We finally moved into the house we’ve been working towards for years in October. It’s taken years of saving money and working extra hours to get here and we couldn’t be happier. But although we love the house and the space that we now have, it’s going to take us a while to make the house really feel like home.
Keeping warm
Although we’ve moved into a house that’s only five years old, it’s much bigger than our previous house and with it being detached there aren’t any houses either side to provide a little extra insulation. The previous owners removed all of the curtains and blinds and it’s taken us a little while to get these sorted. Having bare windows is a surefire way to let the heat escape, so sorting this out has been a priority for us. If you’re moving home, then make sure that your windows are in good condition so that you don’t have lots of heat escaping. If you’re buying an older house, then replacement aluminium windows can make a huge difference. Not only will you keep the heat in during the colder months, but you’ll save money on your heating bills too. As our house is fairly new, the windows are in pretty good nick, but we still have one bay window and the patio doors to cover which we’ll be getting sorted before the end of November, the cold nights really are creeping in now!
Soft furnishings
One of the easiest and cheapest ways to make a house feel more homely is with soft furnishings. A few carefully chosen throws, a cosy rug in front of the fire and a toasty blanket over the bed can make a huge difference to the overall feel of your home.
Add splashes of colour
One of the biggest things with our house is that every single room is just painted white. It’s extremely plain without any real character! Even the kitchen cupboards are a glossy white. Although decorating will have to wait a little while, I do think that adding some splashes of colour around the house will make a big difference. It’s one of the easiest ways to really stamp your mark on your house and it can be achieved with just a few simple touches. I also want to add some real and artificial plants too.
Choosing a colour scheme for your room is the first step. Once you’ve done this and worked out your budget, you can then start to think about the kind of look you might be able to achieve. If your budget allows, you could paint or paper the walls, but even just adding cushions, curtains and rugs to match your colour scheme will work really well.
Future plans
Eventually, we think we might want to make some structural changes to our house. I could really use a separate office. At the moment, I’m holed up in a corner of the dining room, but we are considering a few options for the future. We could convert the garage, although this would mean we would need to change the layout of downstairs as we don’t have an internal door at the moment. Or, we could convert the loft space which would mean we would need to add in an extra staircase somehow. Finally, we could possibly extend to the back of the house. All of these options are expensive though, and there will be a lot of disruption no matter which way we turn. We would definitely need some professional help and at least one skip! I have taken a look at the different options for different skip sizes and there is plenty of choice at reasonable prices. If you’re thinking of any kind of renovation work, or even just a big clear out, you can use this skip size calculator to work out the size of skip you’re likely to need.
I would also love to spend some time sorting the garden out. Don’t get me wrong, there’s not much wrong with it, but being a newish build, there aren’t any mature trees so we are quite overlooked. I have planted a few trees so that these will give us some screening in years to come. I love the idea of having a garden where I can just sit out and relax without wondering whether people can see me! I would love to have a relaxing corner with some potted plants, a sun shade and a hammock where I could spend some relaxing afternoons reading a book and just having some me time.
Moving into a new home is one of the most exciting times of our lives, but it does take time to make a new house feel like home. Just a few simple steps to make the house feel and look warm and cosy will make a big difference though, and shopping for your new home is a great deal of fun too!
*This is a collaborative post.
