[int]: workshop - budgeting

The worst thing you can do to your home is run out of money half way through decorating. You'll be left with mismatched old and new pieces, and nothing will quite work together. The best way to approach a project is to have a plan.

Photo credit: gettyimages

There are a few techniques you can use to plan out your project, and to save a bit of money. The key is to get organised early on, know your budget, and bear these tips in mind.

1. Consider everything

Photo credit: DP Mattinson Ltd UK

A tin of paint doesn't cost much, but when you add in lampshades, curtains, rugs, potted plants, photo frames, the price tag racks up quickly. Make sure you set aside an amount of money for all these little things early on, or else you will be waiting for your next pay cheque to finish the job.

2. Reuse what you can

Photo credit: bhg.com

Your sofa is still perfectly comfortable but doesn't fit the new design? Try a new throw over the top to save you so much. Dining chairs the wrong colour? Try staining the wood and reupholstering the cushions. Chest of drawers that doesn't fit the style? Try changing the handles. Good furniture is very expensive and you'll give yourself so much more room to experiment and buy quality if you can reuse a piece.

3. Go for a bargain

Photo credit: hughesremovals.co.uk

Once you've decided what furniture you absolutely have to buy, shop around for the best place to buy it. There are so many furniture sales throughout the year, especially beginning in January, that unless you want something very specific you'll be best off timing the revamp of your home to coincide with one. If you're looking for designer style furniture but don't want to pay the hefty price, shop around online stores for pieces inspired by major trends, though make sure you trust the quality before you buy. Look out for vouchers or online discounts and search for the piece online to see if you can find it for cheaper elsewhere. And don't be afraid to look for second hand furniture, particularly in a specialist shop where you can be more certain the item is of a good quality.

4. Design with your budget in mind

Photo credit: ArtFilesVicky on Etsy.com

If you're the sort of person who wants a constantly up-to-date home, but has a relatively small budget, then you need to be looking for relatively neutral furniture. Use soft furnishings and small items like art, mirrors and vases to change and update the look as different trends come and go.

But if you have one style in mind that you want to keep for years, then don't try to do it all at once. If you can slowly build up your design, piece by piece, then you'll end up with a better quality of furniture in your space, and so a better design as a whole.

5. Prioritise

Photo credit: frenchfancy.com

Make sure you look for the pieces that are most important to you first. If your room revolves around a statement chair, look for that first, and allow the biggest portion of your budget for that. If you're not sure where to start, look for the pieces that will catch your eye. They're the ones you'll look back to again and again, so they should be good quality.

It can be pretty straightforward to update your home if you know your budget and your priorities. If this post has helped with your project, don't hesitate to let me know or to share!

[int]: kitchen - trend to interior

There are so many gorgeous images of industrial interiors out there - it's a trend that's really popular at the moment. Kitchens are a favourite, and they look stunning when designed well, but this is a hard style to master.

Photo credit: Forbes.com

I can't say this enough; when you're looking to design a room to fit a trend, don't fixate on a single image. You need to investigate a little further into what makes the trend work and what is feasible in your space.

This industrial style is all about textures. There are so many gorgeous interiors that revolve around exposed brick walls, but not many people actually have them in their homes. This doesn't mean you can't make the style work, though - there are other ways to bring in the deep, shadowed textures.

Industrial style kitchen, Homedit.com

This kitchen uses reclaimed wood units and shelving to bring a worn feeling to the interior. There are some great suppliers out there to find some beautiful aged wood, like The Main Company who use reclaimed wood as a veneer over stronger timber. In the image above, I love the way the texture contrasts with the sheer polished white of the worktops and low splashback. Don't forget that you need to be able to work with the kitchen and keep everything clean - the work surfaces are perhaps not the best place to bring in texture.

Timber kitchen cabinets, The Main Company

To really get an industrial feel, you need to bring in industrial objects. One common theme is iron or dark metal fittings.

Industrial style kitchen, Muratore Construction and Design

The main feature of this kitchen is the dark polished metal cabinets. But you don't need to completely remodel your kitchen to get some of this style into your home. Simply by replacing the handles on your kitchen cabinets, you can really change the mood of the space.

Door handles, Ikea

These door handles from Ikea are a really inexpensive way to add some character to the kitchen, and they have an amazing texture for something so cheap.

Industrial style kitchen, HomeDesignBoard.com

The beauty about the industrial style, from a budget perspective, is that one of the main ways of bringing it into your home is to leave it almost unfinished. In this kitchen, electric wires and ventilation ducts are left on show, to give the warehouse or factory feel. The key here is to make sure the lighting and ducts are well positioned - see how the duct follows the line of the beams and each light is an equal distance from the duct.

Accessories really finish the space, especially items as noticeable as lighting and bar stools.

Arthur Deep Pendant Lamp, Made.com

These pendant lights from Made.com give a really strong industrial feel, especially because of the cage beneath. They would make a great statement over a breakfast bar.

Aldgate bar stool, Argos

A simple bar stool like this one sold by Argos can help to bring the interior together, tying the style through each item in the kitchen.

Kettle, Bosch

If you can, make sure you keep the style running through the appliances and crockery that you choose. This kettle uses undecorated stainless steel and sharp angles, fitting in beautifully with the rest of the style.

This style will of course look best with an entire remodel, if you can afford to change your kitchen completely. But there are a few ways to bring in the style more subtly, without breaking the bank. If you've enjoyed this post, please like and share it!

[int]: apartment, melbourne australia

In a few month's time, I will be moving out to Australia for a year. But the friend I will be going to live with has already moved into the flat we're going to share - which she is renting unfurnished. She has never furnished a house before, so I am helping her to plan rooms and find furniture.

A long distance project certainly throws up some challenges, but I'm largely treating the project the same way I would any other.

Bedroom, real estate photograph

The first step is to work out exactly what it is you're dealing with. I have the real estate photographs of the property, which give a rough idea, and the assurance that this carpet is actually blue, not black.

After that I started looking at what we want each of the rooms to be, and how we want them to operate. We're working to a budget, so it's important for us not to become too set on an idea - when looking for cheap or second hand furniture, the priority has to be using what you can find rather than searching for the perfect item.

Photos from my Living Room Pinterest board

I like to create a mood board of photographs to gather ideas, but it's important to be clear why you're choosing each image. Pick out a few aspects that you like about each image, and try to incorporate them rather than trying to copy faithfully. I used shared boards on Pinterest, so that we could both look at the ideas and give each other feedback.

Photos from my Bedroom Pinterest board

I began with an idea of what feeling the rooms should give out; the bedroom would need to be restful, the living room more fun and active. This formed the basis of my mood boards, bringing colour into the living room through bright, geometrically patterned cushions, and using more restful tones in the bedroom. Most of the apartment is carpeted in dark blue, so blue became the base of my colour schemes. The kitchen became about the use of different tones of wood and blue-and-white kitchenware.

Photos from my Kitchen Pinterest board

But then I had to face reality. Once I had the dimensions of the rooms, I started to draw up possible room plans. I could do this with computer drawing software, but you could use a pen and paper and draw to a simple scale. I used real furniture dimensions to plan out options for what could fit in the space, depending on what furniture we could find.

Early living room plan

And now is the fun part. I'm searching through sites like Gumtree for second hand furniture that might work, and my friend sends me photographs of pieces from shops. It's slower and more difficult to judge than working on a project in person, but I love a challenge.

Photograph of an Ikea Gateleg table, E MacColl

Stay tuned for updates! I have plans to customise furniture when I get out there, as well as searching for the perfect accessories.