This transformation has been a long time coming as I first started work on the girls’ shared bedroom over three years ago now - so just a note to any parents out there beating themselves up for slow progress within their own homes, it really is a long and exhausting process. You’ll get there in the end I promise!
Read MoreOur bedroom is relatively small with a sloping ceiling on one side and two doors and a window on the other walls, resulting in only one possible location for the bed. I imagine this is pretty common for most people with ‘normal’ houses and whilst most people would choose to create a focal point behind the bed, when you have a sloping ceiling behind the bed, that is hard to do.
Read MoreI woke up one morning in April 2023, putting on a ridiculously unflattering outfit of black jogging bottoms, mustard jumper and socks with my trusty Birkenstocks, no shower, no make up, and set to demolishing the leaky shower in our shower room, recording a video whilst doing so, that would go on to be seen by over 30 million people.
Read MoreLike many home projects, the journey to a new bathroom downstairs felt like a very long one. We lived with a carpeted (yes, that’s right, carpet) bathroom for 2 and a half years in a dark and miserable space with a cramped layout and a toilet that never wanted to flush. Then the project itself took over six months due to various reasons including suddenly realising our bathroom upstairs was leaking also (reveal for that one coming soon,) and our contractor booked in for the job became very poorly and ending up in hospital the week before he was set to start the work.
Read MoreFor years I’ve looked at the sad space (half-landing) on our stairs knowing we weren’t using it to it’s full potential. I spent months and months looking for second hand bookshelves but unsurprisingly, could never find a piece that was exactly the right size and shape for such a specific area. We also couldn’t afford to have one made and installed by a carpenter so I was really excited to find DIY Alcove Cabinets.
Read MoreOur recent project is without a doubt the smallest but potentially the most trickiest area of our home. The room is part of the original house which dates back about 400 years. It has a low ceiling, exposed beams and extremely uneven walls to go with the two doors coming off it, plus an ugly loft hatch to add into the mix. It does have a very small window, but being north-facing (and with the deep overhang from the thatch) the room gets minimal daylight even on the sunniest of days.
To add to the rooms limitations, in one corner it has rather large pipeworks which protrude from the floor and go up the wall, as well as an electric meter on the wall which are always a bit of an eyesore, aren’t they?
Read MoreObviously it goes without saying that I would happily sleep on a sofa with a blanket if that was required, and I would never expect anyone to have the perfect guest room set up ready when hosting me. In fact, nearly all my family and friends do not have a guest room readily available and that is, I expect, more the norm than the exception!
However, for those lucky enough to have a spare room that they can keep as a guest room, here are a few ideas on how you can make it a welcoming space for all.
Read MoreAs we’re well into our third lockdown, this project could not be anymore timely as we all try desperately to find a corner of peace within our own homes. Our kids absolutely love playing in here, and whilst it is currently the only corner of the whole home that actually looks decent, you’ll probably find me hiding in here too - most likely with a sneaky bar of chocolate before they find me!
Thankfully this room already has a lot of built in storage so whilst the girls are still young, and they’re not fighting over wardrobe space, it made sense to turn this area into something more fun. The doors were warped and didn’t close properly so they would have needed replacing anyway. This felt like a much cheaper and immediate solution.
Read MoreI recently found screen shots of all the old estate agent pictures and thought you’d be interested to see how far the house has come!
I personally know people who viewed this house before we did but were put off by the lime green kitchen. I hope these before and afters will show you how a little bit of vision (and a lot of hard work) can get you a long way!
Just click on the images to scroll across to the afters.
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