Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Property/DIY

Join our Property forum for renovation, DIY, and house selling advice.

Flip

Original poster

How to make new house a home?

24 replies

Wrecked123 · 08/05/2022 09:53

We have just bought an old and unloved house and frankly non of us like it much. We have left our cosy terrace and moved rurally and although I absolutely know that with energy and love and a lot of work and money, it will become a beautiful home one day. In the short term I need some ideas for how to make it cosier and lovely for the children (who want to go back home).

We have work to do that means we can’t carpet it - can anyone recommend large cosy rugs we could buy in the mean time? Even for long term?

I think we need to have some friends over and make some happy memories. But it’s a new area for us!

need a bit of a handhold please and some ideas and tips

OP posts:

ThorFull · 08/05/2022 09:59

I have a lovely ikea rug. It’s very deep pile, pale and speckled with black. It’s huge and the kids love lying on it.
when we moved I put it in my bedroom and bought a new prettier, but thinner rug for the living room which they both hated. its back downstairs and living room feels lovely again.
House plants bring a lovely vibe to any room.

Geneticsbunny · 08/05/2022 10:01

Get some pictures up and buy a few big house plants. They will make it feel homely quickly. If you are redecorating then you could spend a day drawing on the old walls with felt tips. We did our house like a jungle with tigers and flowers and the kids loved it. Local Facebook is good for carpet offcuts which can make quite good rugs. Or designer carpets sella off its and will hem them to make them into rugs.

Original poster

Wrecked123 · 08/05/2022 10:02

Oh that’s an excellent idea. I could get one for each of the kids rooms. Thank you!

OP posts:

Original poster

Wrecked123 · 08/05/2022 10:03

Really good idea to draw on the walls. My children will love this! Personalise it and make it their own.

thank you!

OP posts:

Original poster

Wrecked123 · 08/05/2022 10:04

I hadn’t thought of carpet off cuts turned into rugs. Thanks again

OP posts:

AntsAntsAntsAnts · 08/05/2022 10:05

I think this is quite common. 2.5 years ago we left our beautiful remodelled terrace for a large detached relic. It took us all ages to settle, especially as the first year was a building site. I would recommend getting just one room sorted, and keeping it as a sanctuary. That makes a huge difference. I’d also prioritise decorating and finishing the kids’ rooms. Other than that it just takes time. This time of year is better to settle somewhere than winter though.

Original poster

Wrecked123 · 08/05/2022 10:09

Very true! Need to sort wood burning stoves as a priority for the winter - feels like it’s coming very fast. Everything takes so long to organise.

yes, thank you. Will focus on children’s bedrooms and also a cosy living room.

im sure it’ll take a few years to settle but I really don’t want to regret the upheaval on behalf of the children

OP posts:

CrapBucket · 08/05/2022 10:10

Plants, salt lamps, and fairy lights are all instant, cosy and not too expensive - plus you can still use them even when your renovations are done.

But yes definitely have some enthusiastic friends over who can be trusted to say the right things in front of the DC. About what's great NOW not 'I bet you can't wait until its nicer'. So - what an amazing view, oh your room is such a nice shape, I love your cupboard under the stairs, this tree is perfect for climbing, etc.

Also - get said friends to take a nice family photo of you in your new home, and get it on display ASAP.

Good luck, you will be settled before long x

Original poster

Wrecked123 · 08/05/2022 10:14

Such kind and generous replies with really good ideas. Thank you all very much

OP posts:

Jurassicparkinajug · 08/05/2022 10:22

Soft furnishings- rugs, throws and cushions all make somewhere seem cosier.
Can you pop some photos up of you all? You need ti personalise it and make it your home. Perhaps do a photo wall and get the kids to help chose which photos they want up.
Also warm lighting for the evenings although obviously it's light at the moment but lighting a room with a warm lamp is so much cosier. You can light some nice scented candles too maybe. Give it time. In a few months you could be loving the place😀

TheLadyDIdGood · 08/05/2022 10:22

I've bought some lovely cushions during the Christmas sales from John Lewis, Matalan, Wilko, craft shop in Bil's village & Wilko. Also, got loads of inexpensive house plants from supermarkets and a mirror from TK Maxx. Then bought loads of cheap IKEA frames and displayed all my arty post cards in them.

Ribb · 08/05/2022 10:56

We did this a year ago. I was able to get DS room habitable whilst the rest of the house was a tip.

Had big cheap rugs everywhere whilst waited for proper carpet and have only just removed rugs from dining area after 14 months.
Plenty of snacks in the cupboard and also plenty of toy storage helped win over DS. A few of your favourite things dotted around can hopefully make things feel familiar. If you've moved to somewhere with lots more space then having a few things you couldn't have in last home is also a reminder of the good times to come. This period will only be small in comparison to the enjoyment phase. Embrace the exciting journey and good luck!

TheLadyDIdGood · 08/05/2022 11:10

Also, look in charity shops, skips, free cycle and gum tree for inexpensive items that people are getting rid of. My bil sometimes drives around affluent areas in west London skip diving! He's picked up some really good, expensive items that people were dumping because they were buying brand new!

Mintyt · 08/05/2022 13:03

You will be ok because you sound very positive and excited, when I moved to a wreck I put sky tv in each bedroom as a bribe took a while but we settled in

CrapBucket · 08/05/2022 17:02

Oh yes, snacks is important- lots of cookies and milk

Roselilly36 · 08/05/2022 17:11

You need to find your creature comforts, could be as simple as bread from a local bakery. When you move from the familiar, to the unfamiliar, you need to take time. It will soon feel like home. Good luck.

Original poster

Wrecked123 · 08/05/2022 19:01

Thank you everyone for such kind messages and brilliant ideas. Sometimes I can be a bit slow to think of these kinds of things. Much appreciated

OP posts:

parietal · 08/05/2022 21:09

if you have big blank walls, buy a calendar with arty pictures that you like, cut them out & put them in clip frames. Or even glue a set of 4 calendar pictures to hang from a thin wooden baton & hang from the wall. quick & cheap way to decorate.

one of my kids is obsessed with animals so we cut lots of animals out from calendars & glued them on the bedroom walls - makes a great jungle scene and if you are going to redecorate in a few years, it doesn't matter if it is a bit of a mess.

JennyJumpup · 08/05/2022 23:11

Start having fun in that house. And get a dog if you don't already have one! And a cat!You'll need a cat if you're rural anyway to keep the mice down.
Are you a musical family? Get a big piano and start making some noise. Remind everyone in the family that you have real privacy now and no-one can hear you.
Summer is coming—that calls for campfires in the back garden and sittig around it cooking hotdogs/potatoes/toasted marshmallows.

Dillidilly · 09/05/2022 19:57

We've moved 4 times with children (all adults now).
First step sounds obvious, but do a really deep clean. There's a huge psychological boost knowing your new house is clean to your standards (even though you will probably never clean it that well again lol). If money no object, pay a cleaning company.
Then I always prioritised the children's rooms. Firstly unpacking them properly, then decorating them first.
Then decorate the sitting room so you have somewhere nice to relax as a family.

Also, if you can afford it, I would paint the yet-to-be-renovated rooms white so they at least feel fresh. Then as PPs suggest with rugs, fairy lights, etc. This is doubly important as everything has a long lead time at the moment, so you don't want to be spending months/maybe years in depressing rooms.

BruceAndNosh · 09/05/2022 20:03

I have the Parker rug in blue from dunelm. It's lovely and great value at £159 for a big 200cm by 300cm size.
It's not thick but it's very soft for kids playing on the floor

Do nice things in this house that you "never did in the old house". Doesn't matter if it's only toasting marshmallows

TeacupDrama · 09/05/2022 20:18

you can sometimes pick up rugs for 10-15 at auctions they may not be fashionable or trendy but can add warmth lovely patterns that won't show marks from plaster dust and trades people
if your kids are the age to be making paintings themselves cover a bedroom wall with them also a few tester pots to make design on their walls ( just no really dark colours if you intend lighter walls etc
George at asda have big cushions for £10 ish

springsmiles · 10/05/2022 01:37

Agree some cheap furnishings, blankets, throws, fairy lights plants and rugs make such a difference.

We have lived in various states of a building site and I always make sure to still try and make it cosy.

Baking makes a house a home too I feel. Making the kitchen a place to have fun and memories

gluenotsoup · 10/05/2022 10:46

Yes, we felt like that too. We underestimated how long it would take for it to feel like home, and that just takes time and putting your own stamp on it in my experience. In the meantime- cosy cushions, rugs and blankets, a few houseplants, cheap flowers, fairy lights woven through things, photos, pictures and familiar possessions around you will help. Things like the kids pictures strung on the washing line things from IKEA look ok, B&M, IKEA, Dunelm are all good value. Ask the kids what they would like to do, and see if you can get it done. Create the feeling of home by doing stuff like movie nights and so on, mine just wanted to feel secure and cocooned at that stage. Also - distraction technique - can you get a pet? Even just a small one, a hamster or rabbit etc will help kids to feel excited about home.
Good luck - it will be lovely in time 💐

Flip