Home design blogs are flourishing, highlighting the latest interiors trends and hot buys. Gabrielle Fagan uncovers the best homes bloggers and explores their personal style

YOU’RE truly pure of heart if you’ve never wanted to snoop around other people’s homes, lingered on the street to peep into a room, or viewed a house, with no intention of buying.

Go on, admit it, you’re into property porn.

Thankfully, the easiest, guilt-free way to deal with a decor addiction is to browse online home design blogs.

“Online, there are no limitations, no boundaries, you don’t need a passport, a visa or a plane ticket, just sit back and log on – a whole world of inspiring interiors awaits your arrival,” says Ellie Tennant, who’s travelled the world visiting 15 design bloggers and their homes for her book, Design Bloggers At Home. Try these for starters...

Scandi rocks

The blog: myscandinavianhome.blogspot.co.uk Inspiring images of light-filled, uncluttered rooms in beautifully styled homes fill the blog of Niki Brantmark, an English marketing manager and mother-of-three living in Malmo, Sweden.

“I’m in a corporate world most of the time, so my blog provides escapism,” she says.

Her home: Spacious and sociable open-plan living areas have been cleverly zoned using lighting and furniture, ample storage ensures it’s calm and uncluttered, and it’s proof that you can have a child-friendly home without sacrificing on style.

“Originally, our house had green ceilings and red skirting boards,” says Niki. “It was horrific, but the windows were massive and we loved the location, so we just painted everything white.”

French chic

The blog: bodieandfou.com Karine Candice Kong, a French expat living in London, owns online boutique Bodie And Fou. On her blog, she shares her life, pictures of her home (here and in France) and creative inspirations. “I started the blog originally to promote the shop, but it quickly became about much more than just my business,” says Karine.

Her home: A spacious four-bedroomed Victorian house which she shares with her husband and daughter Mila. It is decorated in neutrals, with warm, natural materials such as leather, marble and wood preventing the rooms from feeling too stark or cold.

“I always find beauty in natural objects. I pick up bits of wood at the beach and bring them home to display them. I like shells too.

My look is pared back and edited so each room has a story behind it,” she says.

Cornish charm

The blog: futurusticblog.com Design writer Rebecca Proctor marries her love of cutting-edge design with her penchant for a more traditional, rustic approach to home-making. It’s presented in a refreshingly clear style interspersed with art, photos and homes she loves, as well as her own in Cornwall and her two small children.

“Living in a remote, rural area can mean sometimes I feel a little isolated, but the upside of blogging is that it’s made me feel much more connected to the rest of the country and the whole world,” says Rebecca.

Her home: Two 18th Century cottages minutes from the coast which she and her partner, illustrator Andrew, have renovated.

“When we moved in, they were divided into lots of small, cramped rooms but we’ve knocked down walls, made them into one, and now the house is flooded with light,” she says.

Design cocktail

The blog: sfgirlbybay.com There’s a chilled, West Coast feel to Victoria Smith’s blog, featuring images of envyinducing beaches and must-see places in San Francisco. Unusually, the former art buyer and print producer is a full-time blogger and lavishes an enormous amount of attention to her site and posts – and it shows.

“If I go to a gallery or out shopping with a friend, I’m always thinking, ‘This could be a good blog post’,” she says with a smile. “I constantly scour websites for new ideas and my look changes all the time.”

Her home: A modest one-bedroomed flat transformed by a collection of flea market finds, blended with contemporary designs, into a comfortable but ultra stylish interior.

She sums up her style as “a mishmash of old and new” and sources bargains online and at markets.

  • Design Bloggers at Home by Ellie Tennant, published by Ryland Peters & Small, £19.99, is available to readers for £13.99 (inc p&p). Call Macmillan Direct on 01256- 302699 quoting ref GLR 9NF.