Red carpet and a touch of glamour: the style of Lisa D

Lisa Duffin likes vivid colours and pretty objects in her home, which combines comfort and quirky details. Eoin Lyons goes visiting

Rock Road in Blackrock, Co Dublin, is home to Lisa Duffin of Bottom Drawer, the family-run bed linen and towelling concession on the top floor of Brown Thomas.

She bought her house, built in 1908, some five years ago and over that time has picked up a bit of local knowledge: "The area between Booterstown Avenue and Mount Merrion Avenue was known as Williamstown and in James Joyce's autobiographical novel Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, the principal character delivers milk to houses on the Rock Road."

She adds, jokingly: "So I like to imagine that at one time, Joyce was the local milkman!"

Lisa has the air of a pixie: luminous and blessed with a tiny frame, her manner is warm and her personality is reflected in the interior of the house - its two abiding features are comfort and a feminine style made up of pretty objects and colours.

In Lisa's livingroom . . . a leather couch with wool throw by Missoni and embroidered green cushion by Etro. The art on her walls: the painting was a gift from her mother, Nancy, who bought it in California. The glass coffee table is by Dublin furniture designer Colin Irish.

Her signature colour: the most striking thing about the room is the raspberry red carpet that runs through from the hall. "It means everything else can be pale because the floor provides warmth." Pinks and reds are her favourite colours and pop up throughout the house. Mother to daughter carpet tip: "My mother told me to use double underlay - it makes the carpet feel much thicker and more luxurious so your feet really sink in."

It was bought at Grange Carpet and Bedding, Deansgrange, Co Dublin (01 2896600).

If in doubt, read a book . . . "Most people haven't got a clue when it comes to dealing with builders. When I bought the house it needed a lot of work and I learnt the hard way.

"It's good to know what they're talking about from the outset so buy the Girls Guide to DIY by Salli Brand. It's fun to read but explains the basics." Published by Mitchell Beazley, it costs €7.40 at Waterstones (01 6791415).

In the bathroom . . . one of the bedrooms was converted into a bathroom with enough space for a freestanding bath, very large shower and double sink unit. Must haves: "I tried to think about what makes a bathroom in a top hotel feel so good. In Hong Kong, I stayed at The Peninsula where the bathroom was enormous and had double everything." Her double sinks provide extra counter space and are set into polished black granite.

Be comfortable: "Carpet in a bathroom isn't considered practical but it's so much warmer than tiling. I've had a biscuit carpet down for five years and it's still perfect." Be creative: "Roll hand towels and use two colours to bring them alive - white with something sharp for contrast." Lighten up: "There's nothing worse than a dimly lit bathroom. I've used plenty of spotlights and two wall lights above the sinks." Rest easy: an oval bath was bought at Ideal Bathrooms (01 4609911). Attached to one end is a bath pillow for real bath time relaxation. Finishing touches: "Fluffy towels, fresh flowers and glamorous beauty products add softness to a modern bathroom. I've used pink towels by Cacharel from our shop, a dish of rose soaps from L'Occitane (01 6797223) and pink beauty products by Laura Mercier (01 6056666).

The great thing about a neutral bathroom is that you can change the look easily by switching the accessories - this is very feminine now but I could also make it masculine in five minutes."

On her shelves . . . Lisa has a big interest in Napoleon: books about the French general line the livingroom shelves. On the chimneypiece is a small figure and a commemorative coin. "I went to see his grave at Les Invalides in Paris, which is where I got the coin. A friend who is a professor at Harvard gave me the little statue."

Cheap thrills . . . "I bought a tribal stick for €20 in a tiny Moroccan village last year. It was carried by the head of the village on special occasions - or at least that's what I was told. They probably popped another one out when I left, but I like having things that have a story. That's the advantage of living in an old house: you can mix strange bits and pieces. I think you have to be quite disciplined about what you put in a modern house."

Favourite flowers . . . "Go to the garden and break branches of greenery. You don't always have to fill vases with flowers. I use green lilac and bentwood. I always keep something like this in the hall. That way when you come into the house you smell real scent - much better than a room spray."

Add some fun . . . "I bought this toaster at La Maison in Galeries Lafayette in Paris (galerieslafayette.com). It's nice to have something fun in a kitchen. La Maison is one of my favourite shops. They stock really quirky things and because the French are so patriotic, almost everything is made in France. The other appliance I love is my Kitchen Aid juicer for making smoothies."

Travel buys . . . "When I'm travelling for work I take an afternoon off to visit art galleries, where I look for black and white movie posters that you can't find here. I bought these ones in New York, Frankfurt and Paris. The stairs seemed a good place to hang them."

Hard to get by without. . .Two of Lisa's life essentials are an Etro handbag and her Motorola phone, a present from her boyfriend.