The Lived in
Blog.

How is it September already?! The temperature has definitely dropped, the sun is lower in the sky and the nights are getting darker. It feels like it is time to get the throws back out and get all cosy again at home. I love the start of a new season, to see all of the wonderful new and beautiful homeware coming into the shops. I’ve noticed lots of reds this autumn, not just in homeware but fashion too. I think it's definitely going to be big this season along with other rich colours like plum and burgundy that will make your home feel cosy. On my look out for all things autumnal, I wanted to share my favourite pieces with you.

If you’re searching for a new bed and you’re lacking storage in your bedroom, an ottoman bed could just be the solution that you’re looking for. With hidden storage to store anything anyway, whether that's suitcases, shoes, bedding, or, like me, all your summer clothes, they are the perfect bedroom storage solution. With this being said, it can be tricky to find an ottoman bed that is as beautiful as it is practical. That’s why I’ve done a roundup of my top 10 ottoman beds, and the best bit is that one of them is under £350! 

You know that you want to make changes to your home but after gathering lots of inspiration, you’re now feeling stuck. You don’t know where to begin and the overwhelm has set in. Sound familiar? You’re not alone. This is how so many of our customers feel before asking us for help and gaining us as their new design friends.

Whether you’re making changes to one room or tackling a large renovation, it can feel like you have a mountain of decisions to make and before you know it you have serious design fatigue. Well the good news is we're here to make your project FUN again! If you’re wondering why you should hire us as your interior designers, we’re laying down the facts and giving you an insight into why our customers choose us. 

I have recently decorated my home office, and now I’m on the hunt for a sofa bed. I have searched endlessly, as the sofa bed I’m looking for needs to be a certain size, fabric, and colour. On my quest to find the perfect sofa bed for my home office, I've discovered some beautiful sofa beds that I wanted to share. From sofa beds with pull-out mattresses to storage sofa beds, chairs, and footstools, yes, I really have trawled the web! To save you time, I have a roundup of my top 10 sofa beds from well-known high street brands.

In the lead up to moving into my new home, I knew one of the first rooms I wanted to tackle was the downstairs loo. I eventually want to make changes to all the rooms in my home to make it feel like mine, and as an interior designer, of course I find it hard to wait! Though it's the smallest room in the house, a downstairs loo is a fabulous place where you can be bold with your decor. You can go for something a little unexpected that creates a pleasant surprise for your guests. One thing I did need to bear in mind was budget. I knew that I didn’t want to spend lots of money on the downstairs loo, so I needed to think about how I could make the most of what I had.

Open plan rooms have grown increasingly popular over the years and usually become the hub of the family home. When working with customers who need help designing their open plan room, a question they usually ask is, ‘How do I create a flow?’. This is an important factor to consider for open plan rooms because having a flow will create a cohesive and well designed space. We’re sharing with you our interior tips and tricks so you can create an open plan that flows beautifully.

When you're designing an open plan room, there are so many things to think about, and it can become overwhelming with all of the decisions you need to make. We have a great community on our Facebook group where you can share your design dilemmas. We asked our members to share their open plan room questions so that we could answer them here on our blog. We've had so many great questions, which I have loved answering! Read on to see our members design dilemmas for their open plan rooms, it might just help you with yours.

Is a kitchen island right for me? This is a big question that comes up often when we help customers with their open plan kitchens. I’m sharing a few key points that you should consider before you commit to a kitchen island to help you avoid making any costly design mistakes.

Summer seems pretty much nonexistent at the moment (please come out soon, sun!!). Even though we’re waiting for warmer and sunnier days, it doesn’t mean you can’t brighten up your home. While designing for our customers, we have found so many beautiful summer inspired interior finds that we just had to share them with you. If you’re wanting to give your home a little summer update, check out these great homeware pieces we have discovered. Whether you're on the hunt for something colourful and bold or light and airy, there is something you’re sure to love.

At The Living House, we’ve been designing open plan rooms for years now and understand what works and what doesn’t. Each open plan room can be completely different and needs to work in multiple ways depending on your lifestyle, however, there are some rules we like to follow for the open plan spaces we design. We’re sharing with you five rules we use when designing an open plan room for our customers.

At The Living House, we have over 30 years of experience between us, and like many other designers, there are things that we would never do when designing our own homes and our customers'. Of course, interior design shouldn’t be about strict and rigid rules, we feel our homes should reflect our lifestyle and personality. However, there are some interior decisions we stand by at The Living House that we would love to share with you.

If you’re a fan of the hit Netflix show Dream Home Makeover, you might have heard of the term transitional. It has become increasingly popular and is a much loved style by our customers and us! If you’re looking for a relaxed, lived-in feel that uses traditional and modern pieces together, then read on, because you’re going to absolutely love the transitional interior design style.

To inspire you I have a roundup of my favourite outdoor pieces from well-known high street brands. There’s bags of inspiration here with my favourite finds so that you can make the most of your garden. Throw open those doors and get started on creating a beautiful outdoor space that your neighbours will envy and you will enjoy all summer long!

At The Living House, we love to discover sustainable brands when designing for our customers. We are often asked by our customers to design their rooms with sustainability in mind. This can range from finding pre-loved furniture on Facebook Marketplace to eco-friendly paint and sofa fabrics.

We can shop from anywhere, so if caring for our planet is high on your agenda too, we have shared five of our favourite sustainable brands.

Designing a kids shared bedroom can be a tricky task. You want both of your children to love it and feel like they have their own space, but most importantly, it needs to be practical too. An important factor when designing your children’s shared bedroom is that you want it to be fair, with each child having an equal amount of space to call their ‘own’ and showcasing both of their personalities. We’ve shared our top 5 interior design tips to inspire you when designing your kids' shared bedroom.

When designing a kid's bedroom, you want it to last for years to come and have longevity. We know that children go through many phases, from liking dinosaurs one minute to football the next. As they grow and go through different likes and dislikes, it’s impossible to constantly make changes to their bedroom. We’re sharing our tips to design a kids bedroom that will last for years to come and grow with them.

When designing your home, it should be all about your family, and of course, that means your furry friends too! Your pets are an important part of your home, and we wouldn't be without them, but before you know it, your sofa can become a scratching post and your rug can be covered in mucky paw prints. After years of designing for families with pets and having two dogs and three cats within The Living House team, we know what is going to stand the test of time.

We’re sharing with you our 10 top tips so that you can have a beautiful family home that works for you and your pets!

When designing a kid's bedroom, it can be tricky to know where to start and what style to go for. You may have scrolled through Pinterest and found lots of inspiration, but you’re still on the lookout for something a bit more magical and different. I've selected 10 kid bedrooms that I've discovered on Pinterest, which I think are truly wonderful, and that will inspire you.

At last, the sun is starting to shine, the dark evenings are fading, and the flowers are starting to bloom. I’m delighted that spring is just around the corner, and I have already been on the lookout for some beautiful spring inspired interior finds.

Kids bedrooms are usually the smallest room in the home, which can come with some challenges. You want to maximise the storage space because of the never ending toys, but the room is small, which leaves you wondering how you are going to fit everything in while still creating a cool and fun bedroom your child will love.

With some clever storage ideas, multifunctional furniture, interesting paint techniques, and much more, you can make the most of every inch of space in your kid's small bedroom. We’ve shared 10 of our top tips to help you design your kid's small bedroom.