DIY & Crafts

This corner of our landing has been crying out for wallpaper ever since we’ve moved in. It’s been on my ‘non-essential’ to do list for so long and I guess the reason why I’ve actually never done it is because a) everything else in the house has broken and needed our time and money to replace, and b) the more I look at those angles, the more I feel it’s a job I don’t wanna do!

As interior trends shift towards more traditional, and maybe a somewhat whimsical aesthetic, we are seeing a rise of hand painted vintage furniture popularised by talented decorative artists and illustrators who use repetitive pattern, small botanical shapes combined with stripes, spots and soft geometrical patterns.

I have loved watching these pieces evolve, from picture frames to wardrobes, bedside tables and mirrors, pioneers of the craft like decorative artists Tess Newall and Felicity Buchanan have opened up a whole new level of upcycling which many, including myself, are enjoying having a go at.

If you’re having your walls skimmed or plastered and are considering leaving them unpainted because you love the bare plaster look - this blog post is for you.

As a fan of muted peachy pinks, I have also always loved the bare plaster look, especially as it provides so much texture, similar to many of the lime wash paint effects that are so popular at the moment. Having had a disaster with natural lime wash paint already, I’ve never been tempted to try that again, however bare plaster felt like an achievable way to get a similar effect with minimal effort.

There is so much information online nowadays about every DIY project under the sun - to the point where it can become overwhelming as you scroll from one YouTube tutorial to another. However, if you’re taking on a renovation project or have some tasks you’d like to tackle yourself and you’re wondering how to get started, here’s a list of the tools I use the most.

We’ve been living in our 400 year old thatched cottage for almost three years now, and, as it’s a relatively rare roof type for houses in the UK, feel like I can give a little insight into our experience so far.

In fact, there are only 35,000 thatched homes in the UK, of which 24,000 are listed, which means that thatched homes make up for just 0.1% (and unlisted thatched homes, likes ours, make up for 0.04%). There are many pros and cons to living and owning a home with a thatched roof, but it is undoubtedly the aesthetic that draws most people in to their charms. The unique, soft, country look, can certainly appear whimsical and romantic and the perfect backdrop for a wild cottage garden or a glisteningly white snowy day.

However, are they as magical to live with as they appear in a photograph?

For 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.

Although I actually quite liked the original colour of our cupboards (some by John Lewis of Hungerford, some by IKEA), they were chipped and looking pretty sorry for themselves after we’d made improvements elsewhere. Once our new flooring was finally in, I decided it was time to give them a refresh.

First up, this jobs takes a while. You need a good block of time to do this properly, and it really helped me that my husband took the kids away for three days to his parents. I did three 18 hour DIY shifts in a row (I had time off in between whilst the paint was drying to do other stuff like eat, wash and work) but even then they weren’t completely finished.

This is an idea I have wanted to try out for ages. I love a naturally wooden floor, but in some circumstances where the original floorboards have already been painted, or aren’t in the best condition, painting them may actually be a better option.

It’s worth noting that this look does require more maintenance than oiled floors but it can really transform a room. Rather than going with a block colour for our summerhouse makeover, I decided to paint a checkerboard pattern to bring a bit more interest and fun into the space. I’m also hoping the pattern will detract slightly from the scuffs and marks that an outdoor playhouse will inevitably attain over time.

Our 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?

We’re on our third house renovation but I’d definitely still call myself a beginner when it comes to DIY. It doesn’t come naturally to me, and whilst I do it a lot, I still find it intimidating and often overwhelming. No question is too silly so do let me know if there’s any other DIY questions you’d like covered.

One of the questions I get asked most on Instagram is which electric sander do I recommend for someone starting out? Here are the three that I use:

Painting an old radiator is a great and easy way to help it blend into your décor, creating a seamless and coordinated look on a budget.

As we have never been blessed with particularly pretty radiators - think dated and grubby with the previous owners’ old knickers found behind them kind of radiators - I love to colour match them to the walls so they ‘disappear’ and let other design features in the room stand out.

As 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.

Kitchens are an expensive room to renovate and more often than not, we need to find solutions that make what we already have work for us. One inexpensive way to do this is to install a curtain to hide any ugly appliances or clutter you may have on show. Our utility room sits right next to our kitchen and is used as a part utility/part kitchen with our fridge/freezer, microwave, dishwasher and washing machine in there alongside a utility cupboard, coat storage and boiler. The previous owners didn’t have a dishwasher, so we had to make space for both our appliances by cutting out the cupboard that previously sat where the curtain now is. Thankfully the worktop was supported by brackets above, so it was a simple job completed with a circular saw and a lot of noise (it also made the fire alarm go off!) whilst the kids miraculously stayed asleep one evening.

This is an honest review, written and shared in return for some gifted shutters from California Shutters. Use the discount code OTTO25 for 25% off – code valid until 25/08/2020.

We have been living with no window treatments downstairs for over 18 months. So long, I’d almost forgotten that everyone could see right into our front room from the relatively busy path outside. I’ve never been someone who is overly private, and would always prefer good light during the day over a window covering, but even I began to feel like having people casually snooping on us from outside on the regular was a step too far!