17th March 2023 | IN DESIGN ADVICE | BY SBID ShareTweetPinterestLinkedIn Award winning and WELL certified Interior Designer, Emma Webb, is passionate about designing for the wellness of her clients and focuses on delivering restorative spaces. Her creative vision and expertise in implementing the principles of Biophilic design and Nudge design result in interiors that are beautiful, restorative and supportive of positive lifestyle choices. Over a 25+ year career, Emma has built an extensive portfolio of distinctive projects in Ireland and Internationally. Emma’s qualifications include a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, WELL Building Standard professional accreditation as well as certificates in Biophilic design, Healthier Materials and Sustainable building. Why did you want to work in the Interior Design profession? I was always arty and had planned on being an artist when I left school. But my parents told me to get a “proper” degree before I could go to Art College, so I did a degree in Psychology at University College Dublin. It was here that I learnt how much people were impacted by the natural and built environment and so I went on to study Interior Design and open my design practice in my early twenties. Which elements of your profession do you enjoy the most? Whilst working on every project is invigorating, I really enjoy the energy and camaraderie encountered on our building sites. I work with many skilled tradesmen and artisans, and I love to see what they produce and to learn from them. What has been your most memorable career highlight from the past year? Achieving Business All-Star Accreditation and being named South Dublin Interior Design Company of The Year 2023 by the All-Ireland Business Foundation. What are your favourite types of projects to work on and why? I love a tricky building that needs to be completely remodelled for today’s busy lifestyles. I can lose myself for hours as I imagine myself in a client’s shoes working out how to best use the available space. What are the most challenging aspects of working in interior design? Lead times for materials can be very challenging especially here in Ireland, where we are at the mercy of weather impacted sea crossings. So our building programmes often require careful monitoring and good communication with clients, keeping them up to date. What do you wish you knew before working in the field? I wish I had appreciated the power of marketing! When I was setting up my business we didn’t have social media to publicise on. We relied on referrals for new projects as well as sometimes investing in advertising or editorials in glossy interiors magazines, which was very expensive. This meant that we really overlooked the power of advertising in the early days. If you could give one tip to aspiring designers, what would it be? Don’t build toxic interiors! Understand what your materials are made from and how they are produced. Research their impact on the environment and on people’s health. How do you see the interior Design Industry evolving in the year ahead? Wellness interior design and Biophilic Design are still very much on trend – although I think that this is more of a movement than a trend and here to stay. So, I think we will see more responsible sourcing of materials and a focus on health and sustainability developing over the coming years. What does being an SBID Accredited Interior Designer mean to you? I’m really proud to be accredited by SBID. When you are self-employed it’s easy to forget to celebrate any success and so thank you for reminding me that after 28 years in practice, weathering a global recession followed by a pandemic and then a war, that I still love what I do! Questions answered by Emma Webb, Founder, Emma Webb Design. About Emma Webb Design Award winning and WELL certified Interior Designer, Emma Webb, is passionate about designing for the wellness of her clients and focuses on delivering restorative spaces. Her creative vision and expertise in implementing the principles of Biophilic design and Nudge design result in interiors that are beautiful, restorative and supportive of positive lifestyle choices. Over a 25+ year career, Emma has built an extensive portfolio of distinctive projects in Ireland and Internationally. Emma’s qualifications include a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, WELL Building Standard professional accreditation as well as certificates in Biophilic design, Healthier Materials and Sustainable building. Visit Profile If you’d like to feature your project news here, get in touch to find out more. If you’d like to become SBID Accredited, click here for more information.