From the women who said she would paint before any furniture enters the property, we have finally injected some paint into our new build home! Only took nearing 10 weeks. And just as expected, with one stroke of the brush, I caught the bug and painted a further two rooms – but more about that later.
When looking at the show home for our property late last year, we were pleasantly surprised with the look and feel for the en-suite. Whilst we knew ours would be slightly different without a window and different choices of tiles, we didn’t think it would be much difference – surely?
Fast forward living in our own home and we quickly realized it was drab, boring and lifeless – and I couldn’t deal with any of that whilst in lockdown. We had thought about having more tiles, but we weren’t confident with that just yet, so we turned to paint.
We wanted contrast from the grey tiles we had selected, and we wanted drama. Being such a small space, it needed to pack some punch. So we opted for the gorgeous ‘muted graphite’ colour from dulux, and well, here’s the result.
Overall I am soooo happy with the outcome. I take my hat off to anyone who has a white home and made it feel homely and warm. I understand we hadn’t dressed the room previously, but it was just so stark, cold and lifeless. With this fairly deep but warming colour we have achieved everything we wanted. We also injected some green into the space as we will be using Green in our master bedroom. We really wanted the coherent feel from the master bedroom into the en-suite, whilst keeping it it’s own space.
Styling
We kept the styling simple, as we didn’t want too much in such a small space. The mirror was the best choice, as it offers storage and is in keeping with our style. With a simple picture ledge, small faux succulents and the prints, it was complete.
Considering we were not wanting to touch the space until getting more tiling, I think I prefer the look of the paint. Its really made the huge shower a focus in the space, and cost less too!!! It’s amazing what one lick of paint can really do! What do you think? You excited to see more of our transformations? Get commenting in the comment section below.
I can’t quiet believe it has been 1 month since we finally got the keys to our New Build Home. It was a long old ride ( you can read more about it here ), but we got the keys just 2 weeks before Christmas. As with any new build, there are certainly some teething problems. But to throw the big C word ( Christmas ) into the mix, we found ourselves tight for time when it came to the necessities.
So what can you really achieve in 1 month of owning a new build, of which Christmas was in the middle of? Well, it seems rather a lot.
Flooring
One of our biggest additions was of course the flooring. And this absolutely couldn’t wait. We decided to source our own flooring and fitters, aside from what the development offered. We just found the site didn’t have muchhhh choice and we really wanted to put our own stamp and style wherever possible.
We opted for Amtico click smart flooring throughout the downstairs and in our family bathroom and en-suite. Carpets were also laid in all 3 bedrooms, landing and stairs. We are so glad we chose our own flooring and fitters, as we were able to choose style and colour that matched our home better. Plus, we made a saving of over £1500.00 compared to the site quote!
Our flooring took 3 days to complete and was done within 2 days of getting the keys. I was sooo happy that we managed to book our flooring guys ahead, so we could defiantly move in before Christmas.
Painting
Very little painting has been done here, and what has been done was done in the very first few days of having the keys. Painting our banister was top priority, since no flooring made it that much easier. We are so glad we jumped head first and did this, as its made a world of difference. Next stop, more painting, once all our bedroom furniture is in of course.
Furniture
Aside from the furniture we had from our apartment, we have made some pretty critical purchases within the first days and weeks of owning our new home!
We found pretty quickly that we didn’t have an awful lot of furniture in the flat and being in a 3 bed house, it looked pretty bare!
One of our early purchases included a gorgeous shelving unit for our lounge. This made a huge difference as it filled a pretty large hole , and meant we could showcase some of our most loved decorative pieces.
We also bagged a new bed and mattress, upgrading from the cramped double to a kingsize. We opted for a ottoman once again, as it offers such huge storage that would otherwise be wasted. We also invested in a better mattress. We were finding we were both suffering on our old mattress, so ensuring we had something that offered comfort and support was so important. To say we both love heading to bed is a understatement – our new mattress is the comfiest thing!
Finally, whilst its not yet here, we have ordered our much needed wardrobes! Our previous, extra tall ones wouldn’t fit in our new abode, so we had to buy new. And with Ikea Pax having a somewhat huge supply issue, we’ve had to wait a bit longer than hoped. But we’ve managed to design something that will hide everything away and make good use of the new space we have!
Lighting
Once again, this was something we managed pretty quickly having purchased many of our lights ahead of moving in. With one slight snag ( we can’t find the beam in the dining room to hang our pendant from ), we have managed to install lighting in the hallway and landing, lounge and downstairs toilet. We just need to find the right lights for our bathroom and bedrooms.
Turf
Who knew having turf laid would make such a huge impact on the inside space too! We very quickly became desperate for some turf, and ahead of when we thought we would. Having Rhodie penned onto our measly patio, it was high on the agenda. Following the advice of our site manager, we had a local company come in just this week and level, top soil and turf our garden.
And what a huge impact its had already!
Rhodie now has somewhere to blow off some steam and ultimately go to the toilet! Just looking out of our patio doors onto green rather than mud, has made a huge difference! Surprisingly, the green has kicked me up the bum and I’m now planning extensively our garden. We have been lucky with the size, and I’m keen to make good use of it!
What’s next?
If you’ve read our 2021 Interior plans for our new home, you will know the list was pretty extensive. But we have already made a small dent in our long list, and well within budget too!
Furniture
Obviously building our wardrobes is high on the agenda, but also finding a accent chair and coffee table for the lounge is a must too. Finishing our master bedroom with soft touches, and key furniture pieces is also high on our list, as having no bedside lights or somewhere to put your midnight drink is getting pretty tedious!
Loft
If you’ve bought new build recently, you will know that you ‘shouldn’t’ put anything in your loft. However, being the rebels me and my husband are, we want to store, just the usual in ours. I mean who has a loft and never puts anything in it! We had thought about getting someone in to do it, but after much research, we are confident we can do this ourselves. Hopefully we will get cracking soon so I can finally put those Christmas decorations away!
Garden
Although the dark evenings are drawing to a close, having some much needed light at the front and back of our house is something we are now turning our attention too. It could well be something we have to get some professional help on, of which we will wait until lock-down has passed.
I am so grateful to finally be in our own home, especially with the latest lock-down. We are in no rush to do everything and more to our home, but we also want to take full advantage of not being able to do an awful lot else. I hope you are enjoying my journey, I would advise checking my instagram too as I tend to share a lot of it on there.
I moved into a new build home 1 week before Christmas…did you know? Of course you know, because it was the only thing I was banging on about the back end of 2020.
Yes, the end of 2020 was as hectic as can be, but there’s no complaining, it was nice to be ending that strange old year in our brand new home. Alas, upon moving in, we began to see the huge task list we were subconsciously building in order to make our blank canvas our home.
Aside from painting and injecting colour, we seem to have adopted some other internal jobs that I hadn’t expected when buying brand new. Of course, everyone has different tastes, but there seems to be a hugeeeee list of jobs despite having that just finished, completely new home.
Tile the main Bathroom
Our quote for more tiles and a shower fitted over our bath in the main bathroom was extortionate, especially considering how much it would cost privately to have the job done. So this is something we knew we would do once we’ve moved in. Having lived in our property for a couple of weeks, we have realised it’s something we are desperate to get done, just to add something more to what feels like a bland bathroom.
Install Towel Radiators
Once again, this is something we didn’t upgrade with the builder, mainly because we wanted a different colour compared to what they offered. It’s another job to add to the list but one we are desperate having previously had towel radiators and already missing their practicality.
New Internal Doors
A rather controversial one when we spoke to family and friends initially, but now the flooring is down and our furniture in, everyone agrees. The internal doors original to the house were not plain white like usual, but a horrible, bland oak design which does not match our decor at all.
It’s something we are fairly frustrated with as its not something the developers would change and all we want is the usual white door that you would typically find in any other new build home. But its a change that will finish off our home, especially once we start painting and implementing our colour palette.
Extend the patio
Turning our eye to the exterior of our property, there is alot to do outside our home. With a mud bath as a garden, we do have a blank canvas to sculpt a garden to suit our lifestyle. Firstly, we want to extend the patio from the measly 4 x 4 patio we were left with.
Like others, we like to host, so having an extended patio for evening drinks and summer BBQs is a must.
Lay Turf
Our cockapoo pup is desperate for some green turf to run, explore and of course poop on. We are hoping this is something that will be done promptly, as having a puppy pooping and weeing on that tiny patio is wearing thin. It would also be lovely to look outside and see a lawn of Green.
Soften with plants
Just like inside, we want to soften the outside too. We have some plants to the front, but of course, we want to soften the stark garden with foliage and seasonal bulbs. We are not usually green fingered, but after some practical garden Christmas presents, we are both excited and eager to get stuck in in the garden.
Window Boxes
Whilst there are some flowers and greenery out the front, being a new build, it isn’t exactly established. A window box for our kitchen window will add some much needed colour and interest where it seems a little bland.
External Lighting
One external light outside our front door is just not enough, especially having a drive which quickly gets dark during the winter months. We hope to install some external lights to illuminate our drive and the brick wall that edges it.
We have a busy busy year ahead, making our new build property our home. This pretty extensive list of jobs and interior wishes of course doesn’t include those cosmetic jobs like painting, furniture and artwork. But we like to keep active and this year is a year we will be more so then ever.
