How to make your new-build home look and feel like the show home, whilst creating a practical and homely space to love and live in.
If you are lucky enough to have bought or are thinking about buying a new build, it’s an exciting opportunity to have a fresh, clean, new space to work with, where no one else has lived before, and hasn’t already put their personal stamp on the property. With a shiny brand-new home, you are in the unique position of starting with a blank canvas; with endless possibilities to create a wonderful home to enjoy for many years.
But, this can be daunting, as there are SO many choices to make, because every single room in your new house is empty and void of any character. Most new builds are a ‘white box’ inside, (or magnolia if your developer has chosen that ‘white wash’ colour pallet to start you off with!?); and when you visit the show-home to decide on your purchase, they are usually decorated to a high standard with beautiful objet and luxe interior features. So, when it comes to kitting out your own new build, it can sometimes be a minefield of ‘where to start’?
Where to start?
So, when it comes to kitting out your own new build, it can sometimes be a bit of a minefield. Even with beautifully designed kitchens like this one from Hill Housing Development.
You may also notice something else about show-homes; they are rather aspirational and not quite how the majority of us live in reality. There are often no televisions in any of the rooms, or, more importantly, storage solutions. If you’re a family moving in with a lot of ‘stuff’, then you will soon feel frustrated that your beautiful new home, isn’t quite working for you when you first move in. You are longing to achieve that ‘show home’ look that you enjoyed browsing around when you signed on the dotted line… but the collection of Playmobil and Lego has destroyed your dreams of the perfectly tidy snug…!
The secret to creating the show-home look whilst still maintaining a practical family home that is lived in, rather than for browsing purposes only, is to think smart and get the right storage. It doesn’t have to be ‘ugly / boring’ storage, it can be beautiful! You might chose bespoke pieces, built by your local carpenter, or something beautiful you found in a second hand shop, or upcycled from marketplace. And remember, there has to be areas of the home that are your ‘dumping areas’, where you simply can’t avoid having to have ‘bits and bobs’ the family needs access to.
Organising that ‘dumping area’
It’s a good idea to keep the ‘dumping’ areas away from the entrance to your new home, especially when your visitors come to admire your fabulous new place; you want to wow them when they walk through the door, not show them letters from school about Sports Day arrangements, or your latest gas bill. If you are fortunate enough to have a house with a study, that is your perfect hideaway for family admin, but even then, let’s keep it tidy!
(Picture from Town and Country Living)
If you have a utility or back door area, try to keep all muddy boots and coats at that end of the house. If you have to keep them in the entrance to the home, hallway storage is important to get right so you can either hide or display your coats and shoes without it looking cluttered upon entry. You will walk in and enjoy your house rather than frown at the ‘stuff’.
Once you’ve nailed your storage solutions, it’s time to think about some really fun stuff; wall colours and window treatments, accessories and lighting. They say you should live in a house for at least a year before you decide what colour schemes to have in each room; and there is also the practical element to this – new builds are built with TONS of water and all that water has to evaporate out of the building before you can decorate the walls. The construction needs to settle and the plaster needs to ‘go off’ completely before you add your favourite, and in some cases, expensive paint or wallpaper. So, wait a while before you decorate and give yourselves time to really think about the look and feel you wish to achieve.
We designed the lounge and dining space in this beautiful modern family home in Cambridge
This is where Mabel Fox can help you, as we have many other fabulous clients – we can visit you in your new home and discuss your project in great detail. We then help you develop your ideas and wishes into a reality. Together with our passion and expertise, we can help you turn your ‘white box’ into a luxurious space you will be proud of, even with the toys and piles of washing! We specialise in helping families create calm and happy places where everyone can enjoy the space, using little tips and tricks that you may or may not have thought about, and we don’t cost as you may think an interior design agency costs, we can save you a lot of time (and money) by helping you get it right in the first place.
From ‘boring box’, to ‘Wow factor!’ in a few carefully thought-out steps! Give us a call and let’s have a chat…
(BTW - if you’ve managed to unpack all your boxes within the first year of moving into a new house, you win a prize! I’ve never met anyone who has achieved this in all the years we’ve been working with homeowners after moving! Although, they say, if you haven’t unpacked that box after 2 years, you don’t need what’s inside and should get rid of it!)
PS. Happy moving day!