Peggy Bell of Interior Alchemy, Dark, Colourful and Dramatic Home

A dark and moody, yet colourful and richly textured home, today's tour is the home of Peggy Bell of @interior_alchemy. This home is beautifully pulled together, yet a place i could happily relax in.

I live in Ballyholme, a coastal village in Bangor, N Ireland, in an Edwardian terrace overlooking the bay. Its the perfect place: everywhere is walking distance and the people are so friendly.

I refrain from saying 'I'm a very lucky girl', because luck only comes into it a little bit - I prefer to say that I'm a very effective manifestor!

I set my heart on living in Ballyholme after visiting a few times and feeling how light and peaceful the energy is here. We had made an appointment to view a house within our price range, but when I saw this Edwardian terrace overlooking the water, I knew I had to have it. It was love at first sight, but it was also out of our price range and I wondered if it was too good for the likes of me! However, I'm a trained CBT therapist and Law of Attraction convert, so I set about getting myself in the right mind-set. I attuned myself to the house: every day I looked at the brochure pictures, every night I visualised myself living there. I set a picture of the house as my home screen so every time I opened my phone, there it was. I visited the area regularly to align myself with the energy of it. I worked hard to manifest the finances required and took each obstacle as a challenge to be overcome, and eventually, the universe met me halfway. We moved in a few days before Christmas 2015.

My partner is Phil (who will tell you that we met after I stalked him online, but that's completely unfair and only partly true!) and our two children are Sia: a creative, bright little 4-year-old lady who only stops talking to take a breath, and Ben, my fearless and affectionate two-year-old son, who was walking at nine months and climbing before that!

I have worn a few hats in my time! I was a Primary Teacher for ten years, earned a Masters in Creative Writing, retrained as a Cognitive Behaviour Therapist and started an online business to keep me ticking over financially so that I'm free to focus on my family and my life's work: writing a book. Life took me on this circuitous career path so that the book is worth reading - I've always been a fair writer, but now I have something worth writing about!

I've had quite an eventful life and am naturally quite reflective so it was kind of inevitable that I would end up writing a book pondering the big questions. It is the story of my life written from the spiritual perspective that we choose to come to Earth to learn, and the people we meet and events we experience all offer opportunities to grow spiritually. I believe this is true of everyone - we aren't here by happenstance, and the sooner we acknowledge that, the sooner we can get on with living conscious and fulfilling lives. The story itself spilled out, it was (as all worthwhile art tends to be) emotionally messy: raw, embarrassing, painful, funny. Ultimately the story itself is just a vehicle for insight about who we truly are, why we are here, what on earth (!) we are supposed to be doing with our time here, what lessons are contained in various life events and how we can bring our best selves to the game.

When we first moved to this house, I was perusing Pinterest for home decor inspiration and found myself being drawn to these dark moody shots: that's when I discovered Abigail Ahern and fell down the dark rabbit hole! (Phil would probably say I stalked her feed, but that's completely unfair and only partly true). 

I'm inspired by India: bold, vivid colour, rich pattern, a profusion of gold. If I find myself stuck with a room I ask myself WWLD? - What would Lakshmi (the Hindu goddess of abundance and prosperity) do? I imagine she wouldn't settle for anything less than the sumptuous opulence of colour, nature and gold - and it's this vision I try to manifest.

I'm also inspired by flower shops. They are like a celebration of the beauty of nature (which I think we all resonate with on a very primal level) and every time I am in a flower shop I'm drilling down into why the displays work.

I seem to have developed a formula for all of my rooms: dark walls, bespoke Indian inspired soft furnishings, gold galore, chandeliers, pattern (I particularly love William Morris), classic art and a profusion of plants and flowers. I'm a bit of a one trick pony, in this respect, but I believe if it ain't broke, don't fix it! I'm nearly forty (maybe at the halfway mark of life - if I'm lucky) and I've finally found my style.  I think that's a good age to stop worrying about fads, fashions and shoulds, and be able to tune into what makes you heart happy and give yourself permission to enjoy more of it. That's true for more than just interiors! I think in some ways, our homes reflect more than just our tastes, but can reflect our innermost selves. Chaotic or organised, luxurious or utilitarian: they speak volumes to our priorities and our feelings about what we deserve. My home is luxurious because I believe we are here for a good time, not a long time. I think everyone's lives could stand a little more luxury. 

The Girl with The Green Sofa