I owe you an apology. Grab a coffee.

My newsletter friends are actually my favourite community, and yet I haven’t looked at your homes in nearly 3 months. Running a studio and growing a brand simultaneously = burnout, and sometimes my busy brain only allows me to chat on camera and not to write.

However - you guys have not stopped writing to me, and my inbox is still full of spaces in need of some serious TLC.

Today’s subscriber has waited a REALLY long time to hear back from me, and I’m really excited to help her transform her space. We’ll be “jazzing up” the front room without ripping it apart, with takeaways that you can implement before Christmas. Sound good?

Before I introduce this week’s subscriber’s space, I do have a little bit of news for you →

A quick announcement. 

Whilst I have been busy, I have also been carving out some time to build something for you guys.

As you know, I have been building this community of renovators over the past two years and you guys comment, email me, DM me, stop me in the street (I’m still getting used to that one!) - all to tell me that my content has made you excited about building your dream home. More profoundly, you tell me that it has shifted your mindset, and you’re finally pouring into your spaces because you realise that you deserve to love ‘home’ right now. What are we waiting for, really? As someone who doesn’t really enjoy creating content, that’s genuinely the reason I keep doing it.

In building this community, I’ve figured out where I can help the most - the next best thing to being your personal interior designer. 

We’re making the final tweaks to The Renovation Diary. I wrote all of the content, and it covers: your renovation sequence, the planning phase, a design guide, the tender process, room-by-room planning, weekly logs, snagging and so many tips from me. Keep checking back as I’m so excited to launch this for you.

Now for some long-awaited home truths. 

This week’s subscriber plucked up the courage to email in and share her home. She told me:

“You have no idea how much it would mean to me for you to help me jazz up this front room. [...] First dilemma is sofas, this cream / greige just felt boring and I’ve sent them back so currently no sofas - it keeps me awake at night just wanting to get it right. No idea what to put on these stupid shelves either. Struggling with any kind of theme, colour etc.”

Look, decision fatigue is a real thing. 

“For context, the space is a small rectangle, about 3m by 2.5m. [...] I know the sofa depth needs to be 97cm or less, otherwise we lose too much of the room. I’m also really struggling with colours and styling. [...] I’m not sure whether I should be adding lighter ornaments into the darker shelves to break things up, or leaning fully into a more moody look.”

And finally, here’s the crux:

“My husband is keen to keep the TV, paint colour and shelving as they are, so I’m trying to work around those.” 

Sorry hubby, but I’m not going to work with those floating black shelves. I’ll keep the wall paint and not go too crazy so we can compromise, okay? I have a rule about floating shelves in chimney breast alcoves, and the rule is that they fade away into the background or they form part of a proper bookcase with a back.  

A couple of simple tweaks here and then two dramatic changes. We have no coving or moulding detailing around the ceiling or walls to create a natural break in the architecture, so we colour drench. We’re keeping hubby’s wall colour but we’re pulling it onto the ceiling and shelves too. The black cupboards can stay, I guess. If you’re ready for a bigger change, wooden flooring would be lovely here. But it isn’t essential: I’ll show you how we can work with the existing carpet too. The ‘splash’ moment is the mantel: that’s where I’d make the bigger statement.

Don't miss this tip: to ‘DIY’ the stone mirror - have a piece of mirror cut at your local glazing store, and then source a stone tile trim to work with your mantel like this one. Once the mirror is up, you can tile around the edges to create a bespoke frame.

Now is not the time to worry too much about shelf styling. Styling is a tool used to lift a space, but first we need to get the bones right. A simple rule to remember is to make sure that you use decorative baskets and linen boxes for messy bits, and keep a collection of items with varying vertical and horizontal scales for interest. Nobody gets styling right the first time, you play around with composition until you reach balance.

Next, I need to tackle what I was summoned for in the first place. Here’s the sofa that started all of this.

I’m proud of you for sending them back. If you’re already disappointed with the sofas before you’ve properly settled into them, they’re not the ones. You deserve a cosy lounge where your family actually wants to spend time, not an expensive purchase you’re trying to talk yourself into liking.

For this room, I’d go for a muted olive green. Something with a little brown in it, rather than a fresh, zingy green. It would sit beautifully with the dark timber and black cupboards, and bring some colour into the room without us needing to repaint every wall. We’ve already negotiated enough with her husband.

Next, I’d actually invest in a rug. Stay with me.

So many people rule out a rug because they already have carpet, but the two can absolutely work together. Here, it gives the seating area some definition and breaks up that expanse of beige without replacing the flooring. I wouldn’t go wild with pattern; we’ve just introduced the olive sofas, and I want those to have their moment. A soft, neutral herringbone with a contrasting border brings enough texture and detail without making the room feel busy.

One final tweak, because we’re not trying to start the entire room again.

Let’s lose the chrome lighting and switch the pendant for a generous linen shade. I love these for the shape and texture they bring, even when the light is off. The softer material also means we can go larger without the fitting feeling quite as visually heavy as a solid metal shade.

Small room does not automatically mean small everything. Sometimes one generously sized piece is exactly what stops a space feeling apologetic. Here, the pendant gives your eye somewhere to go above the furniture, and its warm tone works with the olive and timber beautifully. Just keep an eye on the drop; we want a statement, not something you have to duck under.

And I think we can safely say we’ve “jazzed up” this space. We haven’t changed the layout or started again with every finish, but switching a few key pieces has completely changed how the room feels. The sofas bring colour, the rug pulls the seating together, and the pendant adds a little drama. It’s still her front room, just warmer, more considered and somewhere she can finally enjoy sitting down. Hopefully without lying awake thinking about sofas.

→ If you need a 1-to-1 session, email me to ask about my virtual consultations. I’m about to open up the final slots of the year.

Who’s next?

Thanks for being a part of my little newsletter community and remember you can send in your space for some home truths! Safe space.

(by submitting your space for consideration, you agree that any images shared may be featured within the newsletter and across associated social media platforms.)