Welcome To Our Blog
Everything you need to know about Design, Architecture, and much more.
Your Guide to Interior Design
Now that many of us are spending far more time in our homes, perhaps you’ve noticed that your surroundings are not exactly ideal. Maybe your colour schemes were perfect for the new millennium or your room layouts suited the needs of your toddlers, but things have...

Key Factors in Designing the Right Kitchen for Your Home
The kitchen is the heart of every home, so you want every detail to be perfect. In this article, we take you through the factors you need to consider before designing your new kitchen, options for the layout and flow, and tips for designing a kitchen on a budget....

Buying & Flipping a Property: What You Need to Know
Buying property continues to be a popular form of investment for many people, and many buy to rent their properties. But what if you want to buy to flip? Here, we go through some of the factors you need to consider if you are thinking of buying a property to renovate...

Meet Michael
A recent addition to the JS Design team has been our new architectural technologist Michael Lynch, who relocated from Limerick to his native home, Kerry. We're really pleased to have him on board, and look forward to developing more succesful projects with the...

9 Tips to add value to your property
Are you considering buying an investment property and want to add value to it so it’s worth well above what you paid for it? Or are you planning to move house and want to raise the value of the potential asking price? The property market has had its ups and downs...

A Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB): What Does It Mean for You?
From November 2019, all new homes are required to fulfill NZEB standards, and remodels also have to meet new energy requirements. But what does this mean for you, if you are building a new house or planning major renovations to your home? In this article, we go...

How to choose between extending your house or moving to another property?
Need a bigger home for a growing family and stuck between a rock and a hard place? Deciding whether to stay in your current home and extend it, move to a bigger house or even go the whole hog and go for a new build that will last them a lifetime. If your feeling...

Handy checklist for choosing a plot to build a house on
Choosing a plot to build a house on, doesn’t need to be a leap into the unknown but there are key considerations you need to be mindful of. Clients come to me because they want to build a new home on a plot and even though they can afford it and have a good idea on...

Renovating a House: A Guide to Transforming a Home
Renovating a house might be the ideal route for you to create the home of your dreams, but you need to approach it in the best possible way. The house you decide to transform might look like it simply needs a coat of paint and a session with the lawnmower, but once...

Homes for Every Budget: Tips for Building Your Dream House
Think building your own home is beyond your means and unaffordable? The cost of a self-build home can be enormous—but it doesn’t have to be. Self-build houses come in all shapes and sizes, and build costs can vary greatly. Here's some tips to create your dream home at...

Give Your Home the Wow Factor with our 16 Feature Wall Ideas
Neutral walls are the safe choice in interior decoration, but sometimes you just want to make a statement. Mix it up with walls that catch the eye. Short of inspiration? Indulge your creative streak and add an instant wow factor to any space with our feature wall...

Choose your paint colours and finishes for your home wisely
Before you launch into any paint job, consider our top tips for choosing paint for your new build or existing rooms. Sure, your home’s colour scheme reflects your personality, but did you also know it can have a substantial effect on its value? According to a recent...

8 Home Design Features to Maximise Your Build’s Potential
Design features were not a priority in Irish homes until recently, but with everybody travelling and watching design shows, homes are becoming more stylish and interesting (not to mention comfortable). Now, aspects such as lighting and materials have become central to...

What is the best heating system for your home?
Until quite recently, the automatic choice for heating your home was an oil or solid-fuel boiler. Things have changed in the world of home heating and It will be illegal to install an oil boiler from 2022. Gas boilers will be banned from 2025 in all new builds....

The overheating problem: How to design & retrofit homes in Ireland.
How to design and retrofit homes to maintain a comfortable temperature and accommodate mechanical ventilation heat recovery options. Heat is becoming an increasingly sensitive issue; architectural designers prioritise heat retention when building new homes and...

Building your dream home? The pros and cons of different Building Methods
When you set out to build your dream home, the building method you choose may not be the first thing you think of, but the construction method will affect virtually every aspect of the project. From cost, to build time, to energy efficiency; each building method has...

Go with the Flow: What to Consider When Designing Your Home’s Layout?
Go with the Flow: What to Consider When Designing Your Home’s Layout... The quality of your experience living in a home has far more to do with the way it’s laid out than with its size. Think about it: It doesn’t matter how enormous your living room is if you bang...

All you need to know about building an Extension
Building an Extension - What you need to know Building an extension is often the best way to add some extra space without moving house. It’s cost-effective and makes sense if you have the space on your site, but there are several factors you need to consider before...
Developing your design brief
You’ve decided to build. Now what? Although it’s exciting to imagine what your new house or extension will look like, it’s also a bit scary. Given the number of factors you have to consider before a block is laid, quite a lot can go wrong with your new build. That’s...

A Beginner’s Guide to Planning Permission…
We've had numerous questions around the details of planning permission, from when it might be required to actual specifics around the process. So to help those who might have questions, we've put together this short beginners guide. Is planning permission always...