New lifestyle blog focuses on interior design and the home

HOME page of Marilen.ph

The World Wide Web has a wealth of information when it comes to finding prime properties for sale or rent. It is wise to surf the Net when searching for real estate options. Aside from company websites, there are blogs and independent reviewers that look into the amenities and features of real estate developments.

A new lifestyle blog that focuses on interior design and the home is www.marilen.ph. Interior stylist Marilen Faustino-Montenegro recently launched her personal blog, which expresses her style and interior design practice over the past 10 years.

“Marilen.ph is where I express myself and blend my life as an interior stylist and mom,” Marilen told me. A page of beautiful interiors and a theme that is soothing and pretty greets you as you visit her home page. It is a place filled with design inspiration, creative crafts and the pursuit of everything beautiful.

MY “HOUSELIFE” co-hosts Aissa, Marilen, Tristan and me. Photo from Marilen.PH

Marilen also posts professional advice through her blog topics, such as “Designing Your First Home” and “Creating A Cozy Guest Room.” Interior design makeovers, architectural reviews and other home product features are other interesting places to visit on the site.

To differentiate her blog, Marilen also plans to offer some unique home décor products and decorating workshops on the site. Adventurous homemakers who wish to renovate their own home while on a budget will benefit from another feature of this website called Online Decorating.

“Clients can avail of my expert input at fraction of the cost because everything is done online. They receive a detailed mood board and plan with details on how to execute everything themselves,” Marilen said. She related how she got the idea for the blog when, at the end of a busy day, with the kids asleep, she found herself browsing through Pinterest design websites and blogs related to motherhood. This became her “me-time.”

Wanting to inspire others and provide a place of solace through beautiful interiors for the home and heart, the idea for Marilen.ph was born. Having studied interior design, Marilen specializes in decorating model units and residential projects. She worked with a famous Filipino designer after graduating from college before going into full-time modeling.

“I was already doing television commercials and got asked to try out and attend a casting for the Professional Models Association of the Philippines. I got accepted and it opened doors for me.” While modeling, Marilen recalls still accepting jobs as an interior stylist. It was a passion she pursued. She also had the opportunity to host a couple of design-related TV shows, namely “Tahanang Pinoy” on ABC5 in 2005, as a cohost on “HouseLife” with me on QTV11 in 2009, and as part of the design team of “Extreme Makeover Home Edition Philippines” on TV5 last 2012.

Writing is also not something new to Marilen. She has written design-related articles for magazines like Good Housekeeping Philippines and  international websites like Suite101.com, Homedesignews.com and Mommy-mall.com.

Getting ideas for Marilen.ph is easy, she says. Aside from blogs and websites, interior design and lifestyle magazines are additional sources. One of her favorite reading materials is Cocoon Magazine, from the Inquirer.

Cocoon is a home-and-wellness quarterly magazine that gives readers ideas that inspire them to create their personal style in a place where they feel most positive and secure. It is not just about décor and design. Cocoon is all about you and how you can build a happy home—ingredients of a happy, stylish cocooning: space planning and design; trends from experts (interior designers, home decorators, space planners); latest products from suppliers; tips and secrets from leading home entertainers.

The current issue features our colorful home and more features, like a peek into the artistic compound of Eric Pares in the Manila area. When Hollywood star Sarah Jessica Parker was in town, she visited Eric’s home store and bought up a storm.

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