hereto register now.

And as soon as the show opens, we will make sure that you are up to date with all the Decorex news – images of the most amazing designs, quotes from our exhibitors, snippets of seminar theatre discussions and plenty of information about this year’s special features.

Reporting all of the above (and more!) for you from the event will be Andrew Dunning – the winner of Decorex Loves Bloggers competition and the man behind APD Interiors blog. Having met Andrew last week, we know that he will deliver top quality content from the show to all our visitors, so make sure you check this page regularly for the freshest exhibition news.

And let us say it once again – thank you!
For supporting our Decorex Loves Bloggers campaign, taking part in the competition, sharing your opinions and helping us find the best design blogger – it was such a tough task!

You can also read about our campaign on a number of websites, including Karen Haller’s blog, where she interviewed Decorex Brand Director Tony Crinion as well as House & Garden blog, House to Home website and BIID webpage, who all supported our campaign.

But the most rewarding, was to hear some great, positive comments from competition participants:

Ana of Let’s Blog Design:
"I feel privileged having become one of the Decorex Loves Bloggers finalists. Being the first of its kind in the design industry in UK it is a challenge in itself but also a rewarding achievement. I applaud how Decorex 2011 is bringing bloggers and designers together and I hope this will be the first of many competitions to come. It’s networking in a big scale and will allow Decorex to see and hear the impact they are having by helping shape and create a bridge between design and social media."
 
Carole of Dear Designer’s blog:
"The Decorex competition has been a great way to draw attention to the design blogging community, which in the UK is unknown to the general public. We can be competitive when we have to be, but on the whole we’re a friendly bunch, as demonstrated by all the goodwill on twitter and facebook.  Each and every one of us celebrates and promotes good design on a daily basis, and collaboration with the prestigious and inspirational Decorex International can only be a match made in heaven."
 
Jane of A Design for Life:
"I think the ‘Decorex Loves Bloggers’ competition is absolutely brilliant. Why? Because it has successfully highlighted the huge number of active bloggers in the industry, showcased up and coming designers and provided followers with the inspiration to think about the design of their home. Let’s hope that it becomes an annual event and that it continues to promote both bloggers and designers in the UK."

Andrew of APD Interiors:
"The Decorex Loves Bloggers competition has provided a great opportunity to learn about many other interesting interior design blogs. The competition has been the talk of the interior design world! The opportunity to blog not only about Decorex 2011, but also the Architectural Digest Home Design Show in New York makes the prize the ultimate opportunity and experience for the interior designer who loves to blog and share their knowledge and guidance."
 
Bianca of North House Design:
"The Decorex Loves Bloggers campaign has been a fantastic opportunity for bloggers in the interior design industry. When the competition was announced it created a real buzz and excitement.  Having an official Decorex blogger is a great way to let visitors get the most out of their visit. The organisation did a fantastic job setting this campaign up, with an exhilarating build up to the final. I've received a lot of response as a result of joining the competition and becoming a finalist and it already allowed me to make many new connections, for which I'm grateful. Overall, I'm just very excited to be part of it. A big thank you!”

And all in all, after weeks of the hard work and preparation, we are now ready and are inviting you to join us for the best Decorex International show ever.

Let the true design celebration begin!

Last Wednesday, the excitement around Decorex Loves Bloggers campaign reached its peak, with the announcement of the ultimate winner!

APD Interiors blog, run by Andrew Dunning, scooped the main prize, receiving plentiful of good wishes and congratulations.

Before embarking on the fascinating journey of being Decorex's first official blogger, we will have a great pleasure to meet Andrew in person this Wednesday to catch up on all things interior design and discus ins and outs or our collaboration.

And surely, we will be congratulating him once again, for not only Andrew will be blogging for us from the show and get backstage access to the whole event, but he will also meet Modenus - the orgnanisers of BlogTour2011 who will be visiting the show with US bloggers, ahead of BlotTour2012 which will see 20 UK bloggers (including Andrew!) travelling all the way to New York to report from Architectural Digest Home Design Show.

You will hear from us more shortly and remember to register to attend Decorex now, if you haven't done it yet!

Only one day away, the final Decorex Loves Bloggers campaign judging takes place tomorrow, Tuesday, 6th September at the Decorex offices. Joining Decorex team will be three judges – industry experts and well-known design bloggers:
 
Ellie Tennant- Deputy Shopping Editor of Ideal Home and blogger for Housetohome.co.uk
Pippa Jameson - a freelance stylist, having worked for BBC Good Homes and John Lewis
Holly Becker – founder and editor of decor8blog.com, the internationally known design siteblog
 
They will decide together with Decorex team, which of five finalists should be named the official Decorex Blogger and become our official affiliate this September.
 
The finalists are APD Interiors, Let’s Blog Design, Dear Designers, A Design for Life and North House Design.
 
Each of the judges and Decorex team as a whole have been assigned one vote in the final judging process.
 
And last week, Decorex’s online community also had a chance to cast a final collective vote and together assign one extra point to their favourite blogger.
 
With 562 votes cast, the special online judging point goes to…
 
APD Interiors
 
Congratulations! APD Interiors is now one step closer to scooping the main competition prize, but there are still four votes to be cast so keep your fingers crossed for your favourite!
 
The ultimate winner of Decorex Loves Bloggers campaign will be announced this Wednesday in the September issue of VIEW newsletter. Sign up for the newsletter here to get the breaking news first.
 
Follow us on Twitter and join us on Facebook to become part of ongoing discussion about the campaign.

Last week we have collected final tasks from all our competition finalists. The final task was to create a Decorex Itnernational 2011 preview. Our finalists have produced five fantastic blog posts, each of them unique in their form - be it the writing style, use of the images or the focus on particular show highlights.

All the final blog posts can be now viewed online:

APD Interiors blog
Let's Blog Design
Dear Designer's Blog
A Design for Life
North House Design

Can you make up your mind which of the above blogs is your favourite? If so, this week you have the very last opportunity to vote for your favorite design blog and help us decide who should become the winner of Decorex Loves Bloggers competition.

Vote now, by answering the question: Who should become the winner of Decorex Loves Bloggers competition?

The voting is open all of this week, closing on midnight, Sunday, 3rd September. The winner of the online voting will then be assigned 1 point during the final judging. Further 3 points will be assigned to the finalists by Ellie Tennant, Holly Becker, Pippa Jameson and also Decorex team will have 1 collective point.

Visit our Facebook page now to cast your vote and join our online design community on Twitter and share your opinions online.

May the best design blogger win!

What a busy week it is for all five finalists of our blogging campaign! On Monday, they were given one week to submit their final task - a Decorex preview blog post. I believe they are working very hard on the preview right now and soon we will be able to admire the results of their creative work.

In the meantime, you can find out more about top Decorex design bloggers - how they started their creative careers, what they enjoy most about interior design and what are the current projects they work on.

So here we go - meet the finalists of Decorex loves Bloggers campaign:

Andrew Dunning - APD Interiors blog - Week 1 winner

After years working in the corporate world, Andrew Dunning left the City to follow his true passion of Design, so he retrained in interior design and launched APD Interiors in 2004.  The brand was launched with one aim: to allow people to have their dream home for an affordable price as Andrew firmly believes that good design doesn’t have to be expensive.

Since then the business has gone from strength to strength, Andrew has been featured in the Evening Standard, he writes a regular column for the CityAM newsletter, and he contributes to the Rightmove.com blog.  In addition APD Interiors also has its own blog providing regular interior design tips and ideas and Andrew provide daily twitter tips to his 5,000 followers.

Keeping an eye on comfort and practicality, while combining contemporary and traditional forms in projects, has seen APD Interiors win numerous commissions and praise from their clients. APD Interiors provides a design and build service to all its clients, aiming to take away all the headaches as they guide them from the design through planning to delivery.

Current projects include a full house refurbishment in Islington, an extension to a Grade II listed house in Chelsea and a budget bathroom in Crouch End.  Each project offers different challenges but the objective remains to deliver cost effective design and build to all their clients.

Ana Aguilar - Let's Blog Design - Week 2 winner

"My passion for interiors started very early growing up in Lisbon. I never considered turning it into a career until 2008 while studying Interior Design & Decorating at Inchbald, the prestigious school of Design in London.

At the end of 2010 I established my own practice aguilar interiors. I believe that a combination of creativity, negotiation and sourcing ability (furniture, textiles and art from Portugal & Asia) appeals to my clients. Extensive travel and exposure to a variety of cultures has given me an appreciation and understanding for different styles which I translate into my designs.

My biggest challenge has been establishing a presence in the design industry against a backdrop of economic downturn. Although taking the plunge was one of my best decisions, I’ve heard it said: “When you do for a living what you love, you will never work again”. At the moment I would say I live and breathe design and the passion I carry in my DNA fuels my writing and work.

I have been described as sophisticated yet down to earth; I’m told clients, craftsmen and design professionals find me easy to work with and the blogs I write have a substantial readership. I love designing interiors with an abundance of texture that create visual interest. Mine are balanced harmonious spaces that are practical, beautiful and timeless. I look forward to a stimulating and prosperous career while creating many happy homes."

Carole King - Dear Designer's blog - Week 3 winner

Carole King has had a varied career.  Her first ever job was in a publishing house in Fleet Street.  Being a small company she got to try her hand at a lot of tasks, including selling advertising, page layout and accounting.  Several years later, following a very sociable position in the Client Services department of a renowned advertising agency, and a few years in finance, she decided to take the plunge and study interior decoration.

The course at KLC School of Design opened her eyes to a whole new world of interiors and design but despite working for two very inspiring designers, including the infamous John Stefanidis, she couldn’t quite make the break from the corporate world.  She started Dear Designer’s Blog as a way to release her pent up creativity and yet another world beckoned.

She is now working on the launch of the UK’s first digital interiors magazine, Heart Home magazine, with fellow bloggers, Arianna Trapani from Arianna Interiors and Daniel Nelson from Atelier Tally.  Launching in September just before Decorex and The London Design Festival it will be showcasing the best of British design and homes.  A typical day now includes selling advertising space, page layouts and accounting, but much more importantly uses all of her design skills too.

Jane Price-Stephens - A Design for Life - Week 4 winner

Jane Price-Stephens is an award winning interior designer based in London - Jane works on a range of residential and commercial projects including private clients, property developers, bars, gyms, restaurants, retail outlets and the odd super yacht.
 
The turning point in Jane’s career was when she read Paulo Coelho’s tale about following your dreams, The Alchemist.  She promptly left her job in the City as a media strategist and embarked upon the journey to become a top designer.  She graduated from KLC School of Design as ‘Top Interior Design Student’ and has been featured in several magazines, including IDFX. After working for David Collins, Honky and Richard Spark she established her own design practice in South West London.
 
Highlights of her career in design to date have been graduating from KLC as ‘Top Interior Design Student’, installation of the award-winning penthouse at Gunwharf Quays and the current project that she is working on. A final highlight has been going back to teach at KLC when she has the time – for her, it means that she can continue to contribute to the growth and development of the industry…
 
As an outlet for her passion for design she also has her blog that provides a brief insight into some of the things that she loves and introduces some relatively simple ideas for improving your home. She hopes it will inspire people to take an interest in interior design…

Bianca Noordhuizen - North House Design- Week 5 winner

"I have recently set up my own interior design firm in London: North House Design Ltd. Before moving to London, I worked in the Netherlands for a big multinational, where I used to scout for innovations around the world. I used to give presentations to aspiring entrepreneurs on business plans and always knew I wanted to start for myself one day.

When I came to London I thought it was time to start practicing what I was preaching. Initially thinking to set up a design label, I took some creative interior design courses and fell in love with the design side of things, so I changed my plan. I am now an interior designer in the making and recently started working on my first real project, which is very exciting.

?With a thing for design and innovation, the best part of working in this industry is visiting exhibitions and meeting new designers and exploring new products. I started a blog to share all the wonderful things I come across and all that inspires me. Blogging is a great means for the energetic and curious minded like myself, to get your thoughts out there. I love to give exposure to designers with a creative innovative approach or product and am often surprised by the positive interaction that follows as a result. I also occasionally share my own work and let readers join the experience of my journey to breaking into the interior design industry.

There are already so many great designers out there, and it's a real challenge to stand out. But I'm very determined to do so and one day becoming the next Candy & Candy. My outlook on life is to enjoy and make the most of everything I do, and to hopefully inspire some people along the way."

What do you think about our five finalists of the Decorex Loves Bloggers campaign? Share your thoughts with us on Facebook and Twitter.

The time has come now to announce the final task of Decorex loves Bloggers competition. The task will see our finalists utilising all their blogging strengths – unique writing style, eye for stunning designs and industry expertise.

As the tension is mounting, we are now ready to announce the final task for Decorex loves bloggers campaign finalists…

The task is to create a preview blog post for Decorex International 2011.

It can take any form, from witty and chatty to formal and informative – the choice is up to our finalists but creativity and innovation are the main focus, with the blog post attracting interiors professionals to visit the show.

And there is plenty to talk about – from ‘Cherished Places’ theme and The Sloane Square Lobby design by NH Designs to our Collaboration with Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres and a number of high-end exhibitors featuring at the show.??

Our competition finalists will also be provided with a set of images to use in their preview. All previews are to be sent to Justyna Sowa by midnight, Sunday 28 August, in a word doc format and need to be between 350-450 words. They will then all be published on the Decorex International website on Tuesday 30 August for our online followers to judge which is their favourite.

Good luck to all the finalists!

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook for daily updates about the final week’s progress and to hear from our finalists!
 

Everyone in Decorex team had to admit today that choosing the winner of Week 5 of our Decorex loves Bloggers was the toughest choice to make so far. All three finalists presented a fantastic quality of blog posts, the use of images and choice of topics.

After an animated discussion, the Decorex team made a decision, that the blogger who will become the fifth finalist of our whole campaign is…

North House Design

Congratulations! This way, we have now gathered top five design bloggers, as voted by online design community and Decorex International’s team. The 5 finalists, will now face the final task – announced this Tuesday!

Results of the final task will be then presented to our panel of judges, including interior stylist Pippa Jameson, Ellie Tennant - one of the UK's leading inteiror bloggers and Holly Becker, founder and editor ofdecor8blog.com. The judges will together decide, which one of our finalists deserves to become Decorex’s official blogger and travel to NY to report from Architectural Digest Home Design Show. Additionally, all our Twitter and Facebook followers will also get to vote for their favourite finalist, and will all be given one collective vote – details of that to follow as well.

And here are all five finalists of Decorex loves Bloggers campaign:
APD Interiors
Let’s Blog Design
Dear Designers Blog
A Design for Life
North House Design

Make sure you visit these blogs ahead of the final task to find out what they write about, what are their ideas and favourite designs. You can also share your opinions on our finalists on our Facebook and Twitter pages.

And we’re back here tomorrow, announcing details of the final tasks, which all of our finalists will have to face and have one week to complete.

Stay tuned!

Today is the day of Decorex loves bloggers campaign. We’re announcing the shortlist of the final week of voting today. This will be followed by selecting the fifth and last blogger who will join the final 5 and compete to scoop up two main competition prizes.

The winner of our competition will become the official Decorex blogger, getting backstage access to the show and becoming the online voice of the event for the 4 days of its duration. And the second part of the prize is an international trip to New York to report from Architectural Digest Home Design Show.

In the last week of our competition we received 19 blog entries and seen 303 votes being casted. And as the anticipation is mounting, here are the three finalists and runner-ups of the last week of our competition:

Week 5 Finalists:
Design Trends – 70 votes
North House Design – 62 votes
Peachey Design – 50 votes

Runner-ups:
Arianna Interiors – 35 votes
Dream Box – 31 votes
Nicola Holden Design – 21 votes

Congratulations to all the finalists! Now Decorex team will gather together and choose the 5th blogger to join the ultimate final of Decorex Loves bloggers campaign.

Watch this space for today’s updates, and join us on Twitterand Facebook to get together with design community, share ideas and comment on the competition.
 

Final campaign submissions gathered – let the voting begin!

The final week of gathering entries in our Decorex Loves Bloggers campaign has now closed. Over past seven days we gathered 17 entries, from a wide variety of design bloggers. They submitted their blogs for a chance to become official Decorex 2011 bloggers and be given an opportunity to fly to New York to report from international interior design event, Architectural Digest Home Design Show.

Here is the line up of Week 5 entries:

Arianna Interiors
BakerLew Designs
Design Palate
Design Trends
Dream Box
Hand Painted Kitchens and Furniture
Interior Design by Sarah
Love Jamie
Materials Needed
Nicola Holden Designs
North House Design
Of Beauty and Love
Ooh Pretty Shiny Over There
Peachey Design
Rambling Renovators
Red Mittens
Something 2 Write About
The Decorologist
The House Mag

All these entries present different interesting approaches to design blogging and are great sources of inspiration. Make sure you browse through them before casting a vote!

How to cast a vote?

Simply visit our Facebook page and answer the question: Who is your favourite design blogger of the Week 5 of Decorex Loves Bloggers campaign? We are collecting votes all of this week and will announce the winner this coming Monday, 22 August.

The Week 5 winner will join other four Decorex finalists in their final task, through which they will have to prove their blogging skills, creativity and an eye for the upcoming trends.


Make sure you visit our Facebook page now to vote for your favourite and get them one step closer to becoming our official blogger and embark upon international design travel.

Here it is. The long awaited news on the special prize for the winner of Decorex Loves Bloggers competition...

The winner of ‘Decorex Loves Bloggers’ contest will be invited to New York to attend New York Design Festival in March of 2012 as part of Blogtour2012, organized by Modenus.com in partnership with The Architectural Digest Home Design Show and MyDeco.com.

The lucky winner will be one of a number of British interior design bloggers to be invited to the Big Apple to immerse themselves in all things interior design and meet their Stateside counterparts. The trip is the next episode following this year’s Blogtour which sees 20 American interior design writers and bloggers reporting back from London Design Festival, Decorex and other design shows.

Design bloggers have the last chance to enter the competition this week, with the entry deadline closing at midnight, Sunday, 14th August.

To enter or nominate your friends, all you need to do is post the blog’s URL on Twitter, followed by @Decorex2011 and Decorexblogger hashtag. The Week 5 shortlist will be announced on Monday 15th August.

Good luck!

We have just found out that the ultimate winner of Decorex Loves Bloggers campaign, will get an unprecedented opportunity of not only blogging live from the show and getting backstage access to the whole of Decorex International 2011 but also...

Embark on a design trip abroad, to report from a well-known design show, together with some other buddying bloggers. More details will be unveiled shortly!

You have now 5 days left to give yourself or your blogging friends a chance to scoop this fantastic opportunity.

To enter the last week of Decorex Loves Bloggers competition, go to Twitter and tweet your design blog's URL, followed by @Decorex2011 and #Decorexblogger.

Entry deadline: midnight, Sunday 13 August.

Please note: we accept entries from previous weeks' participants.

Everyone in the Decorex team had to admit, that this week we had the toughest decision to make, choosing Week 4 campaign finalist. The shortlisted blogs presented a completely varied approach to design blogging, from writing style to the use of images.

Coming very close to a draw, the final decision has been made though, and the winner of Week 4 Decorex loves bloggers campaign is…

Design for Life.

Congratulations! Design for Life is the last but one blog to join the final shortlisttogether with APD Interiors , Dear Designers and Let’s Blog Design.
 

There is now only 1 place left, for one of the top design bloggers to join the Final 5 of our campaign, and get a chance to become the official blogger for Decorex 2011. The winner will gain backstage access to the show, be invited to Private Views and speak to some of Decorex 2011’s most prominent figures.

We are gathering final blog entries all of this week, up until midnight, Sunday 13^th August.

To enter the competition with your own blog, or to nominate your friends, go to Twitter and tweet your blog’s URL followed by @Decorex2011 and #Decorexblogger. Make sure you tag us, so that we can find your post!

Good luck and may the force be with the best design bloggers.

The last but one week of voting for the best design bloggers in the UK, is now gone. This Sunday at midnight we finished gathering votes, with three blogs being in a firm lead.

Having counted all the votes that were casted, here’s the line-up of Week 4:

Finalists:

Insideology - 51 votes
A design for life - 48 votes
Tara Bernerd blog- 38 votes

Runner ups:

Light Colour Design
Robert Baker Designs
Fern Lewis Designs

Now Decorex team will have to decide, which one of these talented bloggers, will join the 3 finalists, and become the last but one joining the ultimate shortlist. We’ll be analysing the blogs in the next couple of hours and will let you know the winner at 3.30pm today!

Keep your fingers crossed for your favourites and follow the campaign now on Twitter and Facebook.

Congratulations to all the shortlisted bloggers! To get your runner-up badge, please email Justyna.sowa@ubm.com

This week we’re gathering votes in the fourth week of our competition. It is a last but one chance for the best design bloggers to become official voice of Decorex 2011 and attend the show with the event’s team – accessing the backstage, talking to our exhibitors and seminar speakers and taking part in the Private View and networking events around the show.

With the holiday season full steam ahead, in Week 4 of our campaign we received the whole 7 great quality entries, all varying in writing style, topics discussed and images used. Here is the Week 4 Decorex design blogs line up:

A Design for Life
Décor Girl
Light Colour Design
Robert Baker Designs
Insideology
Tara Bernerd Blog
Fern Lewis Designs

We have also posted the links online on our Facebook page. Once you have a look at the above entries and decide who your favourites are, you’re ready to vote!

To cast your vote, simply answer a question on our Facebook page, Who is your favourite blogger of Week 4 of Decorex loves bloggers campaign? And you can also share your opinion about this week’s contestants on our Twitter page. Voting closes on Sunday, 7^th August and the finalists will be announced on Monday morning, 8^th August.

Good luck to all Week 4 contestants and let the voting begin!

With some afternoon tea & coffee cups in our hands, plenty of opinions shared and flicking through all the shortlisted blogs, the Decorex team has made our final decision on which blog will be named the Week 3 ‘Decorex loves bloggers’ campaign winner.
 
We have looked at the shortlisted blogs from every possible angle, judging them against the writing style, originality of ideas, versatile approach to the interiors industry and the unique feel that each blogger’s personality brings.
 
Taking all of the above into consideration, the Week 3 winner of Decorex loves bloggers campaign is…
 
Dear Designers Blog
 
Congratulations! Dear Designers is the third blog to join the final shortlist, together with APD Interiorsblog and Let’s Blog Design from Aguilar Interiors.
 
All finalists will have an opportunity to present their greatest blogging skills to the Decorex judging panel and have a chance to scoop the prize of becoming Decorex 2011 Official Blogger.
 
And we are still looking for two more bloggers to join the final 5.

This week we are accepting entries from all design bloggers who have enthusiasm for what they do and can see themselves becoming the official voice of Decorex 2011, getting a backstage pass to the show, attending Private Views and speaking to the brightest stars of the show.
 
If you or your friends have what it takes to become the first official Decorex Blogger, simply post your blog’s URL on Twitter this week, followed by @Decorex2011 and #Decorexblogger. Make sure you tag us, so that we can find your post!
 
We’re gathering Week 4 entries all of this week and next week we’ll open our Facebook page for voting.
 
Good luck!

What a fierce competition week 3 of our ‘Decorex loves bloggers’ campaign has been! With 13 great design blogs entering this week, it seems that our Decorex followers had a very tough time deciding on the top three – in fact this week, we have four finalists instead!
 
One thing to mention is that this week, one of the blogs absolutely rocketed in the number of votes gathered, receiving more of them than all the other entries combined! Here we go then, below are four Week 3 finalists and two runner ups.
 
Week 3 finalists:
Nik A Ramli Interior Design – 131 votes
See New Coming – 27 votes
Lucy Will Show You– 20 votes
Dear Designers – 20 votes
 
Week 3 runner ups:
The Design Hub – 14 votes
Interior Design It Yourself– 2 votes
 
Congratulations to all the finalists and runner ups! The Decorex team will now start their voting, to find the ultimate Week 3 Decorex blogging winner, who will be announced at 4pm today. Keep your fingers crossed, and join us on Twitter and Facebook now, for design discussions and more.

Week 3 voting – details

We have just announced the shortlist of Week 3 of our Decorex loves bloggers campaign on our Facebook page. Click here to view 13 great design blogs, who entered the competition this week.

Once you find out more about them and choose your favourite, you’ll be ready to cast your vote!

To vote, simply visit our Facebook page and answer the question ‘Who’s your Week 3 Decorex loves blogger campaign favourite’. Because of the number of entries we received, there will be two such questions posted – make sure you do find your favourite there! Voting starts at midday today.

All the votes we receive will be gathered throughout this week with the final deadline of midnight, Sunday the 24^th July.

Visit our Facebook page now to find your Week 3 winner and share your opinions on our Twitter page.

We look forward to see your votes!

And the winner is…

What a busy weekend it was! With three fantastic blogs shortlisted in Week 2 of our Decorex loves bloggers campaign, the Decorex team had another hard time choosing only one winner. The three blogs which got the largest number of votes on our Facebook page, from the total of 448 that were cast, were: Let’s Blog Design from Aguilar Interiors, The Insider from Emmanuelle Lemoine interiors and Interior Insight from Carolyn Parker Interior Design.

All three blogs presented a completely versatile and unique approach to interior design, which made it even harder for us to decide on the ‘best’ one. But we made a collective decision that the winner of Week 2 of the Decorex loves bloggers campaign is…

Let’s Blog Design from Aguilar Interiors

Congratulations! Aguilar Interiors  will now await for the final task to be announced, which they will have to complete with the other finalists to impress the judges and get a chance to become THE Decorex International 2011 blogger.

What Aguilar Interiors can also do is encourage other bloggers to submit their entries for the third round of the Decorex loves bloggers campaign. This week we are gathering entries from even more design bloggers who would like to give themselves a chance to become the official blogger of one of the capital’s most loved interior design shows – Decorex International.

P.S: All bloggers who entered the competition in the first or second week, can still submit their blogs in Week 3! So don't miss out on another chance to win.

All they need to do is visit our Twitter page and post their blog URL, tagging @Decorex2011 and #Decorexblogger in a post.

We will be gathering the entries for the whole of this week and next week we’ll give all of our online followers a chance to vote for their favourites on our Facebook page.

Make sure you join us now in this great search for the best design blogger!

Week 2 finalists revealed!

Week 2’s voting for the Decorex loves bloggers campaign finished when the clocks struck midnight.

With 9 bloggers entering their blogs in the second week of the competition, the rivalry was fierce but fair – it was fantastic to see fellow bloggers supporting each other and commenting on the great quality of their posts.

After a week of multiple calls to action, a plenitude of re-tweets, comments and ‘likes’, we have managed to count all the votes and find out who joins the Week 2 Decorex loves bloggers campaign shortlist…

With a total of 448 votes gathered, the three finalists of week 2 of the Decorex loves bloggers campaign are….

1. Let’s Blog Design - 98 votes
2. The Insider- 195 votes
3. Interior Insight - 79 votes

And the three runners up this week are

1. Mary Middleton Design
2. Pop Art Rock Girl
3. Quintessentialy B

Congratulations to the finalists and the runner ups!

What happens now?

The three shortlisted bloggers will now be presented to the Decorex International team and their blogs will be carefully scrutinised, with the main characteristics looked at including writing style, post versatility, freshness of the opinions, an eye for innovation and the general blogging flair. The chosen Week 1 winner will be announced this coming Monday at 10am, so stay tuned – it might be one of your favourites!

Decorex’s decision is final, and the winner will receive a ‘Decorex loves bloggers’ finalist badge and in a couple of weeks will join the remaining winners for the final task, based on which the ultimate Decorex blogger will be chosen.

Have a fantastic weekend and we will be back with more news on Monday!

Today we're starting the second week of voting for your favourite design bloggers who submitted their entries via Twitter to Week 2 of our Decorex loves bloggers campaign.

Here you can view of all of the week 2 entries, which we collected. Make sure you visit these blogs before casting your vote and see what their favourite topics, recent blog posts and writing style.

And once you are ready to cast your vote, here's how to do it.

Simply visit the Decorex Facebook page and answer the question, 'Who is your favourite design blogger from Week 2 of our Decorex loves bloggers campaign?'. We will be gathering your votes until Midnight Thursday 7th July. On Friday morning, 8th July, we will announce the top 3 bloggers, from which the Decorex International team will choose the winner and ultimately, the grand finalist.

So don't hesitate and cast your vote now!

And the winner is…

What a busy weekend it was! With three fantastic blogs shortlisted in Week 1 of our Decorex loves bloggers campaign, the Decorex team had a very hard nut to crack, choosing only one winner. The three blogs which got the largest number of votes on our Facebook page, from the total of 838 that were cast, were: APD Interiors, Dreamwall Style and A Gifted Existence.

All three of the blogs presented a completely versatile and unique approach to interior design, which made it even harder for us to decide on the ‘best’ one. But after long discussions and lots of mouse-clicking, we made a collective decision that the winner of Week 1 of the Decorex loves bloggers campaign is…

APD Interiors

Congratulations! APD Interiors will now await for the final task to be announced, which they will have to complete with the other finalists to impress the judges and get a chance to become THE Decorex International 2011 blogger.

What APD Interiors can also do is encourage other bloggers to submit their entries for the second round of the Decorex loves bloggers campaign. This week we are gathering entries from even more design bloggers who would like to give themselves a chance to become the official blogger of one of the capital’s most loved interior design shows – Decorex International.

P.S: All bloggers who entered the competition in the first week, can still submit their blogs in Week 2! So don't miss out on another chance to win.

All they need to do is visit our Twitter page and post their blog URL, tagging @Decorex2011 and #Decorexblogger in a post.

We will be gathering the entries for the whole of this week and next week we’ll give all of our online followers a chance to vote for their favourites on our Facebook page.

Make sure you join us now in this great search for the best design blogger!

Week 1’s voting for the Decorex loves bloggers campaign finished 10 hours ago, when the clocks struck midnight.

With twenty bloggers entering their blogs in the first week of the competition, the rivalry was fierce but fair – it was fantastic to see fellow bloggers supporting each other and commenting on the great quality of their posts.

After a week of multiple calls to action, some incentives (rewarding with cups of tea was mentioned!) and a plenitude of re-tweets, comments and ‘likes’, we have managed to count all the votes and find out who joins the Week 1 Decorex loves bloggers campaign shortlist…

With a total of 838 votes gathered, the three finalists of week 1 of the Decorex loves bloggers campaign are….

1. APD Interiors – 144 votes
2. Dreamwall Style – 120 votes
3. A Gifted Existence – 101 votes

And the three runner ups this week are:
1. The Design Hub
2. Karen Haller
3. Dream Box

Congratulations to the finalists and the runner ups!

What happens now?

The three shortlisted bloggers will now be presented to the Decorex International team and their blogs will be carefully scrutinised, with the main characteristics looked at including writing style, post versatility, freshness of the opinions, an eye for innovation and the general blogging flair. The chosen Week 1 winner will be announced this coming Monday at 10am, so stay tuned – it might be one of your favourites!

Decorex’s decision is final, and the winner will receive a ‘Decorex loves bloggers’ finalist badge and in a couple of weeks will join the remaining winners for the final task, based on which the ultimate Decorex blogger will be chosen.

Have a fantastic weekend and we will be back with more news on Monday!

Today we’re starting the first week of voting for your favourite design bloggers who submitted their entries via Twitter to the Week 1 of Decorex loves Bloggers campaign.
Here you can view of all the Week 1 entries, which we collected. Make sure you visit these blogs before casting your vote and see what are their favourite topics, recent blog posts and writing style.

And once you are ready to cast your vote, here’s how to do it.

Simply visit Decorex International Facebook page and answer two questions ‘Who is your favourite design blogger of Week 1 Decorex loves bloggers campaign?’ We will be gathering your votes until midnight on Thursday, 23^rd June. On Friday morning, 24^th June we will announce the top 3 bloggers, from which Decorex International team will choose the winner and ultimately, the grand finalist.

So don’t hesitate and cast your vote now!