Since I moved into my house last May I've spent almost all my free time on making it look how I want it to (which when working 11 hours a day lately hasn't left much time for blog posts, apologies...) It will never be "done", because my interior style is always evolving, but it's at a point where I feel really happy with it and thought I would share what I have done.
I'm lucky in that it was only 3 years old when I bought it so it's in great condition and didn't need any work (just how I like it because I am not at one with DIY). That said, the first thing I did, just as when I moved into my flat 2 years previously, was paint over the magnolia with blissful white (I have a passionate hatred for magnolia paint). I even used the same painter just in case he had got over his snow blindness from last time (when I called him he quipped, "Bright colour this time is it?") Both times I chose Dulux matt in White Cotton. It's ever so slightly off-white to avoid that stark finish, but it's still definitely white rather than cream.
The downstairs floor of my house already had Amtico flooring in place, which luckily was a really nice shade. However, upstairs was covered in a gross yellowish carpet, so the second thing I did was to put the same shade of Amtico upstairs as well. I just can't stand carpet, plus wooden-look flooring is so much more practical, especially since I knew I'd be getting a cat. It also created the perfect blank canvas for my furniture. I always knew I'd get a wooden floor when I could (I wasn't allowed to in my flat), so I deliberately invested in white furniture to avoid clashes of different woods.
Downstairs, I've kept much of my furniture from the flat, including my IKEA leather sofa and French Connection suede cushions, which I still love, as well as my absolute favourite thing ever: my IKEA cowhide rug. I did swap out my white IKEA Billy bookshelf for a black Habitat leaning shelf which I definitely prefer, and spent months rearranging the items on it (finally super happy with it!) I left behind my two IKEA picture shelves in the flat, so decided to put the same ones up above my dining table again, which is the perfect place to display my favourite line drawing my by talented graphic designer sister.
Upstairs there was more to do, especially in the spare room as it's much bigger than my previous spare room, so I knew I wanted to invest in a desk to make working from home easier (I hate using a laptop on the sofa). I initially planned to have one single desk/dressing table, and bought a sleek John Lewis version. At the same time, however, I decided my desk needed a new iMac (oops) and quickly realised there definitely wasn't enough room for that, a mirror and my make-up. So I ended up buying another desk from IKEA and using the first one as just my dressing table, which worked perfectly once I rejigged the room layout a bit. I initially struggled with finding a dressing table mirror that wasn't too girly, but then I found this Moebe one from Trouva, which is just perfect. I also bought some IKEA drawer inserts to organise my make-up. Meanwhile I hung a MADE.com memo board above my desk and used one of my favourite H&M wire trays for my documents and notebooks. I'm still not 100% happy with the desk styling to be honest; it somehow looks too busy but also too stark. I think it needs more natural textures and maybe a different lamp. Watch this space...
Meanwhile in the main bedroom there wasn't much to do since most of the space is taken up by large inbuilt wardrobes, but there was just enough room for a rattan chair from IKEA and a huge fiddle leaf fig plant, which has become one of my favourites. In the hallway I simply topped an IKEA bar stool with a cast-iron plant, and hung a print from Fy on the wall. I haven't included pictures of the bathroom as there are no windows so it's hard to get a good photo, but it's all smooth taupe tiling which I love, so happily nothing to do in there (here's a pic from Insta). I simply added a large IKEA mirrored cabinet to store all my beauty products.
Next up: the garden. Stay tuned...
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