Since lockdown, we've realised the importance of making our living space work for us as a family.
We live in a privately rented home, and although there are lots of things we love about it - the truth is, it simply isn't big enough for a family of five. When we moved in, we were a family of 3 and although it was easy enough to muddle along when the children were babies - we've really started to notice how cramped it feels now.
However, as we're currently trying to save toward buying a home - we don't feel that the time for moving house is right. It would cost us thousands of pounds in estate agent fees and removals, which is money that could go toward our savings pot - so instead we've decided to stick it out here for a few more years if we can. But in order to do that, we need to seriously reassess how we use our living space to make sure we're making the most out of it.
With that in mind, we've got a few little overhauls planned for the coming months. Beginning with what I feel is the most important room in any family home - the living room!
Last year we worked with a brand who gifted us a beautiful Chesterfield sofa, but unfortunately as the kids are getting older it just isn't really suitable for us anymore. It only comfortably seats 2 people, and as a family of 5 who had previously been used to having a large corner sofa - we've really missed having a big couch for all of us to cuddle up together on for movie nights.
So I've ordered a new corner sofa which is due to be delivered at the end of this week. I spent a lot of time looking for the right one, and eventually decided on the Kinley sofa from Wayfair - it's the perfect size for the living room, in exactly the color and style I wanted.
I had been tempted to go for something in dusky pink, but I decided it best to stick with something more neutral - our previous sofa was teal and although I loved it at first, I soon grew tired of it! With a neutral color sofa, I can change the color scheme of the room simply by changing the accessories - a much more sensible option for someone like myself who tends to get bored quickly.
We've refreshed the paint and kept to the light rain color we originally had, and have decided to add a new rug to brighten the place up. I would LOVE to get new Carpets as I've seen some really beautiful ones but that's outside of our remit as tenants unfortunately so I'll have to wait until we move.
We've also decided to add some new corner shelving and a bookcase, as I'm fed up of storing our books in piles all around the bedroom - they need a permanent home!
The final touch will be a bit of greenery, as this is something I think we'd really benefit from having more of in the house - I'm thinking a nice hanging plant like this one in the corner of the room will be ideal.
It can be tricky to achieve home makeovers in a rented property, as you're obviously limited in the changes you can make but I feel confident that we've come up with some plans that will help make things flow a bit more smoothly around here.
Next month we're going to focus on turning our back room (which is currently what we refer to as "the playroom" but is more of a dumping ground for toys and stuff!) into a Kids Zone - there'll be a sofa, a little chill out area, an art display wall, book shelves, and enough toy storage to comfortably house EVERYTHING in one place.
Following on from that, we plan to turn our downstairs cellar area into a bit of a Man Cave for Jon to use as his space for his painting hobby and business. Currently the area is used for storage, but its housing all sorts of things that we no longer have any need for such as old cots and pushchairs - so a proper clear out should enable us to use the space more wisely.
I'll be sure to blog about our progress as we go, wish us luck!
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