(Above Video: Visit to the Ideal Home Show - watch in full screen mode)
Well, Spring is FINALLY here!! And although today is rather cold and blustery, there have been glimmers of warm weather on its way, along with lots of pretty spring colours popping up everywhere, bringing a bit of joy and promise of warmer, brighter days to come, which really lifts the spirits! 🌸💮🌹🌺🌼🌷🌞 I don't know about you, but time seems to be going so fast!! I can't believe that today marks the end of the school half term and they have officially broken up for Easter! 🐰🐣🐥 How did that happen, it feels like it was only Christmas yesterday!?... Although slightly startled by the speed which time seems to be going this year, I am pleased to say it has been a good start so far (touch wood!) with lots of positive busyness! Although times remain tough with our economy, we as a nation are showing great resilience and in good old Blighty fashion, it seems to be chin up and roll with the punches. I am starting to see a shift in people deciding to take the brakes off and go ahead with the new kitchen they had saved for, but were scared to spend on, have their lounge re-decorated, or even press that green button for that extension they had the builders lined up for before prices went sky high. I know a lot of us aren't feeling that change yet, but I'm hoping that the change I am seeing is a sign of things to come and that slowly the pressure will come off us all a bit so we can live a bit more comfortably. I am thankful that Scott (my husband) is a tradesman and savvy with most property renovation jobs (including plumbing & electrics!), as otherwise there is no way we could be affording to re-do our bathroom right now. I will go as far as I know how when it comes to my part and will always have a go when shown the ropes (Roof replacement, concrete floor laying and wall rendering being a few skills I picked up during our time in France!), but probably fit into the job title of painter and decorator in our current home, leaving the more technical bits to him. As slow going as it is with Scott only being able to give up a few hours each Saturday and me maybe not giving him the easiest of times with my plans for the bathroom and the complex changes to be made in such a small space, we are so nearly there with it and it'll be well worth the wait for the money it will have saved by him doing the labour & plumbing.
At least someone is enjoying the new 'giraffes' that have been cut into the wall for the basin pipework to go in!😊...
In my role as an interior designer, I strive to get the best deals on every job I do and if I can ever save my clients on any areas of the design, I always will! Knowing too well how expensive renovation works can be, it is my absolute responsibility to give my clients the best they can get with the budget they have and I take this very seriously. I look at every job as if it were my own property and budget. Further than that, if they are capable, have the time, are willing and want to go that extra mile with their savings, I will advise where DIY may be able to come into play and cost accordingly. This usually falls around the painting and decorating areas, which more people are confident in doing.
For every job I do, I want my client to not only feel happy with the design they are provided with, but that they can see the value of my fee to them in the accuracy of my work and the savings they have made by using a professional, whilst maintaining the quality of design.
So, as you can see from the video above - with things looking brighter and people wanting to get jobs done, I took it upon myself to take my Mum out for a day of inspiration filling at the Ideal Home Show, Olympia, London.
It was fantastic! Definitely up there with the best home and renovation shows I have been to - just full to the brim with everything you could think of for the home and garden, I took so much inspiration away from it and found a few products which are the perfect fit for a couple of client jobs I have going at the moment, so it was well worth the visit! I will definitely be sharing a few of these products and ideas with you very soon, but for now, I have to go and pack!! As some of you will already know, and as mentioned above, we lived in France for a few years, where we renovated a property and ran it as a holiday let. We moved back in 2016 to be closer to family and eventually decided to sell the holiday let, as it was proving hard for us to maintain and was all-consuming during the short UK school holiday visits we are now tied into. But, we kept our barn, 'Tiny Tim', who is in very early stages of renovation and is a very long-term family project! As an effect of covid, a sudden barn roof replacement we had to do the last time we were there (taking savings with it) and with life in general ticking by, it is now 1.5 years since we have been able to visit our Tiny Tim! But tomorrow, we are on our way!!! It will be a working holiday and Tiny is going to need a good clean up, but we can't wait to see him and feel the space around him, which is what drew us to him in the first place!
I will be sure to send an update once we are there! Happy Easter everyone!
Et à bientôt! 👋😉
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