Expert view: How to fall in love with your home again
Interior designer Emma Carson says save money on moving house by making over the home you’re in.
There are two key factors when people decide to sell up: they run out of space, and their tastes change. Tackling these common gripes is key, plus your home will be in a good marketable condition when you do eventually come to sell.
Sort your clutter
Surroundings can really alter your mood and sense of well being.
• Have a chuck-out then group things you want to keep into categories, for instance by family member or function. Store similar things together, close to where you will use them.
• If space is at a premium, adopt storage solutions that enable you to free up floor space such as sliding doors, shelving units, under bed storage.
Be creative with room use
Think outside the space rather than overloading one room.
• Move activities around. eg, if you work from home consider using an alcove with sliding doors or making another room multi-functional. Make sure you can close the space off when not working.
• For stylish contemporary room dividers check out www.spaceslide.co.uk
Change a room’s ‘outfit’
Paint and new flooring are simple ways to transform a tired looking interior.
• Keep walls and flooring neutral and then introduce colour, pattern and texture with textiles, lighting and objects.
• Rugs, curtains and cushions can be swapped around for seasonal changes.
Savvy tip
Create contrasts – add soft round objects to hard square ones, combine patterns with solid blocks of colour, or break up hard materials such as stainless steel by introducing a bit of softening fabric.
Pass it on – Emma Carson’s interiors inspiration
Whether it’s a front door repaint or adding bay trees by your path, make sure your home ‘smiles’ at you before you even walk through the front door!
Emma Carson has her own Interior Design Consultancy company called Fusion Interior Design. She has also worked as head of Interior Design for IKEA, UK.