DIY · Home

5 Alternative Materials for Modern Home Renovation

Gone are the days when houses were all built using bricks and mortar – these days, there are MANY alternatives to the usual house building materials when embarking upon a home renovation. Many of these alternatives are much better for the enviromnment and some even go back to old fashioned methods which seem like they should have dissapeared long ago! With this in mind, I thought I’d take a look as some surprising materials that you can use when renovating or building your property:

GRP Grating

Some of the materials whioch people are now using in their homes were originally designed for more inductrial settings. GRP grating is a non slip flooring constructed from fibreglass, and is an ideal and cost effective alternative to traditional grating materials like wood, mild steel and stainless steel. It’s got many different uses and you could use it in many different ways when renovating your space.

shipping containers home renovation

Shipping Containers

Years ago, Husband and I say a programme on the TV where people were using shipping containers as the bones of their home and we loved the idea! Instead of needing to build from the ground up, shipping containers were placed on a foundation and bolted together, then made livable on the inside. I’ve since seen loads of people doing it and some companies even pre-fabricate them and deliver them ready to go. It’s super green too as you’re recycling old materials.

Bamboo

If you’ve spend any time on the internet in the last decade, there’s a good chance that you’ve seen those crazy videos of the builders using bamboo scaffolding to climb up and down huge buildings when on site. However, bamboo can be used for more than just scaffolding. Thanks to its composition, bamboo is extremely durable. It has no rays or knots, unlike wood, so it can withstand more stress and it’s also better suited to glueing than hardwood.

Straw Bales

Taking things back to several hundred years ago, lots of people are building eco homes using a combination of straw bales and lime plaster. The process can take a while and it’s not always cheaper if you’re paying someone else to do it as not many builders have the specific skills needed but the result is fantastic. The combination of materials is also a good insulator and is said to keep buildings warmer than your average building materials.

Wood

Although timber based homes are not commonplace in the United Kingdom anymore, their significance is again being realised. Those living in the large cities among the noise and pollution feel the need to spend a few days in a relaxed environment that will allow them to live a calm and healthy life. Wooden houses offer these advantages and accordingly there has been a growing demand for wooden houses in the UK as a second or holiday home.

Crafts · Family

Updating My Custom Doll House

Updating My Custom Doll House
This is a picture of the house halfway through being built.

You may remember that I posted some years ago now about the doll house that my Nan and Grandad built for me when I was a child, and how I planned to renovate it. Well, life well and truly got in the way and it has, unfortunately, lived in my mother-in-law’s loft since then. However, with the summer holidays getting close, I’ll have a lot more time on my hands and I’ve decided to make it a priority. Here are some of the things I plan to do:

Wallpaper

When I first started planning the renovation, I had thought about going to my local DIY superstore and getting sme wallpaper samples to use. However, it turns out that dolls house wallpaper is actually a thing! It can be bought by the sheet and is self-adhesive, with much smaller print which looks better on the little walls.

Floor Coverings

Most of the rooms are carpeted and in great condition, but on the surfaces which aren’t carpeted, I plan to use some really funky checkerboard floor tiles that I’ve seen. They’re perfect for a small floor and will give the whole house a nice updated look and I can’t wait to see what the finished effect will look like.

Roof Repairs

As I said in my old post, the roof tiles are individually cut out of a teracotta colours lino to look like the real thing. I don’t want to retile the while roof as that would be an enormous job, so I plan to find something which is as close to the original material as possible and patch the roof up where it needs it. I’m hoping to get it looking back to its original glory, but I’m nowhere near as skilled as my lovely Grandad, so I just hope I can do him justice.

Me with my doll house
Yes, that is tiny me!

Curtains

The curtains that my Nan made for the doll house are still pretty good, but the fabric is a little dated and could do with some modernisation. Thankfully, I’m fairly decent with a sewing machine and I can do a good job of updating all of the curtains and soft fabrics in the house. I’ll probably choose a fabric which co-oridinates with the new wallpaper so that it all goes well together.

Furniture

This is the one area where I may choose to outsource and buy replacements for the furniture, instead of attempting to make my own. Aside from having nowhere near the skill of my grandparents in this area, I don’t have the tools OR the space to do this type of work, so I’ll hit eBay, Facebook and maybe Freecycle to see if I can source a whole house worth of new furniture that way.

DIY · Home

Modern Renovation Ideas To Instantly Transform Your Home

Modern Renovation Ideas To Instantly Transform Your HomeWhen it comes to renovating your home, your main goal is likely to revive an outdated interior. While there are near endless options to consider as interior design is an exceptionally vast industry packed with ideas, you may not want to completely makeover your home. Therefore, if your goal is to make modern changes that will have a massive impact, you should consider these modern renovation ideas that will instantly transform your home. Sometimes, changing only one aspect of your home is enough to add vibrance and an entirely new atmosphere.

Lighting Choices That Stand Out

Suppose your home’s lighting choices showcase ordinary and bland bulbs or regular fittings that are almost unnoticeable. In that case, you may be pleasantly surprised to discover how much impact lighting choice can have to the look and atmosphere of a home. Rather than holding onto bland lighting designs, you should consider accent lighting fixtures such as charming chrome pendant lights that immediately draw glamorous attention to a room or neon filter lights which look like a modern art piece. There are tons of accent lighting fixtures to consider, so you may find it beneficial to scour lighting fixture retailers to find suitable complementary pieces to add to your home.

Install An Ethanol Fireplace

Ethanol fireplace options are the perfect alternative to traditional fireplace designs. If your budget doesn’t allow you to make drastic modifications required to install a traditional fireplace, you will be pleasantly surprised to discover that ethanol fireplaces are better solutions in various ways. While your choice of fireplace design should be determined according to aesthetics to ensure the home addition will serve as both a functional installation as well as a design element, this type of fireplace is also incredibly eco-friendly. Ethanol alternatives do not release harmful toxins in the home, rendering them significantly safer when compared to their traditional counterparts. There are tons of modern designs to consider, and the investment will be worth it in terms of comfort, visual design, and of course, functionality.

Luxury Wooden Flooring

If you are after a renovation idea that will instantly breathe new life into your home, replacing the flooring is a top option. There’s no doubt that old breading carpets are not doing any good for the value of your home, nor are they adding to your comfort. It’s time to finally rip out any outdated carpets and flooring and replace with luxury wooden flooring. By installing quality wooden flooring throughout your home, you will be able to enjoy the pleasant visuals of a uniform home that will enable you to decorate your home in a way that each rooms decor elements flow to the next. The impact the flooring of your home has on the overall look of your home will surprise you.

Accent Wall Designs

You may have never considered having an accent wall in your home, or the overall vibrance it can add to your living area. Creating an accent wall with elegant wallpaper, or even a bold coat of paint that varies from the other walls is also exceptionally affordable. However, it is best to avoid going overboard when it comes to adding an accent wall during renovation; the best locations are generally the living room area or the kitchen and dining area of a home.

Family · Happiness · Parenting

Extreme Makeover – Doll’s House Edition

Soon to be ‘Sausage’s House’

A few months ago, I wrote about my Nan and Grandad, Rene and John, and about the doll’s house they made for me from scratch. This is what I wrote:

“It was in this shed that Grandad made my doll’s house. This dolls house was better than any that I have ever, to this day, seen in a shop.

The walls were covered with brick-dust and individually pointed with white paint, each brick lovingly created by Grandad’s patient hand. The writers over at MetalSucks were extremely impressed.

Every room had an electric light with its own light switch, powered by a big battery compartment, hidden under the roof. The roof had individual tiles, cut out of a terracotta coloured lino. The rooms were carpeted and a proper staircase ran through the middle of the house. Then came Nanny Rene’s work, individually made curtains, duvets, light shades and linen, all in coordinating colours.

Continue reading “Extreme Makeover – Doll’s House Edition”