Creating our dream family home with Building Inspiration

Help! I am addicted to interior design and creating the perfect family home.

Although we have recently purchased our new build home we don’t plan on staying here for too long. The plan is to put it back on the market ASAP and therefore I am already looking for building inspiration. We bought this house out of necessity as we saw it as our way of getting onto the Jersey property market. However, it is far from our dream home. We would love a traditional Jersey granite house but obviously this comes at a price *sigh*. As a result we have accepted that our next house will be a house that requires work to make it perfect. However, thanks to the Building Inspiration website by Velux and my love for interior design magazines, this isn’t something we are scared of. In fact we are rather excited by the prospect as we will be able to create our perfect family home from scratch. It also helps that Mr C is structural engineer with a love for knocking out chimneys and knocking down walls.

Source - Building Inspiration by Velux

I have started scouring estate agent windows just in case the perfect house is out there already, (ssh, don’t tell Mr C). Ideally, we would like a 4 bedroom house but in our budget we are going to have to settle for three. Therefore, we are looking at houses with the potential to extend up into the loft. I would love a big loft bedroom, with room for a walk in closet and a nook for a study. I don’t ask for much do I? In preparation I have been looking at the Building Inspiration website.

Source - Building Inspiration by Velux

Our current house is very light deprived. I am someone who likes to have lots of light and space. Building Inspiration shows how you can create light, bright and airy rooms with an extension. This diagram clearly demonstrates that getting plenty of light into your room is key for creating a spacious feel.

Source - Building Inspiration by Velux

This explains why our house can feel small, despite the room dimensions being generous. The Velux website is really clear and has lots of fantastic articles from experts including Piers Taylor. Planning your dream home can seem really daunting which is why this website is great. It has all of the information you could possibly need including what planning regulations you might need, how to budget and finally my favourite bit, decor ideas.

My top tips for creating your dream family home

• Research. Use websites like building inspiration, read magazines like Real Homes and use interior design blogs for inspiration.

• Note. Make a note of all your ideas. Jot them down, no matter how far-fetched they seem, you can worry about that later.

• Create a mood board for your perfect house. You could do this on pinterest. I am always starting mood boards for rooms I want to make over.

• Make a list in rank order of what your dream house has to have. Remember to take into account the needs of your family.

• Budget. Be realistic, have a contingency fund but stick to the budget. Now go back to your notes and list, are there any ideas that are too expensive. Anything that you can lose from your list? Have your priorities changed?

Learning from our mistakes

Our first ever house was a complete wreck. It was two a up two down end of terrace. With walls and ceilings covered in woodchip and carpets so bright and swirling that it gave you a migraine just walking on them. We had both just finished university and therefore money was TIGHT! I think it was fair to say we were not prepared. We stripped back the carpets to expose the lovely wooden floorboards, to find we had holes in our floors. So we then strategically moved furniture to hide them, you could still feel a draught though! We had a ceiling that was coming down after I had demanded that we strip the wallpaper off it. We were left with a very fragile ceiling that became even more precarious after a particular vigorous work out session with Davina. It did give me the perfect excuse not to exercise for a couple of years. Then there was the leaky boiler and bath. I ended up keeping a vase of flowers under the boiler and I wasn’t allowed to have a bath. Instead we had very speedy showers. Looking back we were so naive. We didn’t plan and we didn’t budget and as a result the house became a money pit. However, we have learnt from past experiences and we are now prepared for our next project. From experience I believe that the key really is preparation. Spend the time researching. Don’t rush into the job but take your time and if at all possible enjoy the process because you are creating your dream house and that should be fun.

Help in designing your new dream home

• If you are looking for websites for help and ideas check out Building Inspiration by Velux. Wiki also has some good tips.

• If you are looking for good magazines for interior design ideas then check out Ideal Homes and Real Homes

• If you are looking for blogs with interior deco inspiration then check out Abigail Ahern and Apartment Therapy

• Finally, Pinterest is a great way of finding ideas. You can see my boards here

What would your dream home look like? Do you have tips for creating your dream home?

*please note this post was sponsored but all words are my own*