Homemade Home – the challenge triples!!

I posted a while back about how I’m trying to furnish (and decorate – naturally!) our new home near college with all recycled, homemade and second hand items. This is partly because I like the look of mismatched old items with a history (so nothing virtuous about that!) and partly because visiting a landfill site as a Biology student has left me permanently scarred. There’s also a bit of being keen on giving charity shops a boost and finally because I’m pretty cheap and don’t want to spend £100 on a table when I can spend £10. 

The original plan for college was to move into a two bed flat so I could have a study in the second bedroom. This was quite the lap of luxury as we’ve never lived in anything but a one bed. Though a lovely one bed it is. Since being broken into my priorities have changed a bit with houses. Double glazing and sturdy locks have shot to the top of the list so the new build flat was just fine (if a l little cosy!)

I had only just finished figuring out how to get the maximum out of the space and re acclimatize my herb plants to the indoors when a call came from college asking me to come and look at another house that had unexpectedly become available. This one is owned by them so living there would save a huge amount of hassle with a commercial landlord and agent (hurrah for THAT!) AND it had three bedrooms and, drum roll please, a courtyard garden. 

Now none of these things are essential and I really haven’t earned it in any way so I feel a bit jammy really. Jammy and bloomin’ giddy! I’m anticipating a busy and demanding time at college and to have a guaranteed home for three years where I can sip a martini and stare adoringly at my blackcurrant bush in my own garden is HEAVEN. Pure HEAVEN.

This has raised some exciting conundrums about decorating though. I now have a lot more space to fill and the place is totally unfurnished. A call round is being made for any unwanted furniture at the college from students who are moving on (that eclectic taste comes into its own again…!) and rather than a couple of rooms to think about I have a whole range of decisions to make. Just think of the many uses for old jam jars that I can concoct in a PROPER house! With stairs and everything!!

First things first it’s onto the sewing machine to make some new cushion covers and bunting (have we had enough bunting this weekend?! Nah!) and then it’s charity shopping galore. Yesterday uncovered a brilliant set of mini shelves that I’ve painted and am going to put jam jars on (see!?) full of stationary essentials and old school reference books. And that only cost £3.50, took half an hour to collect on foot and attracted only some odd looks from people in Starbucks when we stopped for coffee with our furniture. No worries eh? 

The quest for cheap furniture require a high embarrassment threshold!