Written by Becky Connolly

Hi, it's Becky from The Living House. Each month we want to let you know a little bit more about us and the people behind our brand. 

Keep reading to hear how I made inexpensive updates to my first home.

It’s my birthday today!! It was actually my 30th last year, however I refuse to count it as there was no party, no drinks with friends - so in my mind it didn't happen!!! Therefore I will be celebrating my 30th today!

Isn’t it crazy how time flies. The past few days I have found myself reflecting on different stages of my life and thinking back over old memories. I think birthdays do that to you. I’ve had a few conversations with friends about university days and suddenly felt completely thrown that some of the memories are now 10+ years ago. Where does the time go??? Having said all that, I am really proud of where I am at at the moment. Whilst looking back and remembering good times are fun, I wouldn’t want to actually go back to that time. 

My fiance Iain and I have lived in our little house in Solihull for nearly four years. It is far from our perfect home, but we knew this when we bought the house. We were really keen to live together and of course get on the property ladder as it is so tough. We knew we would have to make sacrifices in our first home and we went into the house search aware of this and excited to start this part of our lives together. Some of our sacrifices are things like - no driveway. This doesn’t bother me too much however Iain really dislikes this about the house. The house is small - big enough for just the two of us and our little cat Daisy, but it lacks storage and some practicalities. The downstairs of the house is basically one big room. This has its good points and bad. Bad being if you have curry for dinner the entire lower level smells like curry for the next two days. However it is wonderful for entertaining, when we can. 

We will most definitely move home in the next two years, therefore any work we have done or will do needs to be purely cosmetic and on a budget. I thought it might be a good idea to share some of the inexpensive updates we have made to the house as I’m sure many people are in the same position as us. You want a nice place to live, but it is your first home not your forever home. 

Here are some of my tips on adding your personality to a space and updating your first home.

Paint is your best friend

Paint is a really inexpensive way to transform a space and something I have focused on in the house. Colour is such a personal choice. Some people are drawn to the warm colour palette, some the cooler blues and greens, and some avoid colour altogether. If you want to put your stamp on a space simply look at images on pinterest or instagram and collect ones that jump out at you. Once you have a few you love, try to draw out some common themes between them. You may notice you have subconsciously picked out all cool colours and this will guide you when it comes to your interior choices. 

In some conversations with customers they appear to be scared of paint. Scared of a darker shade making the room dark or being brave and going for a colour that's outside their comfort zone. I actually think paint is amazing to  experiment with. If you don’t like how it turns out you can change it so easily! 

I painted my bathroom ceiling black. This might sound crazy and a step too far but it really works! Bathrooms do not have the same functionality as other rooms in the house so they don’t need to be especially light or feel spacious. We don’t spend a lot of time in this room so you can be bold and experimental and have fun with it! I love my black ceiling, it has transformed my tired bathroom.

Have a chat with us and find out how we can help you. Book a discovery call with us today!

Add rugs

I think I might have a rug addiction. I have even ventured into outdoor rugs now and bought a beautiful geometric outdoor rug the other day, much to Iain's dismay. 

Rugs can hide a multitude of sins and look lovely whilst doing it. They work hard, adding softness, colour and ground the entire room. Adding a rug is an important tip because for many people changing existing flooring just isn’t a viable option. 

When placing a rug in a living room, go for a big one and make sure to place the front two legs of the sofas on top of the rug. This will help make the rug feel part of the space and less like it's floating. 

Just moved into your new home and now you want to make it your own? We can help, simply click here.

Get creative with artwork

Do you ever see a beautiful gallery wall and think I wish I had a couple of hundred pounds to buy a selection of wonderful prints and frames? This is of course a lovely thing to do and for the right pieces I would recommend saving and doing it right. However if you want something cheaper, why not have a go at creating some art for yourself? 

We recently painted our home office in Dulux Egyptian Cotton and whilst the paint on the walls was drying I rollered some canvas’ with the leftover paint and set aside to dry. I then got some black paint and used it to create some abstract shapes. This cost me no money at all except the canvas’ themselves.

Another cheeky tip is to order some wallpaper samples you love and put them in a lovely frame (but I didn't tell you that!).

Add dried flowers/ greenery / plants

We say this a lot and we mean it! Plants really add life, colour and texture to a space like nothing else. Colours pop against them and it makes the space feel fresher and ‘finished’. 

In many of our appointments we ask customers if they would like plants in their rooms. Quite a few want the look but struggle to keep them alive. There are some really wonderful dried flowers around at the moment and even more artificial plants. They look so good and all you need to do is dust them off every so often!

If you are living in your first home and want the space to feel more like your own, then we would love to help you. Take a look at our affordable packages on our website here and inspiration on Instagram.