We’ve taken on some pretty ambitious projects over the last few years, but this one? This one felt like quite the commitment.

Because let’s be honest, painting a wall is one thing. Attempting to hang a door that’s straight, actually closes and doesn’t have a massive gap underneath it? A slightly different ball game. Especially when you’re fitting them into old, existing frames.

But, as with most things in this house, we decided to give it a go.

So, here’s how we got on replacing our internal doors, why we chose two completely different styles and whether we’d ever attempt it again…

Subscribe now

AD disclosure: These doors were provided by Leader Doors as part of a collaboration on our Instagram. This article isn’t a contracted part of that campaign, but we want to be completely transparent about how we received them.

So… why new doors?

Well, we’ve been quite sneaky little Instagrammers over the years and have managed to keep our tired and unloved doors pretty well hidden.

But the truth is, despite initially thinking they might be a cool retro nod to the 1970s bones of our place, they were actually corrugated, lightweight, dented and stained beyond belief.

After giving them a re-stain now and again to try to make them look ever so slightly better, and three years of putting up with them… it was time to move on.

Leader Doors actually slid into our DMs and came fully to the rescue, and we found EXACTLY what we’d been dreaming about for their replacement.

Super slick, modern, yet totally workable with the slightly retro nods throughout our home.

We found the dream Crittall-inspired wooden doors with three panels in a chic matt black for spots where we need a fully solid door, then matching ribbed glass-panelled doors for everywhere else. Absolutely ideal to match our transom windows, which we’ve already added ribbed film to!

The idea was to have two different styles that still felt connected, giving us that cohesive look throughout the house without every door needing to be identical.

Doors ordered, black hardware to match and a big old pile of ambition, we decided to give the whole joinery thing a go.

Nothing like throwing yourself in at the deep end, ey!

Why do it ourselves?

Well, same old story. Save money, create content, test ourselves and, basically, it’s what we’re all about.

If it’s not electrics or gas, we will most probably look into giving it a go! So guess what… we did!

How did we do it?

Step by step… from a rookie… here we go!

Now, we’re certainly not professionals, and this is just how we approached fitting our particular doors into our existing frames. Always check your door manufacturer’s instructions, trimming allowances and any fire safety requirements before getting started.

1. First up - get the right size doors! Measure, measure and measure again. Minimal cuts, minimal mess-ups. Don’t set yourself up to fail. And check how much your chosen doors can actually be trimmed before ordering!

2. Get the right kit. We’re talking the right drill bits, sharp chisels etc. In your pack of handles, you’ll have the dimensions of your latches, handle placement and so on. Read it all, get your drill bit sizes written down and head to the DIY store. We used hex shank flat wood bits for drilling the latch holes.

3. Measure your old frame. Take into account any sides that are on the wonk or not level, then offer up the door. You might need to take some height off, depending on your flooring and the clearance required. We used a circular saw to do this, or if it was just a few millimetres, we used a planer. Just make sure you’re working within the manufacturer’s trimming allowance and following the clearance requirements for your particular door.

4. Install your hinges onto your door. If you have a router and jig, even better. If you’re like us and winging it, take your time! We marked the hinge placement with a knife, then used a chisel to slowly take away layers of wood until the hinge fitted nicely. Screw them on, then offer the door up to the doorway.

5. Line the hinges up with the doorway. Use inflatable air wedges to support your door, then repeat the process and chisel out where the hinges need to go on the frame. If, like us, you’re working with an old frame, the area will probably be chiselled out already, so it might save you a job!

6. Have a cup of tea before you mentally prepare for the latch and handle. You don’t want to mess this bit up!

7. Masking tape is your mate. Tape the area where your latch and handle will sit, then mark up your measurements, including the backset (the distance from the edge of the door to the centre of the handle spindle).

8. Now, all handles and latches vary. We had one where we needed to drill quite a large area for the latch and another where it was just one hole. So read your instructions carefully, follow the measurements and use the right size drill bits to make space for your latch. Then use a chisel to neaten up where you’ve drilled so everything fits just right.

9. Next, drill the hole for your handle spindle. Slow and steady for a smooth finish. Follow the measurements for your particular latch and handle.

10. Screw the latch into place, mark around the perimeter of the faceplate with a knife, then unscrew and remove it. Use a small chisel to take the wood back for a smooth, flush fit when you screw it back into place.

11. Grab your handle spindle, fit it through and test that everything works. Then fit your handles on either side and fix them in place with the grub screws. You might also have some small through-bolts for your handles, so just check this too!

12. Job done… Next, strike plate!

13. You need to mark where the latch hits your frame, then hold your strike plate up and mark its position. Chisel out the area required for the latch, then mark around the plate with a knife and chisel back for a flush fit. Screw the plate into place and TADA - you have a working door, handle and latch!

Now… if you want how-to videos from someone who explains everything step by step in a fun and simple way, check out this guy:

How long did it take?

For the three doors so far? Two and a bit weekends!

We went slow and steady, didn’t want to mess anything up and set ourselves bits to get done each weekend.

So, weekend one was cutting down to size and hanging, weekend two was handles, and the final bit… fitting the strike plates and finishing touches on evenings.

We won’t lie, it was a longer process than we probably anticipated and we’d definitely underestimated the time it takes to chisel stuff!

How much did we spend?

Well, we were very lucky, as we said, to work on this as an ad. But here’s the breakdown of all the products we chose and some we bought to complete the job:

• Reeded Glass Doors - £199 Each

• Industrial Panel Doors - £180 Each

• Slim Handles (for glass doors) - £58.99 Each

• Round Handles (for solid doors) - £21.99 Each

• Black Hinges - £9 Each

• Chisel Set - £22.99

• Air Wedge - £9.79

• Spade Drill Bits - £21.78

Total - £799.53

What would we do differently next time?

Probably buy a router and jig.

It just depends how many doors you have to fit and whether it’s worth the cost or not, but for a smooth finish, we think it would be worth it.

Also, you really need to be patient chiselling and do it in layers for the best finish.

Finally, measure, measure and measure again. We had a really wonky frame for one of the doors and had to do lots of adjusting to get things sitting correctly. It’s a bit of a head-scratcher and certainly tests your patience.

What did we learn?

Joinery is hard!

Even more respect for the professionals. The backache from leaning over was no joke. We were walking bent double every evening after a day of graft!

But on a serious note, we actually learnt a hell of a lot installing them and we’d feel much more confident tackling doors and handles going forwards.

Would we do it again?

Well, spoiler alert… we have to!

We have four doors to install upstairs and we’ve got our fingers and toes crossed that the existing frames aren’t too wonky!

If we didn’t have those doors to do? We probably would for one-off doors, but maybe not a whole house again.

Saying that, paying for it to be done is NOT CHEAP. Someone I know paid £200 per door. That certainly adds up on a whole house.

Final thoughts…

Kinda proud of us.

They look ace, they’ve totally transformed our downstairs space and we finally have doors that close and stay shut!

The ribbed glass works beautifully for letting the light flow through, the solid black doors give us that bold finish we wanted, and the doors and handles are just what we’d been dreaming of.

Yes, it definitely tested our patience, partly because it was something totally new, but partly because we’re a bit burnt out and in need of a holiday!

But we really feel that endorphin buzz now from trying and succeeding at something new.

And I think that’s one of the things we love most about renovating this house ourselves. Even after three years, we’re still learning, still trying new things and still surprising ourselves with what we can actually do.

Now… only four more to go!

Leave a comment

So, having an opinion is one thing.

Sharing your home and taste is another.

But actually sharing that advice and knowledge with other people?

That. That’s a bit terrifying.

A bit exposing.

A bit imposter syndrome.

Like, I’m not a trained interior designer?

So then how did I pluck up the courage to click ‘share’?

Subscribe now

We started online just sharing the journey. The shots. The before and afters. The progress moments.

Then things shifted, to giving a bigger glimpse into the journey. Enjoying creative content. Testing out our lipsyncing skills. Sharing the questionable dance moves.

So why does that ‘funny DIY couple’ suddenly think they can share design advice?

But maybe that’s just it.

Maybe the funny feels safe. It’s what I know. It’s light, it’s enjoyable, it’s entertaining, it’s never taken too seriously.

I’ll happily make a fool of myself online. I’ll dance badly, lipsync in a pair of overalls and share the DIY jobs that have gone completely wrong.

But telling people how we make design decisions? That feels different.

Because if someone doesn’t find you funny, you move on.

But if someone thinks your advice is a load of crap… well, that feels a bit more personal.

Suddenly you’re not just showing people what you’ve done. You’re putting your knowledge out there and saying, this is why we did it.

And maybe that’s what feels exposing.

Of course we’re not professionals. We’re not trying to be.

But we have learnt a hell of a lot, so why not share it? That deserves its moment.

We didn’t wake up three years ago knowing how to put a room together.

We’ve spent hours looking at colour charts, trying samples, debating choices for months, changing our minds, figuring out which shades pair best, learning about undertones and realising that sometimes the colour you absolutely LOVE on the tiny little card looks completely rubbish when you paint an entire wall in it.

And I suppose if we can share what we’ve learnt from that experience and help someone else then that’s worth something.

If someone asked our advice in person, we wouldn’t doubt it.

If a friend invited us round and said, “What colour would you put in here?” we’d have the colour charts out and be mocking up ideas. We’d chat through how we make decisions, what colours flow from the other rooms, where we’d start.

We wouldn’t sit there thinking, who the hell do we think we are?

So why does putting exactly the same advice online suddenly make it feel so ‘official’?

Turns out I do know how to pair a colour and a neutral. I do know how to approach a blank canvas. I do know little lighting tricks and how to layer textures. We both also know a hell of a lot more of the practical stuff now too.

Hell, I’ve even been consulting on a commercial space in the city so I must know something.

So what is it going to take to believe in myself?

Well… that’s the age-old question, I guess.

But if I don’t put myself out there and share my advice with a few people, then I’m never going to get any closer to doing so.

We’re not here to suddenly start telling everyone the ‘rules’. Actually, our entire house is probably evidence that we’re quite happy ignoring a lot of the rules…

But we can share how our process works.

Why we put those colours together. Why we repeat certain tones through the house. Where we start when we’ve got a completely blank room.

Take from it what you want. Ignore the rest.

It doesn’t mean ‘the funny DIY couple’ is disappearing. The questionable dancing isn’t going anywhere - some of you might be annoyed thats continuing actually?!

But maybe we’re finally getting comfortable showing another side of what we do too.

It’s time to be brave. Be bold. Be ballsy.

Because we both have something to share and it can be more than just watching along with the process. And we don’t have to be a bloody expert to say it either.

So yeah, I shared the post.

And I felt a bit sick about it.

But I also really enjoyed making it.

I want to talk more about why we make the choices we do, how we put rooms together, where we start, what we’ve learnt and probably all the things we’re still getting completely wrong. So brace yourselves!

And guess what?

You all loved the post anyway after all that anxiety.

Leave a comment

Perfect Paint Colours.

Finally, our cinema room/home office/spare room colour is complete and this pimento olive costume from the iconic Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging might just be a massive clue.

Ok, maybe not the pimento part.

But certainly the olive.

Actually, come to think of it, should we go more classy and think Perelló tin? Nah… probably not our style!

Anyway, it’s here, it’s bold, it’s beautiful and the colour quite literally snogs you as you walk into the room.

It’s our olive green cinema room!

Subscribe now

Now, how’s that for a colour drench? Pretty damn delicious, right?

We used (previously declared AD) Ronseal One Coat, which was literally a dream because it has a lovely chalky matt finish but can also go on pretty much any surface. Which means minimal cutting in.

No taping up, no waiting for a coat to dry, no different finishes to buy.

Just one pot, one brush, one roller and bish bash bosh!

We completed it easily in a day - probably quicker if it wasn’t for filming dance moves in between (see the reel below).

And we couldn’t be more chuffed, to be honest.

We obviously put this room off because of the state it was previously in (see here), and because of that we’d never really given it much thought or attention.

But now we’ve given it a bit of TLC and a moment to shine, we’re super excited for the next stages too - adding storage and making more of the space.

Now, we mentioned before that we’re going custom. And we’ve done a VERY ROUGH sketch to check we’re on the same page, but you can see what we’re visualising…

Are you seeing the vibe?

A mix of open shelves and cupboards. Continuing the colour drenching but adding some wood detailing behind the open shelving. An artwork moment, mood lighting. Warm tones.

It’s feeling mid-century chic.

If we can pull this off, it will be wonderful.

Plus, the lamp and shelving will work as a side table when guests stay and the sofa bed becomes a double bed again. Ta-da!

Then we’re thinking the desk moment will work in the opposite corner as you enter the room - but this is still a work in progress, so bear with us!

But for now, we’re one step closer to our olive green movie den and it MIGHT even be possible to have a celebratory movie night before Christmas. EEEK.

So there we have it. An entire room accidentally inspired by Georgia Nicholson.

We’ve got her to thank for this one.

“Georgia’s perfect too. She’s just a perfect nutter.”

Overalls.

There’s another little something we’ve been working on behind the scenes.

Our perfect overalls.

We basically live in them at this point. Painting, sanding, building, filming - if there’s a job happening in this house, chances are one of us is wearing a pair. But we’ve had the same pairs since day one and, quite frankly, they’re making us sad.

So naturally, we’ve started thinking about sourcing our own.

It’s very early days. There are samples to look at, fabrics to think about and probably 400 tiny decisions we haven’t even considered yet. But the idea of creating something that feels properly Jolly is VERY exciting!

They’ll be practical enough to actually renovate in, but cool enough that you don’t immediately want to rip them off when you leave the house.

Watch this space. Jolly Reno workwear might just be incoming…

Dexter.

His contribution to the cinema room and overall concept has so far been approximately zero. Unless you count walking through, inspecting our work and leaving again.

He does claim that our success is purely down to his cameo moments in reels and endless love and affection behind the scenes, but we beg to differ.

Anyway. He just wanted to say hi and send kisses to you all.

And that’s a wrap. Dexter, overalls and perfect paint colours.

Let’s see what next week brings at the Jolly HQ.

Leave a comment

So it’s officially one year since I quit my full-time job. Technically this post is a few days late as I left on the 5th September - which was my dad’s birthday, so I’m taking that as a sign from him telling me to go chase my dreams!

But how does it feel one year on? Let’s get into it…

Subscribe now

September 2025. Why did I quit my job?

I took a leap with a lot of good intentions, a bit of naivety, a huge chunk of self-belief, a large dose of burnout and a bit of trauma.

I’d been comfortable but bored in my full-time role. I’d been there too long, my heart was in what we were growing with The Jolly Reno and I was ready to leave months before I probably should have.

The balance was off. I was exhausted. I wanted to give this so much more than I could. At this point we’d had a few bits of work, had some talks going with brands, some projects lined up and things felt… possible.

I was hitting burnout, so realising enough was enough, I took the leap.

The first few weeks… felt weird.

First of all, I was tired and emotional. I’d lived the same routine for years. Then I woke up one Monday morning and didn’t need to leave the house.

I had to find and build my new structure and day-to-day purpose, which was a strange one. It really did feel like I was working it out as I went along.

I spent time making brand decks, media kits, wondering whether we should be creating content for local companies… it was all a bit confused. But we stuck with our gut, trusted our instincts and John encouraged me that we couldn’t force it and the right path would come our way.

But holding your nerve can make you doubt ALL your decisions.

Two weeks later…

We were on a video call with an agency who saw our potential, gave us a bit more self-belief and helped us navigate this online world where, quite frankly, it can feel like a massive guessing game!

It was the safety blanket we needed, the community we’d been lacking and the industry insight we were naive to.

It might not be the right path for everyone, but it was the system we needed to help turn this dream into a reality. I’m definite that the team there must have thought they’d taken on a challenge with my wobbling confidence, but if they did, they never let on. And they’re our best decision to date.

A support bubble.

Full-time to ‘?’ can feel a bit overwhelming and suddenly quite isolating, so I found another piece to bring a bit of balance.

A part-time temporary contract to give me a month-to-month side salary and take the pressure off a little bit. I was lucky enough to find a dreamy visual merchandising position where making displays and working on seasonal themes is a pure joy. It’s a welcome day away from this online life, it doesn’t overpower it and the girls I’ve met through the role are truly wonderful.

I’m still there, just less than before, but those days are so welcome! They help with structure, they bring a bit of social and it’s nice to still dip my toes into a workplace.

My new day-to-day.

So what does the working week actually look like now? Well. I won’t lie, it took a while to find the way, but I’m there now.

Someone said to me, ‘Enjoy the journey because you’re so busy panicking about the next bit and making it work, that you’re missing what’s happening right now’ in the early days and it helped me massively.

I was so worried about making it pay, navigating it all and wanting to prove myself that I wasn’t actually appreciating what I’d already built for myself. I needed to slow down and actually enjoy it.

Just because I once worked 9–5, and extra on an evening and weekend if needed, doesn’t mean I’m failing if I’m not doing that now.

What hours actually suit my lifestyle?

I’m a morning person, so let’s eat the frogs first thing and do the simpler tasks later in the day.

Let’s go swimming during the week like I used to wish I could when I worked full-time, because I CAN make my routine work for me.

We work a lot of weekends now because John needs to be in the content too - obviously! So my weekdays involve admin, editing, pitches, briefs, accounts, calls, planning, engaging and even keeping on top of the house.

Hell, sometimes I even go for a coffee with a friend or book my hair on a Thursday afternoon because I can.

And now I’ve got used to that and made peace with my new structure, I bloody love it.

It’s the whole reason I dreamt of this being my new career path anyway - to make my job work for my lifestyle, not my lifestyle work for my job!

The bit I wasn’t prepared for.

Sometimes - like last week - it means I’m working until midnight finishing content for a tight deadline. Other times it means I have a slower day.

You think, ‘Now I’ll have time. I won’t be shoehorning things in and having to work at silly times.’ But the nature of the beast is you have to do the work when it’s there and when it’s needed by. Nothing is ever quite how you imagine!

Also, inconsistency.

It’s peaks and troughs and that can feel a little unsettling at first.

Now we’ve had a year playing at it, we’ve started to know what to expect and trust the flow. But at first, the financial instability and not knowing where the next job was coming from really messed with our heads.

But we wanted this.

So when it feels stressful or isn’t quite going to plan, we feel a bit guilty. Like, who are we to complain when this is what we asked for?

Luckily, the good always outweighs the bad.

Pinch me. It’s happening.

A year on and it still doesn’t feel like a real job. Our hobby is our business. We’ve started to make it happen and we’re on a high!

There’s moments where we can answer emails whilst snuggled on the sofa with our dog and feel utterly content. Then moments where a brand you’ve admired from afar lands in your inbox and asks to work with you for an amount of money you never even imagined and you’re riding high all month.

It’s a full-on mix of big achievements and quiet moments and we’re hopeful that the bubble never pops.

Has it changed ‘The Jolly Reno’?

Well, yeah, of course. But we like to hope for the better.

Our content has grown, we have more time to share what we want. We now have this bloody Substack too! And we have loads of BTS projects we can’t wait to share more on soon.

And yes, it’s more of a business, so there is more AD content than before. And we’re not going to shy away from that or feel shameful about it.

This content is stuff we’ve worked hard on. Hard to get the deal in the first place, concepts we’ve really put our minds to, time spent filming and then editing. It’s something we’re actually really proud of and we always work hard to collaborate with brands that we would use in our day-to-day life and that we feel we can create genuine, fun and entertaining content for.

Then all that content supports the stuff we love most.

The silly moments, the lip syncs, the crimps. The creative freedom and ability to grow and become whatever we desire.

So it’s more serious, more considered, more structured, but it’s still our messages, our story and our choices all the way along.

The nosey question. Do I earn more?

I’d love to tell you I immediately handed in my notice and started earning double my old salary. That would make this a sexy-ass Substack article. But alas, that isn’t the reality.

The first few months were rocky. Hey, even the first six. That’s where the temporary contract helped.

It’s unpredictable. There’s an element of cash flow and the ups and downs of a busy month to a quiet month.

The credit card has been hit, then paid off, then hit again, and so on.

But now we’re a year on, we’re feeling secure and content. And we actually feel richer in so many ways.

Yes, financially we’re good, but also time, freedom, opportunity and control. All the reasons I wanted this lifestyle shift in the first place.

What have I learnt about me?

I need routine. I need a reason to get out of bed on a morning. But I can create exactly the one I want.

At the moment it’s swimming, tea, emails, content, walk, lunch, editing, admin, housework, cooking, relaxing, book time, bed.

I can design the structure and plan I need from one week to the next. I just need to make sure I actually plan it!

I’m more ballsy than I thought! I actually made the leap that I’d been dreaming about, put myself out there to make it happen… and it did.

So yeah, pat on the back for that one.

I did have quite a few cheerleaders supporting me too though!

I’m bad at switching off. It’s gone from a hobby to a job but really, it’s both, and it’s hard to know when to put your phone or laptop down, or when to stop thinking about the next piece of content. Especially when it’s me and John doing this together.

We’re thinking we might need to introduce a ‘no talking about it now’ curfew.

Back to today.

So here I am, a year on from the burnout and tears.

Through the wobbles and day-to-day dilemmas, powering through the challenging and testing moments, celebrating the big wins, enjoying the new lifestyle and better wellbeing… and now sitting here at my kitchen island writing this on a Monday morning.

And is it worth it?

Well, if you haven’t spotted it already, 100% yes.

My mind’s happier, my spirits are happier, I genuinely feel like a better person. I feel truer to myself. I’ve removed so much negativity and anxiety from my life. I’m in control of my path and my future, I’m around more to support my family and loved ones, plus I’m doing something I genuinely love and get masses of enjoyment out of.

Right at the start of this journey, my mum told me to get the tattoo I’d been thinking about for a while.

So I did.

It’s of an astronaut.

Not because I’m massively into space, but because it reminds me that you can be anything you want to be. As huge or as little as that may be.

I don’t want to go intergalactic. In fact, I think I want quite the opposite. A simpler life. One where I get to spend my time doing things I love, with people I love, and have a bit more control over what happens next.

But just like the little astronaut on my arm reminds me - I can be anything I want to be.

And apparently, what I wanted to be was this.

Whatever this is.

Turns out, I bloody love it.

Leave a comment

Totally sane.

But here’s the thing. Over the last three years, we’ve found ourselves facing a whole list of dilemmas on this renovation/social media/accidentally-changing-our-entire-life journey that we never expected to have.

So, in the interest of oversharing, here they are.

Subscribe now

1. We Don’t Want Our House to Be Finished.

And it’s not for the “but what will you do online when it’s done?” reason. We’ve always got plenty to say.

It’s more the fear of the unknown.

We’re in a comfortable, tiring, chaotic but ultimately pretty safe place right now. And we’re pretty damn happy.

When we roll on that last coat of paint or hang the final picture frame, will our mood suddenly change? Or is this just the mood of our new life?

It’s hard to tell when so many things have become tied into one. The house. Our jobs. Our relationship. Our weekends. Our plans. Our online world. Our actual world.

If the house being complete triggers a whole new chapter that we’re not expecting… do we actually want that?

Right now, we’re not so sure.

2. We’ve Accidentally Made DIY Our Job, So What Counts as Time Off?

Ok, so maybe we’ve done the dream thing and somehow turned our hobby into our 9–5. Except now our 9–5 is filled with DIY and then we spend the weekend… doing DIY.

Mental overload.

Where do we draw the line? What counts as work and what counts as fun anymore? And where does our new hobby come from?

Do we need to join a few community clubs and desperately search for another interest? Is Molly too young to sign up for bridge?

Balance is everything, right?

3. We Can’t Throw Anything Away.

Seriously.

We’ve become quite hoardy, despite last week’s detailed account of the multiple tip trips required just to make our spare room accessible again.

Part of it is probably because the motivation required to actually get rid of things sometimes feels completely disproportionate to the task.

And, as good as Vinted is, we currently have a pile of clothes sitting in the spare room waiting to sell that would have disappeared weeks ago if we’d just taken them to the charity shop.

And let’s not even get started on DIY supplies. That tiny piece of wood? CAN’T THROW IT AWAY. It might come in handy for some DIY job in 2029.

4. We’ve Become More and More Ridiculous With Our Taste.

Our most ‘out there’ moments have become our favourites. And, coincidentally, the WWW’s favourites too.

Now we just want to lean into it.

Not because we’re trying to satisfy the internet, but because having our wildest ideas encouraged has apparently removed whatever tiny filter we once had.

Which does raise a few questions.

How far is too far? Should I delete the six-foot gold giraffe from my basket? Is a T-Rex in the garden too much?

5. We’re Finally Getting Married (EEEK)… But We Don’t Want to Do Things Traditionally.

Will this upset some people? Probably. Will it be what we want? Yes. And really, that’s probably all that matters.

Of course, for whoever is there, we want to make it an incredibly special day. But we’re also not signing ourselves up for endless stress and anxiety trying to accommodate every single person’s individual wants and needs.

We want to get married in a way that feels like us.

Sorry if that makes us a bit mean.

6. We Miss DIY When We’re Not Doing It. Yet Moan When We Are.

Surely all us homebodies do this, right?

Sometimes you’re proper into a project. You live and breathe it. You wake up excited to get going and suddenly eight hours have disappeared.

Other times, you’ve made three trips to the DIY shop for the same part and you’re over the entire project before it’s even properly started.

So you decide to have a rest day the next day.

Except on the rest day all you can think about, talk about and Google is how you’re going to approach that DIY job tomorrow.

Is this some strange form of procrastination? Still unsure.

7. We’ve Lost Our Sense of ‘Normal’.

We joke that three years ago we’d spend our weekends wandering around John Lewis and grabbing a coffee. That was our ‘normal’.

Now we’re full to the brim with projects, ideas, deadlines and plans. There’s nearly always something happening and if there isn’t, we usually invent something.

So… is this just our new day-to-day?

Our habits and way of life are completely different from when we first met.

But maybe that’s not necessarily a dilemma. Maybe we’ve just grown into a new space together.

8. We Want to Travel, But We Also Love Being Home.

Seriously, cosy days with our dog in the home we’ve created together top almost everything.

We’ve never done the big travelling thing. We’ve never had a major itch to pack everything into a backpack and disappear for six months.

But we’d like to see more. A few more holidays when the budget allows. New places. New experiences. More memories.

Sounds dreamy.

But then again… So does a week off at home with absolutely nowhere to be…

9. We Want an Unconventional Life… But We Also Want Stability.

God. We are SO needy.

We found the house. We followed the renovation path. We changed our career goals. We broke away from the 9–5. We’re carving out a life that actually feels like ours. But also…

That self-employed rollercoaster. The pressure to get a room finished in two days. The unexpected quiet slump. Never quite knowing what next month will look like. It can be kind of exhausting.

We want the freedom of doing things differently whilst also craving the security that comes from doing things exactly the same.

Luckily, we have each other, a brilliant network of online friends and family who always have our backs.

Making your own path isn’t always easy. But we know it’s the right one for us.

Nine dilemmas we never expected to have when we stepped through the front door of this house three years ago.

And yeah, of course they’re all baby moans and groans. We’re majorly living a life we never expected to have and, in the interest of keeping things real, we bloody love it. But nothing is completely smooth sailing.

We expected to question wall colours. We expected no-show tradesmen. We expected dust, exhaustion, DIY disasters…

We didn’t expect to wonder whether we actually wanted the renovation to end.

Or whether our hobby was still a hobby.

Or whether the life we wanted could simultaneously be the thing that sometimes exhausted us.

Or whether a six-foot gold giraffe was a perfectly reasonable interior design decision.

But maybe that’s the thing. We’ve changed. We’ll continue to change. And so will the house.

Maybe there isn’t actually a point where any of it is ‘finished’. Maybe we just keep figuring out what we want our home, our work and our life together to look like as we go.

Which, now we think about it, is probably exactly how we got here in the first place.

Leave a comment

Now we’re asking it to do three.

Subscribe now

The next project has officially commenced in our home.

A room we haven’t touched since the early days of living here, when we stripped the flooring and wallpaper, upgraded the electrics… then basically shut the door and let it be.

Slowly, it became our biggest dumping ground.

Our Monica’s closet.

But now, something really has to change.

Believe it or not, you can actually fit a double bed in here - just! But only a few weeks ago, you could barely step through the doorway.

Refusing to give in to our hoardy ways, we started the clear-out.

Two tip trips and a charity shop visit later, we managed to let go of a LOT of stuff. But somehow, we still have masses left to sort.

In our minds, if we haven’t touched it in three years, surely it’s got to go?

But then we see the Disney teddies and wooden puzzles (that we will probably never have time to do) and get all gooey and sentimental and can’t bear to part with them.

So yeah… the removal of items from our home started strong but is falling a little flat now.

In fact, in the interest of full transparency, our other spare room is now filled with all this stuff while we try to progress the renovation of this long-abandoned space.

Problem solved? Absolutely not.

Problem moved approximately four metres down the hallway? Yes.

So why is this going to be the hardest working room in our home?

Good question!

Until recently, we’d always had our hearts set on a cinema room for this space. We already have a spare bedroom, so why not make somewhere we can have a bit of fun with and actually enjoy?

But we also have a sofa bed from Habitat that we’re not quite ready to part with, so let’s incorporate that too. Then it can double up as an emergency guest space at desperate times like Christmas (Sorry to say the C word).

BUT…

We need different things from our home now than we did three years ago.

When we moved in, we both worked full-time and our online stuff was just a bit of fun. Now, it needs a hell of a lot more attention.

Which is quite emotional and a moment for us really - so let’s celebrate it and acommodate our new needs with purpose and design!

We need a designated desk space. Storage for our equipment. Possibly space for a proper computer rather than living the laptop life. Somewhere that works for us now but can also grow with whatever the hell this all becomes.

So yeah… now you see why this room needs to work HARD.

Cinema room. Spare room. Home office.

All squeezed into a room that isn’t exactly blessed in the square footage department.

We NEED to be clever.

Lots of people suggested a modern Murphy bed situation - completely valid, but we really want to keep the sofa bed.

A few desk-in-a-cupboard situations were also advised, which we initially thought were a massive winner, until we realised the cupboard itself would stick too far into the room.

We even took a trip to IKEA for general storage, functionality and desk set-up inspiration and, quite frankly, found it all a little bit lacking.

But at least we got some meatballs.

So…

We’re going custom.

Which is scary.

We can’t afford to pay someone else to do it - nor would we when we could attempt it ourselves, document the inevitable chaos online and share it all with you too.

So we’re going to put our big pants on, pep-talk the hell out of each other and make something that actually works for us.

We’re talking purpose built desk. Wall storage. Cupboards. Bedside. Possible pull out desk scenario. Are we biting off more than we can chew? It’s feels like that right now.

It’s not just going to be the room working hard is it…

Alas… we’ve skipped ahead.

Because before we can even think about building the storage set-up, some serious decorating was needed.

So let’s catch you up on what we’ve done so far to create the perfect ‘canvas’ for our future endeavours.

The walls were a DISASTER in here.

Probably the worst in the house.

We’re talking crumbling plaster, cracks, plenty of holes and big gaps around the skirting.

Which only means one thing.

The thing we all HATE to hear.

Loads. Of. Prep.

Molly took one for the team and spent a couple of days plastering the seriously crumbling sections of wall before whacking out the deep-hole filler and sanding down EVERY. SINGLE. WALL.

And honestly?

It’s probably still not perfect.

But it’s miles ahead of where we started and you’d have no clue about the cracks and previously crumbling walls, so we’re more than happy.

We wiped everything down, caulked the space to get the smoothest lines possible, resealed the window and finally got ready for paint.

And this is where things started getting interesting.

Unfortunately, we can’t do the big paint reveal just yet… so you’re going to have to come back next week for that.

But we can give you a few clues.

We’ve gone for an all-over colour drench.

We’ve painted the projection screen directly onto the wall.

And the colour? What do you reckon?

It’s moody. It’s sophisticated. It’s a little bit unexpected.

Think old-money library meets modern matt finish - in a room that was, until very recently, storing Disney teddies, abandoned puzzles and approximately three years’ worth of crap.

The transformation already feels ridiculous.

But the colour is only the beginning.

Next comes the reveal, and then the slightly terrifying task of turning our plans for a custom cinema/office/spare-room hybrid into something that actually exists.

Will we manage to make one tiny room successfully do the job of three?

We genuinely don’t know yet.

But you’ll want to see what we’ve done to it first.

Leave a comment

NEXT TIME: The colour reveal. The painted cinema screen. And the moment this room finally stopped looking like somewhere we'd abandoned three years ago.

Subscribe now

Now it’s basically our whole online personality.

People send us tiger stuff we should buy. People laugh about how we’ve got the wild cat theme running through our home. Of course, our viral tiger carpet is the star of the show. And now we just have to have something tiger-themed in every room of the house.

So where did it all begin? What brought out this uncontrollable wild cat fever?

Well. We’ve got to give this one to John.

Subscribe now

The very first space we decorated was our bedroom. We painted it in a calming plaster shade, added our pink velvet bed, travelled miles and miles for Facebook Marketplace bedside tables and hacked up some IKEA wardrobes before adding the finishing touches.

Molly had her bedside just right, with a Neom pod, Frida Kahlo pot and cute coffee table books. John’s was a work in progress, but Molly left him to it.

Soon enough, he found the perfect little addition on Etsy and the first tiger became part of our home.

This little ceramic guy still has no idea what he started! But we’re ever grateful for his impact and trend-setting style.

But the bedroom tigers weren’t done there.

We added a bit of print with the stunning Anthropologie curtains, which Molly’s mum kindly re-hemmed to make them the right length for the space. Meaning Molly could make a matching bolster cushion for the bed.

How bougie are we? The tiger touch was really getting established now.

But why?

Honestly, we were still working that out at this point. We were just running with it.

The living room definitely has the tiger colours going on, with the orange wall and black touches, but of course we would never stop there.

Insert tiger cushions and a tiger print on the gallery wall.

However, sometimes one wild cat just ain’t enough.

Why not throw in a leopard lamp and a zebra-striped seat cushion? Just to balance things out, you know.

At this point, we think we’re understanding our minds a bit more.

And Elvis Presley is to blame.

That Jungle Room. That Taking Care of Business basement. That rock and roll vibe. That eclectic and confusing mix. That reckless fun with interiors.

The actual reason for the furniture in the Jungle Room was all part of a long-standing joke between Elvis and his dad. Vernon spotted it in a shop whilst in town and commented on how goddamn awful it was. So, a few days later, Elvis had the last laugh when it was all delivered and placed into the open-plan kitchen.

So although we might not have carved wood furniture covering every surface, we do kind of have that same playful energy and mentality when it comes to decorating.

So let’s have all the jungle cats in our living room and hang out with them all day, every day.

Why the hell not?

Taking our Graceland love affair one step further, we added tortoiseshell, golden hues and cobalt moments to our chocolate bedroom before adding the tiger touch.

This time, a bit more understated.

A single tiger-print cushion.

A small but intentional nod to carry the theme through our home.

This is the point of no return.

A bit like when people get an iconic dog breed and all people buy you from that point on is stuff with that dog’s theme on it.

We remember our family members with sausage dogs having sausage dog tea towels, slippers, pyjamas, cushions, prints… you name it.

They had to verbally put a stop to it before they became a sausage dog cliché.

But we’re going to run with the cliché.

The wilder the better, we say. If that’s our personality, so be it.

So where can we add them next?

Oh yeah… The big one.

The hallway.

We searched for runners for AGES. And we mean AGES.

Carpet shops, runner shops, online companies - you name it. Samples of checkerboard carpet, stripes, brightly whipped runners. None of them were quite cutting it.

We already had the hallway tiles chosen by this point, but we needed that little something extra.

Molly had spotted the House of Hackney runners long ago and put them firmly on the ‘when we win the lottery’ pedestal, then gave up on that dream.

It wasn’t until we took to Etsy, scrolling for general carpets and runners, that we said:

“Hey, could we find a runner that’s suitable for the stairs on here?”

Multiple messages back and forth with a maker in India later, and our tiger and khaki green dreams came true.

The anxiety before its arrival was high at this point, we won’t lie.

But once it arrived, we knew it was meant to be.

The six tigers that have been loved (and occasionally slated, TBF) online have made our home the tiger-themed pad it is today.

We think at this point, if we weren’t called The Jolly Reno, we’d have to become The Tiger House!

The uncontrollable fever is creeping all over our home.

Our downstairs W.C. has tiger loo roll and towel holders.

Our kitchen did have a homemade tiger plate, which John smashed but insists was Molly’s fault. It’s still a sore subject that we have to glide past and pretend didn’t happen, despite taking it to an Instagram poll to see who people thought was in the wrong…

Tigers are not going anywhere.

In fact, we’re leaning into it more than ever.

We’ve just bought a new tiger print to put up somewhere. We have the most AMAZING signwriter - they worked on Beetlejuice and Wuthering Heights - making us an uber-cool bespoke piece as I type. And we have tiger hooks waiting in our online shopping basket.

But still… Why?

Other than the playful Elvis thing, obviously.

Wild cats are rock and roll, right?

Nothing says 70s edge and glam rock like a bit of animal print. Nothing screams vintage vibes quite like a tattoo-style tiger head. And I think that’s why we lean into it too.

We love an old-school touch, and this is just another way to bring that into our home whilst also adding a bit of attitude.

On a completely different note, we also love an East Asian-inspired touch. We have Hokusai prints in our home, chinoiserie fabric in our utility, rich red decor and gold accents throughout.

The tigers only build on that.

And when you look into the meaning behind traditional Tibetan tiger artwork, it only makes you want the design in your home more.

The tiger is thought to represent power, energy and spiritual confidence. It symbolises unconditional confidence on the spiritual path, serving as both a fierce guardian and a profound lesson in taming the wild mind.

So yeah.

We’ll take a bit of that.

Our fierce little protectors throughout the home.

And perhaps that’s the thing about decorating a home. You start with a ceramic tiger from Etsy because you think he looks cool. Then you add a cushion. Then another. Then a carpet. Then suddenly you’re explaining to thousands of people on Instagram why there is a tiger in your downstairs loo.

But somewhere along the way, it stops being a theme you’ve deliberately chosen and just becomes your style.

The tigers weren’t part of the plan. There was never a tiger mood board. There was no meeting where we decided, right, this house is going to be about big cats.

It just happened. And maybe that’s why we love it.

Because our home isn’t really about following one particular style or getting everything ‘right’. It’s about collecting the things that make us smile, mixing the things we love and occasionally asking ourselves, “Have we taken this too far?”

Usually, the answer is yes. But we’re not stopping.

So, long live Tiger Fever.

We’ll see them in the next room.

Leave a comment

John thought the downstairs loo was complete.

Panelling complete. Toilet finally plumbed in - albeit quite a traumatic experience. Sink and brass taps working like a dream.

John finally sighed with relief that another space ticked off the never-ending renovation list.

Or so he naively thought.

Because, if there’s anything we’ve learnt after tackling six other spaces in our home, the devil is ALWAYS in the detail.

You could have the most beautiful paint finish, the tiles to make all other tiles look average as F, the custom-built storage or even the statement feature wall. BUT, if the details are lacking, then the room will always feel a little bit ‘meh’, a little bit forgotten about, a little bit half done.

So, whilst handing over a fresh brew and biccys for a little subtle bribery, Molly opened up her laptop to showcase just what she’d been looking for for the downstairs W.C.

After a little “do we really need to style a toilet” and a bit of “do we not have some towels we can use already”, Molly finally won John over with a tiger element or two and we were well on our way from taking our space from OK to ohhhh yay!

Because no space is EVER just the loo.

The Light

A raw bulb with white casing hanging from the ceiling was never going to cut it. If John is being truly honest with himself, he is in full agreement with this too.

Less ‘show home in progress’ and more ‘boutique hotel bathroom’ was needed.

Now, details are where we would almost always say: splurge a bit. But this light is actually quite contrary.

Lighting is always a difficult one for us. We want quirky and cool, and most of our spaces are still just neutral shades as we still haven’t found the ‘right one’.

After scrolling and scrolling, searching ‘art deco’, ‘retro’, ‘brass fittings’, ‘scalloped light’ and the list goes on, we stumbled across this cute little fella…

On Amazon of all places too. £40 later it was ours and we love the soft, diffused light it gives in the space.

The one downside? It wasn’t wired in when it arrived, so we have a little bit more fiddling about to do when connecting it up, but if you’ve installed lighting before, it’s no headache.

Jolly Verdict: Bit of effort. Boutique chic goals achieved.

Light Fitting - £39.99

SHOP HERE

The Hardware

All brass everything. The taps. The loo seat caps. The flush. The sink unit handles. The light now too.

So we couldn’t have the towel rail and toilet roll holder letting the side down.

As you may know already, we’ve got a bit of a tiger love affair going on in this house and we’ve now decided that every room needs a tiger element.

With this in mind, we got searching… And this is where our element of spending a bit more on the right details makes a difference. Because you could take the most basic of basics and give it a whole new look with the chicest finishing touches.

We sourced these Tibetan tiger beauties from one of our favourite shops, Anthropologie, and we have no regrets. In fact, we are even thinking about getting some of the hooks for other spots in our home.

They have such gorgeous detailing, they’re made from brass so they tie in with our brass details perfectly, and they add a little bit more detail to the room.

Jolly Verdict: 10/10. No notes.

Brass Towel Rail - £68

Brass Toilet Roll Holder - £36

SHOP HERE

The Mirror

Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all? - Not you after 1000+ days of DIY, but I’ll try my best to make your loo look nicer!

This was another doom-scrolling night to try to find the right one. The panelling actually sits quite high compared to a usual backsplash on a sink and, because it has a little ledge, a mirror wouldn’t be able to hang over the panelling either.

We debated making the mirror large enough to go across the full wall behind the sink but finally decided upon a simple arched design with, you guessed it - brass detailing.

Amazon again for this one - affordable, simple and exactly the size we needed. We’ve actually decided to lean it up against the wall on the ledge, but you can also hang it.

The arch echoes the curves of the light fitting and we totally love how it reflects the wallpaper mural around the room.

Jolly Verdict: New favourite place for Molly to do her make-up every morning.

Arched Mirror - £39.99

SHOP HERE

The Soft Stuff

Any excuse for some new fluffy towels, right?

Now, call us crazy, but we think we needed a patterned towel in this space. The mural obviously brings a vibe, the bold colour blocking brings another, but we thought a chunky stripe picking out one of the shades in the space would be a win.

To help tie in the sink unit a bit more, we found these cute hand towels with a cream and sage green stripe - the perfect colour match!

So don’t just chuck on any old hand towel and crispy, over-washed sheet you’ve got with bleach stains. Invest in 2 or 3 specific towels that you can use on rotation to bring - once again - those boutique hotel vibes.

Jolly Verdict: Small splurge. Big results.

Stripe Hand Towel - £9 each

SHOP HERE

The One Thing We Still Need To Buy

The most gloriously scented room diffuser. So when people walk in there’s no sign of an eau de poop, just eau de parfum! Because no matter how beautiful the loo looks, ultimately its biggest job is to make sure nobody knows what just happened in there.

We’ve seen Ortigia ones that might just carry that wild cat theme one step further. We just need to find the perfect scent we both love. Amber, oud, tobacco are all our kind of vibe. So if you’ve got any recommendations yourself, please send them our way.

Jolly Verdict: Get a move on guys!

Ta-da. Space officially complete.

We celebrated on the other channel with a pop-punk rock show. Take a look.

So we may have started with “Apparently even the loo needs styling”, but now John is firmly in the “the details actually make all the difference” camp.

Well done John. Fast learner!

Our boujie OTT loo is every bit as epic as we hoped.

And now we all know(John) we need to really consider the details.

Thanks for reading - we love having you here so make sure you subscribe to our weekly jots.

Subscribe now

Next week we will be talking all about our latest DIY project - a brand new room that needs to be majorly multifunctional.

See you next Sunday, big loves!

Creating Pinterest boards.

Interiors magazines.

But if you want to avoid a cardboard-cut-out home, you have to go back to basics.

Last weekend reminded us that inspiration can strike outside of your phone.

Get outside.

Get exploring.

See who, what and where could influence your style.

We did exactly that as we ditched the overalls, grabbed our face glitter and headed to Latitude Festival.

Subscribe now

Despite being huge gig-goers and lovers of day festivals, we’d actually never done a full festival weekend together. It was kind of special to take some time away from DIY and make some new memories.

We were ready for a weekend to switch off, enjoy plenty of street food, banging tunes and comedy moments, but we weren’t ready to come home feeling creatively inspired.

...As well as tired, hungover and definitely worse for wear. Turns out festivals in your 30s require plenty of painkillers, electrolytes and at least one decent night’s sleep across the four nights!

But seriously, inspiration and creativity were everywhere.

Latitude was so much more than music. Art was around every corner, from the steampunk-style coffee cart to the huge canvases hanging between the bracken in the woodland, and the colourful ribbon walkways in the Zen Zone.

So rather than coming home with just a line-up T-shirt, we’ve come back with inspiration for all kinds of things.

The things we brought home…

Atmosphere

Creating the vibe you want.

The landscape and the details you add.

The location itself was a dream.

The dark, moody woodland zones led onto breezy bridges over the lake before winding up to hills covered in festival tents and colourful lanterns.

In the daytime it was bright, colourful and buzzing. By evening it transformed into something darker, with lanterns sparkling and lighting the pathways.

Small details.

Thoughtfully zoned spaces.

Different moods.

We’re going to apply this to our home.

Of course, there’s the obvious big light versus lamps, but it’s also about how spaces feel throughout the seasons. The layers you add on darker days. The way you can bring the outside in during summer.

It all matters.

Authenticity

Be confident.

Be you.

Be free.

Festivals are all about letting go of your inhibitions and not caring what anyone else thinks. But why do we leave that behind when the final act finishes?

Whether it’s in your home design choices or deep inside yourself, we all deserve to live authentically.

Wear that out-there top.

Tell people they look great.

If you’ve got the urge to paint your utility room yellow, just do it.

Who cares if it’s “cool” or “on trend”? If it’s true to you, there’s nothing more original than that.

Colour

Kind of obvious. Kind of already applicable to us. But it still made us think.

Bright banners.

Psychedelic lights.

Wildflowers.

Sunsets.

Bold outfits.

We’re already very colourful in our home, but maybe we should play around with colour more in our wardrobes.

It also got us thinking about our garden.

We’re very keen on tropical, leafy garden vibes, but perhaps we should introduce colour.

Patterned furniture? Colourful cushions? Bold outdoor tiles? They’re all ideas we’re now scratching our heads over as we dream about our future garden.

Texture

Sandy ground... (probably too dusty, actually - we’re still finding dust in my boots!)

Chunky timber.

Rusty trailers.

Fabric bunting.

It was all there. The trick is to mix it up. Add texture where you least expect it. Don’t try to match everything perfectly.

Soft, flowing linen alongside polished chrome. Chunky, weathered bark next to smooth enamelware.

It doesn’t have to feel neat to feel perfect.

Overalls

OK... but niche and we didn’t literally bring them back.

But our overalls definitely need an upgrade, and bright orange David Byrne-inspired ones might just be the answer.

It’s not just places that inspire you.

People do too.

Maintenance

Rhian from Wet Leg.

Do we need to say any more?

OK, so we might not be looking to recreate bodybuilding poses, but we’d definitely like to ache a little less by day three of our next festival.

It’s important to stay focused on your goals, like our renovation project, but it’s easy to neglect yourself along the way. You’re mind and body needs maintenance too.

No fad diets. No dramatic changes.

Just remembering to prioritise our health a little more.

While we’re at it, Billy Ocean can still absolutely command a crowd at 76. If that’s not ageing goals, we don’t know what is.

And what we brought home most of all?

A new life experience together.

When you’ve been together for over ten years, there aren’t hundreds of opportunities to try something completely new together.

This was one of them.

Turns out we absolutely loved festival life, and we can’t wait to do it all again - just let us get a good night’s sleep and a few vegetables into us first.

Because while we went looking for a weekend off, what we actually came home with was something much better.

A reminder that inspiration doesn’t just live on Pinterest boards.

Sometimes, you find it in a field.

Thanks for reading this week’s Jolly Jots.

See you next Sunday!

Leave a comment

Every great album has a slow one.

The song that stops you in your tracks, it’s unexpected.

The one that makes everyone stop talking, you slow the pace right down.

The one you come back to years later, it still pulling on those same emotions.

This the the story of how our bedroom became that track.

Because choosing a paint colour is important, but choosing the emotions of a space comes first.

And let’s not underestimate that acoustic track, because sometimes it’s more raw, more vulnerable and more reflective than the big bangers.

Subscribe now

Our bedroom was the first room the be decorated.

The reason?

We needed a space to escape to. A room that would provide shelter from the rest of the renovation chaos while we carried out structural work.

It needed to be decorated quickly, it needed to make us feel calm, content and relaxed, and it needed to stand the test of time.

In our previous home, our bedroom was rather bold - wallpaper on every wall! But this time, we wanted something different.

So we went right back to Molly’s youth.

To the bedroom that unknowingly would design our future home.

As we’re sure many of you will have done as children, if you’re into design as much as us, you’ll have loved redecorating your room. We were no different.

John had a bright orange bedroom he painted himself, as well as a cool sky-blue room at one point and, during his teenage years, a coffee-coloured space with a feature wall.

Molly had a Habitat pink rose wallpaper room, a fairy-themed room, a purple Hercules-themed room complete with gold hearts and, finally, a cool nude-pink room.

And that nude-pink space has stuck with her ever since.

Let’s go back to Molly’s teens…

Working as a Saturday girl at a local interiors store and clothing boutique, Molly’s love of decor, quality and design only grew.

With a mix of designer brands and antique pieces, she began building her bottom drawer and dreaming about her first home.

Saving swatches of Charlotte’s Lock by Farrow & Ball for her future Penguin-inspired library shelves, buying La Rochère glassware while she had a fantastic staff discount, and changing her mind weekly over which Emma Bridgewater pieces would one day fill her kitchen cupboards.

Safe to say… not many wages actually came home with her when payday came around.

But my gosh, did she have a haul.

The one dilemma about dreaming so far ahead is getting twitchy feet and wanting to decorate your space now… even though you’re still studying your A Levels.

So, in between a Saturday job, helping in the traditional family sweet shop, sewing her textiles A Level projects and assisting with the school production set design, she decided to paint her bedroom and scratch that itch.

At work they stocked Farrow & Ball and Little Greene paint, and the love affair with their colours began there. Lucky enough to take part in multiple talks and training sessions, she soaked up every bit of paint knowledge she could, then grabbed as many samples as possible to find the shade.

A pale, nude pink was the dream. She was in her vintage era. A collection of teapots under her bed, a stack of vintage trunks filled with clothes and art materials, vintage fabric bunting hanging from the ceiling.

She wanted a pink that was almost a neutral. One that looked faded, older and muted, blending beautifully with the multiple shades of pinks and greens in her bedding and bunting.

She tried Chemise, Calamine, Dead Salmon and Pink Ground. Week after week she tested the shades, searching for that perfect balance, before finally settling on Setting Plaster by Farrow & Ball.

The walls were soon painted and her bunting repositioned. She had scratched her decorating itch until it was time to move out and create the dreamy bedroom she’d been crushing on for so long.

And she never got sick of it. In fact, the room stayed that way until she finally moved out but she never forgot it…

Back to today.

So, much like that melancholy track you return to time and time again, Setting Plaster was calling again as the main bedroom shade.

Remembering how calming, grounding, sophisticated, feminine, natural and chic it felt, we decided to bring it back.

And before you ask, no, John wasn’t kicking up a fuss about a pink bedroom. He didn't see "pink". He saw calm. He’s a modern man, what can we say!

We dove headfirst - no samples this time - and purchased the tin.

But this time, we were doing it differently. A colour-drenched space, wardrobes included, and a statement DIY headboard to complete the look.

Probably feeling a little overly cocky after watching too many episodes of Interior Design Masters, we decided to give gold leaf a go too.

You can read our Substack all about getting the golden touch here.

Cocooning pink walls, glowing gold leaf and our velvet bed adding even more luxury, our renovation sanctuary was complete.

Three-and-a-bit years on, it probably needs touching up. But it definitely won’t be changing anytime soon.

It still provides that comfort and clarity like a piano-side serenade, and it’s that unexpected break from some of the bolder moments in our gaff.

So even if you’ve got a colour-filled home like us, it doesn’t mean you can’t have the softer, slower moments too. If that’s what’s calling you, embrace it.

Follow the feeling and let that lead your colour choices.

Trusting your gut and believing in your ideas is the key to making a space that sings. Plus, you’ll be less likely to get bored of it because you’re not leaning on trends or becoming over-influenced in the process.

We thought we were choosing a paint colour. Turns out we were choosing the feeling we'd wake up to every morning for years to come.

Some songs never leave the playlist.
Neither does Setting Plaster.

Slow song finished. Until next time…

Track Four brings us into the chocolate room. The moody, dark and mysterious one you don’t expect. It keeps surprising you. It’s a bit of a grower, and there’s always room for it because it’s the song you only play every now and then.

Catch up on the other tracks now:

• The Soundtrack Behind Every Colour in Our Home: The Living Room

• Track Two: The Hallway - Our Greatest Hit

Thanks for reading this week’s Jolly Jots. See you next Sunday!

Subscribe now

Leave a comment

Corrr... this is going to be a sexy read, isn’t it?

Okay, maybe not sexy.

But satisfying?

Absolutely.

We finished building our lean-to (aka the glorified shed) back in - breaks to scroll through phone and check the photo timeline - May 2025. And despite having such a sturdy structure and looking absolutely STUNNING from the outside, the inside left a lot to be desired.

We’re talking zero shelves, cobwebs everywhere, probably a few mouse droppings lurking in the corner, rusty tools and off-cuts of timber scattered across the floor.

Honestly, we’re not exaggerating when we say it had become a dumping ground.

So, during last weekend’s heatwave, we decided to have the exact same thought process as every other couple in the UK and buy a paddling pool...

Noooo.

That would have made far too much sense.

Instead, we pulled on our overalls, flung open the shed doors and committed ourselves to a day-long tidy sesh. Here’s how we transformed it into our very own DIY HQ.

Subscribe now

The Starting Point

See... we weren’t lying. It was a mess.

We literally had to wriggle through just to reach anything. Most jobs involved moving ten things to get to the one thing we actually needed.

Or we’d simply give up looking altogether and buy another one from the DIY shop.

If you’ve got a shed that’s reached this point, here’s our first tip: take everything out.

Yes, everything.

It looks dramatically worse before it gets better and your neighbours might mistake that your holding a yard sale or something, but seeing it all laid out makes you realise exactly what you’ve got and, most importantly, what you definitely don’t need.

Soon enough we’d created four official piles:

• Tool pile

• Storage container pile

• “To throw” pile

• “Keep” pile

Safe to say we’ve been keeping every tiny off-cut of timber “just in case”.

Just in case of what? We’re still not entirely sure… But building materials aren’t exactly cheap these days, so somehow every scrap had earned its place.

Armed with a S.U.L.A. and a crispy Coke, we took five minutes to compose ourselves before tackling phase two.

It’s probably also worth mentioning that Molly took those five minutes to prat around on the roller skates she’d bought years ago - which now serve mainly as home décor.

Turns out her vision of gracefully skating through town like the girls pulling tricks along Venice Beach was massively different from reality.

One can dream, ey?

The Storage Solutions

With the lean-to finally empty, it was time to start organising.

Earlier that day, while walking Dexter, we’d popped into our local DIY shop and picked up a handful of S-hooks, tool hooks, brackets and storage tubs. For less than £30 later, we had everything we needed.

Combined with the mountain of leftover timber we’d been hoarding, a plan started to come together.

The aim was simple…

Build shelving

Create a proper home for every tool

Add a little potting station

Then, as if the organisation gods had heard our needs, we rediscovered a pile of IKEA shelves and metal racking from our old kitchen.

Waste not, want not.

Molly got to work screwing hooks into the wall around the workbench while John fixed the tool hooks to the walls.

Honestly, there are very few feelings more satisfying than hanging up every tool and giving each one its own designated spot.

Suddenly you can actually see everything.

It almost makes you feel like you’ve got your life together.

If you're organising your own shed, buy more hooks than you think you'll need. Trust us, you'll use every single one.

Next up: shelving.

We we’re finally putting all that leftover wood to good use!

As always, Molly project-managed the operation by saying things like…

“Could we just fit one more shelf there?”

“Ooo... what about this bit though?”

“While we’ve already got the drill out...”

Probably should praise John for his patience here as Molly does like to push it that little bit further on every job.

Knowing our overheating limits and also knowing when to not push your luck on Mollys part, we started to bring everything back in.

While we were at it, we even cleaned all the tools.

Completely necessary? Probably not.

Weirdly satisfying? Absolutely.

By this point we had sweat in places we didn't know could sweat...

We used the tubs and storage containers we’d bought to organise all our buckets of rawl plugs and screws - SO PLEASING NOW! If neatly organised screws don’t make you happy, we genuinely don’t know what will.

Gardening equipment finally lived together.

Power tools finally lived together.

Loose bits and bobs disappeared into canvas wall bags.

And for what feels like the first time ever, the workbench was actually usable.

Even better? You could now walk from one end of the shed to the other without having to climb over buckets, timber or an abandoned spirit level.

A DIY miracle, really.

Just the shame we still need to organise the rest of our lives…

What’s Next?

Of course, we’re already thinking about what’s next.

That little potting area has loads more potential. A tiled worktop is calling our names, we’d love to add some colour to the walls, fit a few electric sockets, build even more shelving and eventually install some racking for all the toolboxes.

There’s definitely more to come.

But for now?

We can actually find our tools. We can actually use the workbench. And the space is finally doing the job we built it for over a year ago.

You know what they say...

Better late than never.

Although... ask us again in six months and we’ll let you know whether it’s stayed a DIY HQ - or quietly become a dumping ground again…

Thanks for reading this week’s Jolly Jots!

Next week we’ll be continuing our Soundtrack Behind Our Home series as we head into one of the slower, softer album tracks - the master bedroom.

Subscribe now

Until then, why not catch up on some of our previous reads? And if you’ve ever tackled a shed clear-out yourself (or you’ve been putting one off for months!), we’d love to hear about it in the comments.

See you next Sunday!

Leave a comment

Share Jolly Jots

...I’d gently suggest clicking off now.

If you’ve come for four trips to Wickes, a leaking plughole and two grown adults questioning every life decision they’ve ever made...

Welcome.

Subscribe now

Where did we leave off? Oh yes… the s*@”show. How could we forget!

Well, after the toilet was installed, general life took a bit of a slippery slope.

Luckily, not wet floor sign slippery - the flooding was over with.

Instead, the cold and flu bug paid us a visit and left us both completely out of action for the best part of a week.

You know when you’re feeling overwhelmed and all you want is a week off to binge-watch your favourite shows? Consider this your reminder that actually being ill is nothing like that. It’s mostly tissues, daytime TV and wondering if you’ll ever breathe through your nose again.

So, once the snotty noses and sleeping sat upright to avoid coughing fits were behind us, we finally found the energy to tackle downstairs loo 2.0.

We’d already plumbed in the kitchen sink and swapped the taps in the utility, so naturally we thought this wouldn’t take long.

There’s our first mistake.

Whenever you say, “It’ll only take an hour,” you’ve basically guaranteed you’ll lose an entire weekend.

Admittedly, we don’t help ourselves. Half the time we’re filming, the other half we’re making each other laugh with questionable dance moves. But this time, we also had a few genuine hurdles.

We bought a freestanding vanity unit with the sink included to make life easier. We considered building a custom cupboard ourselves, but after weighing up the cost (and effort), we admitted defeat.

No building. No sanding. No painting. Just soft-close doors, shelves included and a colour we loved.

Easy, right?

The ribbed panelling behind the unit had already been installed and painted, with a cut-out left underneath for all the pipework.

The vanity had a recessed back panel too, but unfortunately our isolation valves sat a little differently, so out came the multi-tool on the back of the unit.

If you don’t own one already, honestly... buy one.

Five minutes later, we’d made the extra cut-out and were ready to fit the unit.

With it being floor-standing, installation was refreshingly simple. A couple of brackets into the panelling and it was solid. We decided it was level enough without packing underneath and could make any tiny adjustments when fitting the basin.

One job down.

Everything was going nervewrackingly well.

Before fixing the basin, we attached the tap and flexi hoses, held everything in position and...

...one flexi hose was too short.

TYPICAL.

Cue the grand tour of every DIY shop within driving distance.

Screwfix.

Nothing.

Wickes.

Nothing.

Toolstation.

Nothing.

Plumbworld.

Also nothing.

So we drowned our sorrows with a Big Mac and fries before ordering one from Amazon.

The downside of living in the countryside? Tomorrow was the earliest delivery.

I’d love to tell you we made the most of the unexpected afternoon off. Maybe went to the cinema. Had a wholesome little date.

Realistically? We probably just doomscrolled.

The next day, Mr Amazon came to the rescue and within minutes we were back on track.

Tap connected. Water on. Silicone gun ready.

Then...

The waste pipe was the wrong size. And the plughole leaked. Of course it did.

Back to Wickes we went for the correct fittings. (We’re genuinely too scared to calculate how much petrol this downstairs loo has cost us.)

Second attempt.

Correct pipework and washer moved to where it should’ve been in the first place (oops).

No leaks.

WE HAVE LIFT OFF.

At this point, Molly took on what has officially become her role in every project - anything involving caulk or silicone.

We’ve naturally fallen into different jobs now. We each know what we’re good at, and honestly, it’s probably one of the reasons our DIY life causes fewer arguments than people expect.

Stay in your lane. Respect each other’s lane. Everybody wins.

With a couple of wedges under one side of the basin, everything was secured into place. Job done!

We finally had a fully working toilet and a sink. Living in luxury.

Molly then decided to eat one final frog by sealing all the way around the basin against the ribbed panelling.

Would we recommend it? Absolutely not.

Did it take ages? Yes.

Does it look ridiculously good now it’s finished? Also yes.

Worth it... eventually - but be warned!

With the dancing celebrations complete (see below), we could finally stand back and admire a downstairs loo that’s actually finished.

Well... almost.

The finishing touches are still sitting patiently in our basket. There’ll definitely be a tiger involved somewhere, and Molly has somehow volunteered herself to learn how to make a Roman blind.

No pressure.

But for now, our plumbing era is officially over.

And while we’re proud to have survived it...

Safe to say neither of us is retraining as a plumber anytime soon.

The one that quietly steals the spotlight.

For our home, that song is the hallway.

But… it was the hardest track to master.

It has so many featured artists. It adjoins the living room, downstairs W.C., kitchen/dining room, not to mention all the bedrooms upstairs and the main bathroom!

This was always going to be a tough one. But now it gets so much praise that it might just be our greatest hit.

So, how did it happen?

You’re going to hate this, but it all started a bit accidentally.

Yep... in the early days of the renovation, Molly got the decorating itch and, on a whim, started sanding back the staircase.

Her mum had already helped her rip up the carpets the day after we moved in and, since then, it had been looking sad, gloomy, worn and unloved. We couldn’t take it anymore. Something had to be done.

So off to the DIY store we went. We were going to buy some bits and bobs anyway, and Molly decided grabbing a tin of black paint would be a vast improvement.

But then, while wandering the aisles in search of the perfect finish, John threw in a massive curveball...

“What about a bold colour? What about red?”

“Red?! What do you mean, red? I was going to go for black - something cool but non-committal. Won’t red look a bit late ‘90s/early 2000s? Won’t we look like try-hard rock ‘n’ rollers?”

“I think it could work. Black’s nice, but it’s not very us. Can’t we do something fun? It doesn’t have to be lipstick red.”

“Hmmm... more orangey or pinky-red? Okay, let’s have a look.”

And just minutes later, we were leaving the shop with a full-sized tin of Bamboozle by Farrow & Ball.

No tester pots. No backup plan. Just one wild, spur-of-the-moment decision that we decided to trust.

Basically, this was our Dolly writing Jolene in 10 minutes moment.

Sometimes it’s just a feeling, you know?

Fast forward a few days of painting, sanding, painting, sanding and painting again, and the look was complete.

Or at least the staircase was.

And then we stopped for over a year… White walls, exposed floorboards and a red staircase. Now that’s rock and roll.

Don’t get us wrong. We still grafted by decorating the living room, the main bedroom, the guest room and the kitchen/dining room, but we still hadn’t chosen the rest of the hallway scheme…

We hit painters-block!

We tried so many sample pots, which was kind of insane for us because usually it’s a case of buying one, testing it, deciding we’re happy and then going for it.

But not this time.

We were lost.

This is where we blame John for his bold, on-a-whim curveballs that are actually brilliant but also quite disruptive because now we had no idea how to finish the space.

We tried warm oatmeal shades, dark stone shades, off-whites and yellow tones.

None of them were right.

Especially when viewed from room to room.

The stony neutral shades just blended into the next room, but not quite enough, so everything looked murky and meh. The struggle was real.

This was definitely the point where we wondered whether we'd made the staircase too bold and boxed ourselves into a corner.

The pause button was pressed on the wall colour search and we thought about the floor instead.

A patterned tile was calling our name, and we found these epic geometric tiles with a traditional nod that we knew would be perfect. They complemented the statement red staircase and made an impact the moment you walked through the front door.

Luckily, the tiles featured a few other shades too, which gave us even more inspiration for our biggest question mark: the wall colour.

Two shades of green, cream and an off-white...

We finally had a starting point.

We chose Willow IV by Paint & Paper Library. Neutral enough, but with enough contrast against the surrounding rooms. Bold enough to hold its own, but not so bold that it competed with everything else.

Hurrah!

We knew it was going to work because we’d already been dreaming about adding a statement tiger runner, and one of the colour options featured a beautiful khaki green.

It was all coming together.

Thinking a little harder before grabbing the rollers, we realised the red staircase might end up looking a bit lonely within the scheme. Statement colours rarely work on their own. They need an echo somewhere else in the room to make them feel intentional.

So we decided to do something we’d never done before...

Statement woodwork.

In every other room we’ve embraced colour drenching. It’s cocooning, it flows beautifully and, perhaps most importantly, it means no cutting in!

Now, not only were we rewriting the rule book, but we were cutting in between two highly contrasting colours. Talk about a key change.

This was going to be fun.

We went in with rich red skirting boards and door frames, as well as one red feature wall at the far end of the hallway to create a focal point.

Safe to say, painter’s decorating tape became a very good friend of ours, helping us create crisp lines. The touch-up brush definitely came out more than once.

But the look was complete, and we genuinely couldn’t be happier with it.

Fast forward to the runner being installed and here’s how it’s looking.

Judging by the response online, we think this might actually be our greatest hit. We’ve lost count of how many people have asked us for the paint colours.

We absolutely love that we’ve inspired people along our decorating journey.

Looking back, we could have played it safe. Bought the black paint. Chosen the neutral walls. Made every decision make perfect sense.

Instead, we followed one slightly ridiculous idea.

And somehow...

It became the room everyone remembers.

Oh, and John is always right - annoyingly!

The next colour track? Well... if you’re embracing all the bold moments, where do you find tranquillity? Surely every album needs a slower track after the anthem.

Subscribe to read about us opening the door onto our master bedroom.

Subscribe now

Leave a comment

So how do you find your album?

First of all, it doesn’t need to be the one that trending.

For us, it was about finding the colours that made us feel at home, calm, comfortable - ourselves!

Shades that suited our property.

Tones that complemented each other.

And ultimately, a palette that flowed.

Yes, people can absolutely overthink paint colours - but most homes suffer from the opposite problem: not thinking about them enough.

If you completely neglect them, you can end up with a mishmash of shades that stops your rooms from feeling grounded and connected.

So here’s how we approached decorating our home, chose all our colours, and landed on the exact shades we used.

We found our perfect soundtrack in no time.

Subscribe now

Start with a feeling, not paint charts

Before we even thought about individual rooms, we thought about the vibe and mood we wanted to create.

It’s easy to see trends online.

Lime wash, statement woodwork and high-gloss finishes - we all get drawn into those beautiful AD shots.

But you need to step away, think about your property and listen to what your gut tells you.

Our home is a 1970s property, we’re set in the countryside and it’s pretty much south-facing. We needed to be sympathetic to all those aspects.

We knew what we wanted.

Warm.

Cosy.

Earthy.

A subtle nod to the 1970s, but without turning the house into a time capsule.

Instead of cool greys and stark whites, we naturally gravitated towards buttery creams, rich beiges, burnt oranges, olive greens and earthy browns.

Colours that shared warm undertones and sat comfortably alongside each other.

With a scheme in mind, it was finally time to pick up the tester pots and colour charts.

The living room…

This needed to be the ultimate cosy den.

A room that would glow in summer and snuggle you in winter.

We already had a starting point to work with.

Statement black double doors.

A bespoke built media wall and bench seating.

Warm oak floors.

Teak midcentury furniture.

Multiple pieces of art.

We had to bear all these details in mind when decorating the space. It’s actually the perfect place to build ideas from - you might have colours, patterns and aspects you need to be sympathetic to!

Immediately, we were drawn to oranges.

Deep, rich, fiery oranges that would instantly scream retro while adding all the warmth we were after.

Orange wasn't just a gut feeling - colour theory backed it up. It's associated with warmth, optimism, creativity and energy.

We could definitely work with that.

Our furniture had warm tones that would work effortlessly alongside the orange.

The black accents of our windows, doors and picture frames would contrast beautifully for a more modern feel, and we could introduce orange accessories like cushions and rugs to pull the space together.

But will it be too much?

That being said, orange all over the room would have felt like too much - even with natural light coming in from either end of the room.

How could we make it work?

We could make even more of a feature of the media wall we’d built and chose to paint it orange. Heat by Little Greene to be exact.

It stretches the full length of the room, carrying the colour across the space whilst highlighting the unit. It could be a bold statement!

We echoed the colour on the opposite side of the room by framing our pictures with a painted orange border on the wall. This helped carry the colour throughout the room and made the whole space feel more connected.

Every bold colour needs a break…

But we still needed a complimentary neutral for the majority of the room.

A rich, stony shade was key.

We chose Travertine by Little Greene for its warm, almost buttery tones that would provide that cosy glow all year round.

The beige adds a soothing, relaxing and calming quality alongside the orange.

All the feelings you’d want from a living space.

Two year later

We’ve built up an eclectic mix of cushions over the years, sourced an incredible flea market find in the form of a patterned rug, and created a zebra-striped bench cushion for the orange window seat.

We’ve lived in the space through every season and love the different moods it creates.

When the candles are lit and the ambient lighting is on in winter, the room couldn’t be cosier and really feels like it comes into its own.

But when summer rolls around, the entire room glows.

The stony shade becomes almost buttery, and the whole space feels like pure sunshine. Open the double doors onto the garden and the dappled light feels joyful.

The next track?

How does this colour combination flow into the rooms next to it?

How did we make everything feel connected whilst still giving each room its own identity?

Subscribe so you don’t miss our next colour chat, where we’ll be focusing on our hallway scheme - actually the hardest room in the house that’s now one of our greatest hits!

It connects almost every other space, which meant one wrong colour could have made the whole house feel disconnected. Find out how we approached it and nearly made one big mistake…

Until then

Want more colour chat right now? Head over to our post on Midimalism, where we talk about the 60/30/10 rule, colour drenching and more.

A CASE OF MIDIMALISM

Leave a comment

Keyword: supposed.

Because between searching for finishing touches and adding '“just one thing” to my basket, I fell down a rabbit hole of brilliant home finds.

The kind where you suddenly have 27 tabs open, a basket you definitely shouldn’t be looking at, and the need to upgrade every room in your house.

So, in an attempt to stop myself checking out, I thought I’d do the next best thing: share the finds with you instead.

But here’s what surprised me most...

Every single one of them came from Amazon.

Now, don’t get me wrong. We love independent shops, vintage finds, second-hand treasures and sourcing pieces from all over the place. But sometimes you just want something stylish, affordable, delivered quickly, and ordered from the comfort of your sofa.

And honestly? Amazon is getting dangerously good.

So here are 15 home finds I’m completely obsessed with this week.

The best part? If you added every single one to your basket, you’d spend just over £300.

Subscribe now

Ad - post contains affiliate links

1. Linen Wave Lamp

   Just look at it. It’s a beauty. As a bedside, on a console table, kitchen side, you name it. The base is ceramic too. She’s chic.

2. Foldable Coat Rack

   Is it art? Is it a coat rack? It’s both! Practical yet cool. I think this is totally giving midcentury modern.

3. Cute Coffee Cup and Saucer

   Because having your morning cuppa should be ceremonial and savoured. Loads more colour options too. I just thought this was a little bit ‘accidental red theory’ when left on the side…

4. Patterned Bath Mat

   Erm, ok. Obsessed with this one. I just think this would look so good in so many bathrooms. The pattern is giving soho home.

5. Magazine Rack

   Because there’s no point in buying chic magazines if you’re not going to put them in a chic rack. The tan leather is giving retro and the curve frame is a vibe.

6. Tapestry Hangers

   Bit more niche but I’m saving them for future reference. They will just add to your chosen hanging tapestry and make it look intentional rather than ‘student room’.

7. Retro Clock

   Minimalist, retro… it’s a midcentury-inspired must have for shelving, sideboards or your desk.

8. Checkerboard Marble Coasters

   I think I’d snap these up for outside but equally as good for the kitchen/dining room. Chunky and available in more colour options too.

9. Round Ribbed Tray

   The ribbed edging just adds that little something extra. I love a tray for collating and making sense of small bits and bobs too.

10. Corduroy Bench Cushions

    Always have time for a corduroy moment and these are no exception. Just slide onto the dining bench for a little extra luxury.

11. Coffee Cup

    I keep seeing these cool take-out coffee style cups and these are totally affordable if you want to see what all the fuss is about. Great for desk days or for an office mug!

12. Striped Cotton Towel

    Love the colourway and the fine, pinstripe-style pattern. Again, there are more colours but this combo was just giving.

13. Statement Mirror

    Hallway, landing, dressing room, downstairs loo. This mirror is bringing all the drama! The velvet finish is pure luxe.

14. Midcentury Light

    So cool. Need. Want. Now. So many colour options and combos in the pendant. But the olive green tone is the one for me. It will look cool even when it’s off.

15. Kitchen Sink Marble Caddy

    Hold my kitchen sponge, but make it chic. Who can resist a patterned marble moment like this?

And that’s a wrap.

Which one is going straight in your basket?

P.S. Apologies if this caused you to buy items you had no intention of even thinking about today.

P.P.S. Not sorry really. Your home is going to look chic as F.

Leave a comment

One thing about us is that we’re never afraid to give something a go.

Some may call that stupidity. We call it courage.

That optimism led us to our latest DIY challenge: fitting the downstairs W.C.

We’ve fitted kitchen sinks and tackled a few basic plumbing jobs like changing taps, so we thought, “How different can a downstairs W.C. be?”

Well… let’s talk you through why we’re not sure plumbing is our calling and whether we ended up having to call in the professionals. We’ll also give you all the tips so you don’t make our rookie errors too.

Subscribe now

First of all, we wanted to keep things as simple as possible by leaving the toilet and sink in the same positions. With that in mind, when we tiled the floor last year, we simply tiled around the existing pipework and soil pipe to make life easier.

Now, in hindsight, this is where we should have thought a little more about what fittings we were going to choose and how they would sit in the space. We’ve ended up adapting and adjusting our choices to make everything work.

We wouldn’t say it’s caused disappointment, but it has been another thing to scratch our heads over during the process.

So THINK AHEAD.

Don’t be a dum-dum.

The Toilet

We started the installation process with the toilet.

Now, our soil pipe comes up through the floor. In a lot of newer homes, they come out of the wall or sit right against it. Ours was awkwardly somewhere in the middle, so we knew we’d need to adapt things here. Funnnnn.

We chose a closed-coupled toilet for a sleek, easy-to-clean look and figured that having the cistern attached would be easier than fitting a separate one.

WRONG.

Again, hindsight suggests that a separate cistern probably would have been simpler in our space.

The First Hurdle

When we found the toilet design we liked, we realised the waste outlet went straight back into the wall. This meant we needed an additional swan-neck connector to link the toilet to the soil pipe.

That’s OK. We can do that, right?

The Second Hurdle

In theory, yes.

In reality, when we attached the pipe and held the toilet in position, it sat miles away from the wall.

A gap bigger than the space between SpongeBob SquarePants’ teeth.

OK.

We’re going to have to rethink the design here.

That’s fine. We can do that.

As undefeated as ever, we put our big girl pants on and adapted the plan. We were already planning to add panelling behind the toilet and sink, so we decided to build a small section of boxing-in behind both fixtures.

This would:

A) Allow the toilet to sit flush against the wall.

B) Help disguise some of the pipework.

Because, yep, you guessed it...

The Third Hurdle

The water inlet for the toilet actually came up through the floor by the sink, meaning it wouldn’t sit directly behind the toilet either.

Luckily, the boxing-in solved another unforeseen problem.

Fast forward through building the boxing and two trips to the DIY store, and we finally slid the toilet into place.

Hurrah.

Everything appeared to be working as it should.

We started fixing the toilet to the floor, lining up all the pipework and reading the instructions approximately five times between us.

We had lift-off.

Next step: attach the cistern.

We followed the instructions and, for a brief moment, everything was finally going smoothly.

Then, because nothing is ever simple, we had to pull the toilet back out, attach the cistern properly and slide the whole thing back into place.

No worries, mate. We can do that.

Even if it feels ridiculously repetitive.

The Fourth Hurdle

Now that the cistern was fully fixed to the toilet, it had pushed the whole unit slightly forward.

Which meant the gap between the toilet and our newly built boxing was now larger.

“Ah, shit,” we said, staring at it with rapidly fading enthusiasm.

The toilet shall not be the thing that beats us.

Or shall it?

We pushed everything into place anyway. We felt the soil pipe connect and proceeded to test the flush.

The Fifth Hurdle

CUE THE FLOODGATES.

OK, we’re being dramatic.

It wasn’t exactly a flood.

But water wasn’t the only thing falling onto the floor.

There may also have been a tear rolling down Molly’s cheek.

The slight overspill from the toilet was quickly mopped up with a towel.

BUT.

That cannot happen.

Imagine if it had been after a number one.

Or worse.

A number two.

After another head scratch, a cuppa and an emergency chocolate break, we had a plan.

We’d originally bought a swan-neck connector, but now that the toilet sat further forward, would a 90-degree connector work better?

Or did we need to admit defeat and go for a flexible connector?

DIY store visit number three.

We were officially over it.

Pipe purchased.

We went for the 90-degree option and hoped for the best.

Back home, we lifted the toilet out again, attached the new connector, slid everything back into place and crossed every finger we had.

Toilet-Fixing Hallelujah

We had finally done it.

Success.

The flush worked perfectly.

We fixed the toilet to the wall, which was an ordeal in itself because the screw holes were positioned at the most awkward angle imaginable.

But we got there.

Now all that remained was fitting the toilet seat.

The Sixth Hurdle

Honestly.

At this point, it was becoming a joke.

We’d bought a seat with brass hinge covers, which came separately. We went to swap them over and they jammed.

Completely jammed.

So badly that we couldn’t even attach the seat, and any attempt to remove them would have damaged the brass finish.

CRYING NOW.

We have a working toilet.

But we can’t actually use it.

Thankfully, after speaking to a very helpful customer service team, replacement hinges and covers were sent out.

Two days later they arrived, fitted perfectly and, most importantly, didn’t jam.

It’s a miracle.

We actually did a little joyful dance and kissed the toilet seat at this point.

We sealed around the edges, left everything to cure and, 24 hours later, we finally had a fully functioning toilet.

Although, if we’re honest, we’re both still slightly terrified to use it in case something else goes wrong.

We feel thoroughly jinxed.

But hey.

We didn’t have to call in the trades after all.

Lessons learnt

• Choose your toilet before you tile. Future you will be grateful.

• Measure every pipe position at least three times. Then measure it again.

• Buy multiple connector options from the start.

• Budget for a minimum of three emergency DIY store trips.

• Confidence is great. Research is better still.

• Fitting instructions are written by people who have clearly never fitted one themselves.

Next job?

Fitting the sink and adjoining cabinet.

If you don't hear from us next week, assume the sink won.

Leave a comment

A lot of people say they’re the trend that needs to stop.

They’ve become a living room cliché.

The focal point that makes your entire space all about the TV.

So why did we want one?

Well... here’s the thing: We didn't want a media wall. We wanted a feature that just happened to house a TV.

We wanted a feature that would add shape, storage and intrigue to our living room. Something that could pack in personality, showcase our favourite ‘stuff’ and combine multiple elements like seating and shelving.

Without this feature in the living room, we don’t think we’d have a wow-factor moment at all. So, in this case, we think a media wall has its place and purpose. It can add interest to your home while also becoming a fantastic design feature.

So here’s everything we did to create our dream media wall.

Why do it ourselves?

What we wanted was bespoke - Not your typical cardboard cut-out media wall. We didn’t want a rinse-and-repeat, off-the-shelf option.

We wanted a shelving feature that flowed into a bench seat. It wasn’t going to be cheap to have it made, so we decided to give it a go ourselves.

Plus, gaining new DIY skills and all that, right?

How did we do it?

1. It’s all in the planning. Firstly, lots of sketching and planning. We needed to decide where we wanted the bench seat, the height of the TV stand and how many shelves we wanted.

   We really just planned around the design we wanted while taking into account industry standards for seat heights and sideboard heights. Then we used those rough sketches and measurements to order all of our materials.

2. Frame it. Once everything was delivered, we started building the frame. John really project-managed this stage and began with the shelving structure before moving on to the side section and bench seat.

   We can’t stress enough how much research we did and how many YouTube videos we watched beforehand. This book is a go-to resource for projects like this!

   The sawdust mess is INSANE, so make sure you choose a day when you can cut everything outside to keep the mess to a minimum.

   Take your time and get this stage right because it’ll be difficult to change things later.

3. All a-board. Once the structure was built and secure, we installed the plasterboard. It’s messy to cut but quick to fit. We finished all the edges with self-adhesive jointing tape.

4. Plaster please. Then it was plastering time.

   A completely new skill for us.

   Some may say we’re mad for giving it a go, but we felt this project was an achievable size and a good opportunity to practise.

   Again, research was key, and we made sure we both had a clear understanding of the process.

   Our top tips? Here you go...

6. Mist it up. After plastering, it’s time to let everything dry before mist coating. We did two coats using a 60/40 mix of basic white emulsion and water, and it worked perfectly.

7. Details time. Once the paint was dry, we added our coving and skirting boards, then caulked all the joins for a super-smooth finish before moving on to the fun bit - our statement paint colour.

8. Paint it. We chose Heat by Little Greene in Intelligent Matt Emulsion so it could be used across the walls, woodwork, plaster and more. No cutting in, no different paint sheens - super easy and well worth the extra cost.

How long did it take?

Multiple weekends for us, although you could probably complete it in the best part of a week.

We spent one weekend building the frame, another plaster-boarding, another plastering, and then a final weekend fitting the coving and skirting before painting it in our statement shade.

The only thing that will really slow you down is waiting for the plaster to dry.

Obviously, a lot of what we did was completely new to us, and learning as you go always takes longer. But it’s important not to rush and to do things properly.

How much did we spend?

It’s hard to know exactly how much we saved without getting a direct quote, but from what we’ve seen online, people can easily pay over £3,000 for a bespoke piece.

We paid nothing like that.

• Wood - £137.22

• Screws - £19.18

• Plasterboard - £87.68

• Plasterboard tape - £4.99

• Plaster - £21.50

• Coving - £12.04

• Skirting board - £54.64

• MDF sheet - £29.50

• Paint - £80.00

• Plastering trowel - £9.99

• Plastering jointing knife - £8.39

• Plastering hawk - £9.79

Total – £474.92 - That’s a lot of labour costs saved!

What would we do differently next time?

Honestly, plastering is a messy job! Bit respect to the professionals.

Totally glad we gave it a go but it wasn’t without its challenges. If you’re going to give it a go, don’t underestimate it!

What did we learn?

So many new skills.

This was one of our first bigger projects in the house. We learned how to build a framework from scratch to our own design and how to plaster it too.

It also made us appreciate just how much skill goes into work like this, and it’s given us the confidence to try a few more bespoke projects in the future.

Would we do it again?

Yeah, definitely.

Don’t get us wrong - this was difficult because we were learning entirely new skills, and plastering is not for the faint-hearted.

But do your research, ask questions and take your time.

When you’re learning new skills like this, patience is everything. Otherwise, you’ll end up hating the process and making mistakes because you’re trying to rush through it.

Final thoughts...

We really achieved what we set out to create and found the whole experience incredibly rewarding.

It’s added shape and character to what could otherwise be quite a basic square room. Because it’s colourful and surrounded by all our treasured items and prints, it brings so much personality and interest to what would otherwise have been just a flat wall.

Would we recommend it? Yes - but only if you’re willing to spend more time planning than building! The success of this project came from measuring, sketching and researching before we touched a single piece of timber.

Sure, it’s not the most exciting. It’s more construction-focused, and you don’t really get the design buzz until it’s painted and filled with all your favourite things, but it pays off.

There’s a huge sense of reward that comes from trying something new and seeing it pay off. Plus, the beauty of building it yourself is that it’s completely custom and you can adapt things as you go.

We didn’t want a media wall.

We wanted a bespoke feature that looked like it belonged in our home.

Turns out, that’s exactly what we built.

Let us know if you’d give it a go! Or is there a burning DIY topic that you’d like us to cover?

Leave a comment

Reality: It’s not as scary as it’s made out to be.

Truth: If you can make basic bread, you can easily make sourdough.

So here I am, offering you my hand as I talk you through what to do with the gifted starter you’ve got, or even how to make your own.

Because let’s be real here, sourdough starter is a living thing. Do you really want to be the person to let it die?

No? Thought not… so here’s what to do - idiot’s edition…

Subscribe now

For Starters

If you’ve already got a starter, skip to Don’t Let Me Die. If you haven’t, read on.

The science is what freaks us all out and makes us panic, right? So for now, let’s forget it. Once we’ve got fancy, we can learn more about that. But for now, simplify!

Now let’s make a starter.

It won’t be as “aged” as a handed-down starter. It won’t be as mature, flavoursome, or strong, but it will still make a damn tasty loaf.

You will need: water and strong white bread flour. That’s it.

If you can, buy flour with 14g protein or more. It will help massively.

Day One - Mix 50g of flour with 50g of lukewarm water. Tap water is fine. Leave it in a loosely sealed jar, like a Kilner jar - something you can see into. Leave it for 24 hours.

Day Two - Mix 50g of flour with 50g of lukewarm water. Mix that into your Day One mixture. Leave it in the same loosely sealed jar for another 24 hours.

Day Three - Mix 50g of flour with 50g of lukewarm water. Mix that into your existing mixture. Leave it in the same loosely sealed jar for another 24 hours.

Day Four - You should start to see some bubbles now. Again, mix 50g of flour with 50g of lukewarm water. Mix that into your existing mixture and leave it in the same loosely sealed jar for another 24 hours.

Day Five - Now it should be really bubbling! It should smell a little fermented too. A bit like old beer or yoghurt. If not, keep feeding it daily until it’s bubbling.

Day Six - You’ve made your starter. You’re a wizard, Harry!

Did it split? Have you got a brown watery liquid on top? Don’t panic! If it smells okay, stir it in. If it’s giving bad energy, pour it off and give it another feed.

Don’t Let Me Die

So you’ve got your starter. You’ve either spent a fortune on some 10-year-old crazy-good handed-down concoction, or you’ve given a week of your life over to feeding flour and water with flour and water. Either way, you’ve made sacrifices.

How do you care for it?

Once a week. That’s it. And you just keep it in the fridge the rest of the time. Simple, eh?

So… once a week I take my sourdough out of the fridge. I weigh it. Then I feed it.

So for example, if my sourdough starter weighs 100g, I’m going to add 100g of flour and 100g of lukewarm water.

If you want to be fancier and feed it with something that will really satisfy its appetite, I’ll do a split of strong white flour and rye flour.

I mix that all together, then leave it on the side in the kitchen overnight.

The next day, I either discard half or use half (we will get to this) and put the remaining starter in the fridge.

DO NOT avoid discarding. It might feel wrong to chuck half away if you’re not baking that week, but it needs to be done. Don’t forget, you could always gift it!

Forgot to feed it? Don’t worry. As long as it’s done at least every fortnight, it will keep going. Weekly just makes it stronger.

Discard or Go Hard

You’ve fed your starter. It’s the time to throw away or bake today!

Now… a loaf, in my experience, is a three-day process.

No, you don’t have to carry it around with you.

But it takes a little time each day. So if you don’t have spare time that week, here is a great little recipe I’ve been using to not waste anything.

RECIPE FOR SOURDOUGH DISCARD CRACKERS

They are perfect with a bit of hummus, sprinkled over a salad, and there’s no waiting involved.

The Big Bake

You’ve got the time, you’ve got the energy, you’ve got the ambition.

LET’S DO THIS! Together… because like I said, I’m just an amateur too, so don’t be intimidated.

Before we start… this is my sourdough queen and the recipe I keep following. So far, no fails, so why change it?

But let’s break it down into steps, day by day, of what I’ve been doing…

Day One - That was your starter feeding/prep that we went through before. Just make sure you do this the day before you want to make your bread, so your starter has plenty of time to rise.

Day Two - Mix 500g of strong white bread flour, 365g of lukewarm water, and 100g of your sourdough starter (the bit you were about to discard can be used, hurrah). Mix until combined. It doesn’t need to look fancy. Leave it in a bowl covered with a tea towel.

After 30 minutes, add your 10g salt and mix it together again. I’m not fancy, I don’t have a mixer, so it’s a by-hand job. Again, mix until just combined. Leave covered with a tea towel again.

After 30 minutes, do a coil fold - watch this video, shows this so well! Leave it to chill, covered with a tea towel again.

After 30 minutes, do another coil fold and leave covered again.

After another 30 minutes, do ANOTHER. You will massively notice a difference in texture now- so smooth!

Then you can leave the dough for 3–4 hours to double in size. Again, I’ve just left it with a tea towel over the bowl. You can be fancier with a proper container or proving bag. Quite honestly, I just don’t have them, and if it ain’t broken, don’t fix it.

If you’re worried about knowing when it’s doubled, you can do the shot glass/rubber band method shown in the video above, but honestly, I think you can tell.

After it’s doubled, it’s time to shape it! Now another confession here… so far I haven’t had a proper proving basket, but it’s worked every time, so don’t let having the right equipment stop you. Give it a go!

So, flour your work surface, tip on the dough, then gently move the dough around with a scraper to make a smooth, neat ball. Leave covered for another 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, it’s time to put it into your banneton. If you’ve got one, great. If, like me, you’re struggling on, I just lightly floured my mixing bowl and used that.

To shape this, it’s literally just a couple of folds for a smooth surface and tying the folds together by pinching the surface. Again, the videos help massively in showing how simple this is.

Cover the dough and leave it in the fridge overnight for a slow prove.

Day Three - Baking day! Hurrah!

Get that oven to 250°C and put your cast iron dish in to preheat. Once it’s reached temperature, it’s time to take out the cast iron and grab your dough from the fridge.

I’ve found it easier to turn the dough out onto a piece of baking parchment. If it sticks a bit, don’t worry too much - your dough may just be a bit wet. Or, if like me you don’t have a proving basket, then that is probably why too!

Once tipped out, lift it by the parchment into the cast iron. Then, using a sharp knife or scoring blade, cut a line down the centre of the loaf. Or get fancy and do a fun shape if you’re feeling creative. I haven’t got this brave yet!

Spritz with water to get a nice crust, then put the lid on the cast iron and bake in the oven for 35 minutes.

After 35 minutes, drop the temperature to 220°C and bake for 10 minutes with the lid off for a final bit of crust and colour.

Remove from the oven. Ta-da!

Now… don’t cut it too soon. Don’t be tempted. Leave it to cool. It’s still working its magic and you can’t ruin that!

But once you do… you won’t want average supermarket bread ever again!

The Aftermath

We’re making a weekly loaf and it’s serving us well. Sourdough actually lasts really well. But if you ever need to refresh it, turn your oven to 180°C, spritz it with a bit of water, and shove it in for 5–10 minutes. It will give it a new lease of life.

It also freezes excellently in slices for toasting. So you could even do that with half the loaf!

Also… If we’re going to get into the brilliant starter kits, this is what I’ve treated myself to now I know I’m loving the process.

Kneading it real

It’s got better each week. So don’t expect miracles straight away.

Week 1- bit burnt, Not a great shape. Maybe a bit overproved.

Week 2 - Much better shape, better colour. Happier.

Week 3 - Best texture yet. Shape a bit unruly. But getting stronger.

What do you reckon? Does this give you the confidence to give it a go? Hope so!

Let’s be less sour-doh and more sour-we-got-this-bro.

Ok… I get it… I’m going now.

P.S. Please tag us in your loaves. Here, Insta, TikTok… anywhere.

Leave a comment

It definitely helps most of the time. Especially when I’m trying to motivate myself to do the third load of washing that day.

Sometimes, though, it gets in the way of reality. Sometimes it puts a rose-tinted hue on life.

A bit like when you binge-watch a new romantic series and reassess the man in your life. Then quickly have to remind yourself the show is just fantasy and the real deal is, for one, REAL and, two, so much better - flaws and all.

Yes, I did binge-watch Off Campus this week…

Subscribe now

Anyway, I digress.

Renovations can totally be the same. You see the YouTube videos, you watch the Instagram reels, you see your mate achieving what you want, but they’re just that bit ahead of you, and suddenly you really WANT that doer-upper, no questions asked.

But wait.

You need to ask questions. Ask yourself. Your partner. Your friends. Your family. Your bank account. Your mortgage advisor. Because it’s all good taking a leap of faith, but you don’t want to step into the unknown completely blind.

But what do you ask? This is where I want to help.

These are the five big questions I would ask myself - and the ones you should ask yourself - before you ring the estate agents.

1. Do I actually like the process of renovating, or do I just like the finished result?

No shame. But if you just like the finished result, this probably isn’t the path for you.

You might say to yourself, “It’s fine, we’ll use tradesmen. It may cost more, but it’ll be better for us and we can keep our lives as normal as possible around it.”

WRONG.

Even with amazing tradesmen, renovation still consumes your brain. Decisions. Delays. Dust. Money. Timelines. Problems at 9pm on a Sunday.

You really have to embrace it. If you’re anything less than 80% invested in renovation life, it’s not going to work out. It will put pressure on your relationships, your work life, and your wellbeing.

All of that pressure feels worth it if it’s what you love and it’s a process you genuinely want to power through. But if not… find another plan. Or choose a smaller-scale project that’s more cosmetic, or maybe an extension you can mentally separate yourself from a little more easily.

Love the process of renovating? Well, you’re onto a winner. It’s going to be a long ride, but one heck of a rewarding journey.

2. Why do I want this?

Simple, but valid.

Is it to test yourself? To see what you can achieve? To push yourself in new directions?

Are you bored? Do you just need a new hobby and like the idea of renovating, but that’s as far as it goes?

Is it for long-term gain? Can’t afford your dream home, but willing to rough it for a year or two to create the property you dream of?

Is it for outside approval? Are you too influenced by society and following in the footsteps of others rather than thinking about what YOU actually want?

Are you trend-driven? Do you suddenly feel like you need that on-trend kitchen colour and new cabinets? Styles change quickly. Stick to what feels personal to you.

Do you want to learn something new? Building a new skill set can be massively rewarding.

Whatever the reason is, make sure your mind is clear on it - and keep reminding yourself of it during the trickier moments.

3. What can I afford?

Financially, emotionally, and time-wise. Let’s break it down…

Financially

It’s boring (well, it was to us - we’re not exactly spreadsheet fanatics in this house), but you need to know your numbers.

How much can you start with? How much can you put away each month? How much money are you willing to sacrifice from other joys? Are you happy to spend thousands of pounds on the necessary boring stuff, like new electrics?

Speak to friends and family. Talk to people you know who’ve renovated. Speak to your mortgage advisor about your options. If you can, even speak to a builder before you buy.

We had a little pot of money that disappeared in our first year, but it meant we could get the structural and essential jobs ticked off early. May or may not have splurged on a couple of Pooky lights too. Oops.

Emotionally

Can you handle the extra pressure?

Sure, there are SO many good moments that, in our minds, outweigh the tougher spots. But the hard times still exist, and it’s whether you think the rewards outweigh them.

A doer-upper will either bond you together or expose every crack. It affects your relationship, your social life, your self-care. You have to be ready for that.

This lifestyle has changed our lives in so many ways that we’re beyond grateful for. But we also both looked fitter, more energised, and more relaxed before we started DIY life.

Throwback featured photo carousels are CRUEL.

Time-wise

Do you have a timeframe to work towards? What’s the goal in five years? Are you more fluid with how things go? Is this a stepping-stone house?

Make sure it’s clear in your mind and plan around it. Inevitably, everything runs over - but how much are you actually okay with?

We’re in no rush. This house is part of our long-term plan and, currently, we see no reason why that would change. That takes the time pressure off completely, which is one less headache.

Until I get twitchy because we haven’t done any jobs in the past week and I start feeling like the house is getting nowhere. Not dramatic or anything…

4. Can I live in chaos?

It’s not an overnight transformation, no matter how much reels try to convince us otherwise. Real graft takes time - and chaos.

We’ve spent winters living out of one room and washing pots in the bath. We’ve had months living off microwave meals. We’ve had to use friends’ and family members’ houses for showers. It can be pure chaos sometimes.

If you’re willing to adopt a slightly less glamorous lifestyle and occasionally sacrifice your skincare routine, then you’ll be fine. It’s just very humbling.

5. Am I willing to learn - and can I handle new challenges?

Nobody knows everything about renovating.

Yeah, some people start with a stronger skill set. Some have people around them with knowledge to share. Some are tradespeople themselves. But they all started somewhere.

If you’re willing to ask questions, try things out, and maybe fail a few times before getting it right, then you’ll be a natural.

Sometimes you wake up in the night because of a weird noise. Sometimes the hot water stops working. Sometimes you accidentally drill through a water pipe (John did this, but that’s a story for another time).

As long as you can handle those moments without spiralling into panic, then you’ve got this.

In short: can you handle it?

Renovation isn’t really about houses. It’s about whether you’re willing to be uncomfortable for something you deeply want.

If you’re feeling stronger than Hercules, then congratulations my friend - you’ve just gone from zero to hero on the renovation scale, and your new adventure starts right now.

Leave a comment

But what if the middle ground was actually harmonised, balanced, grounded, and centre stage?

When we started decorating our home, we always struggled to find our vibe elsewhere. We had a massive crush on maximalist interiors, but knew they wouldn’t be liveable for us.

But minimalism? NEVER achievable for us. We love stuff too much and want our home to scream us the second you step through the door. At the same time, we fully appreciate the strong design, artistic influence, and clean intention behind 60s and 70s-inspired minimal spaces.

So… what was our style?

Then BOOM. It hit us.

Midimalism.

The sweet spot. The centre point combining the things we love most from both styles in a curated, intentional way.

Suddenly, all the inspiration we’d been pinning and all the accounts we’d been obsessing over made sense, and we knew exactly how we were going to approach our decor.

So what does it actually mean?

Exactly what it says on the tin. It’s the sweet spot between minimalism and maximalism - drawing elements from both to create balance without feeling boring or overwhelming.

Let’s break it down…

Colour

Embrace colour - but limit it. Stick to a scheme and carry it throughout your space. Little tricks make everything feel balanced, and here are a few we’ve used in our home…

The 60/30/10 Rule

60% neutral.
30% warm, natural, bolder shades.
10% unexpected colour pops.

Carry this across your paint, furniture, and accessories.

We’ve used this approach in multiple rooms in our home.

The Living Room

We used an all-over neutral paint with warm undertones, then added warm wood furniture, a velvet chair, and a leather sofa in similar tones.

For the 30%, we went orange. It’s bold and statement-making, but still warm, natural, and complementary to the neutrals. It carries through our cushions, throws, and rug too.

Then the 10% comes through in accents: black cushions, black frames, black lamp bases.

The Kitchen

Again, the 60% comes from a warm neutral with subtle green undertones.

The statement green wall, chair cushions, island stools, and plants carry the 30%, while the black kitchen and yellow door provide those unexpected pops that break up the cohesion just enough.

Colour Drenching

This works a treat. We’ve done it in almost every room.

One: it saves cutting in.
Two: it stops you introducing yet another colour into your scheme.
Three: it cocoons your space and creates a sophisticated feel.

Warmer Tones

Minimalism often leans into sharp lines, cool tones, and stark blacks.

Maximalism embraces bright shades, contrasting tones, and unexpected pairings.

Midimalism sits somewhere in the middle - warmer, muted, earthy tones that create a grounded base.

Texture

Layer those textures.

Chunky woods. Heavy throws. Bouclé furniture. Rich velvet. Deep-pile rugs.

Opt for texture over too many competing patterns. One or two patterns? Gorgeous. Too many, and things can quickly start to feel visually chaotic rather than curated.

And mix materials.

Wood. Metal. Ceramics. Glass. Stone. Tile. Matte finishes. High gloss.

This adds depth without needing to throw endless colours into the mix.

The Bedroom

This is probably the best example of this. We’ve got one main print - the tiger curtains - which carries through onto the bed cushions.

Then we layered in texture with a velvet bed, wooden bedside tables, glossy lamps, rattan furniture, and multiple throws on the bed. The gold-leaf headboard only adds even more texture and richness.

Pattern

Unlike maximalism, midimalism isn’t about endless prints and chaotic pattern clashes.

Find your hero print and work outwards from it.

Maybe it’s a bold tile, an animal-print fabric, or a floral wallpaper. Start there and build around it intentionally.

Sure, you can combine another print if it works - but the goal is to support the original pattern, not compete with it.

If you’ve got a gorgeous floral print, maybe you add a stripe that pulls colours from the flowers.

The Hallway

Our bold tiles bring the pattern.

But why stop there?

We pulled tones from the tiles onto the walls with paint, then took it one step further with our printed runner.

It’s probably our most maximalist space - right at the tipping point.

Personal Touches

Let your ornaments lead.

You’ve built the base. The beautiful backdrop. Now add your pieces intentionally.

This is where you can lean more into that eclectic, curated energy.

Bold art. Unique lighting. Personal ornaments. Throw them into the mix and let them speak volumes.

The key is pairing things thoughtfully.

For example, our gallery wall is filled with different prints, but we used black frames and multiple black and white pieces to create cohesion.

So sure - you don’t need to label everything.

But when people ask about your style, your vibe, or what to search for when looking for inspiration, it’s nice to have a starting point.

It’s nice to have building blocks rather than jumping straight into the deep end.

We LOVE talking interiors. Our inbox is always open - throw your dilemma at us. Let’s chat colours, layouts, and ideas. It’s genuinely one of our favourite things.

So go on.

Embrace your midimalist chapter.

Leave a comment