Chic & Cheerful’s 6 Ways To Revamp Your Bedroom Without Breaking The Bank

If you are anything like me and you bored of your bedroom quickly but you don’t want to break the bank by redecorating each time you get fed up then this list may help you out.

There are simple ways of giving your bedroom a refreshing change without costing you a fortune. Here is my ‘Top 6 Ways To Revamp Your Bedroom Without Breaking The Bank’.

1.       Rearrange  Your Furniture

This is something I loved to do with my bedroom when I was small and it drove my poor mother insane! I loved rearranging everything in my room to make it feel like new and even now I think that it is a really effective way to revamp your room at no cost. It can also make your room function a little better, making it a more peaceful space to be in.

2.       Paint Your Furniture

It is so easy to breathe new life into your bedroom by simply painting your furniture. This is really on trend on the moment and for good reason, it is so simple and easy to do – if I can do it anyone can!! So many shops are now stocking various brands of chalk paint or egg shell finish which can be easily used for a revamp project. For the price of a small tin of paint you can have a brand new piece of furniture and leaves your room feeling fresh and clean.

3.       DIY Skills – Get Crafting

Again, this is so easy to do, it can look really intimidating but creating art work and crafts for your bedroom is so simple. Step by step decoupage kits can be picked up at most local craft shops, there are tons of YouTube videos available to show you want to do if you feel you need help, as well as blogs (like Chic & Cheerful) which can give you lots of tips.

You can also create fabulous wall art by getting personal photographs printed onto canvas in local photography shops or online, or by framing pictures yourself like postcards, quotes or famous photography.

4.       Spring Clean

This is the easiest and cheapest way to revamp your bedroom – as it is free! I love nothing more than getting some black sacks out and doing a big clear out and declutter of my bedroom. I feel like it is good for your soul and I always find that I sleep better after I do a really good spring clean. It is also a really good way to give back and do some good by donating unwanted clothes and trinkets to your local charity shops.

5.       Purchase Some New Soft Furnishings

Buying yourself a new duvet cover, curtains or some cushions will make your bedroom feel fresh and new without breaking the bank. Keep an eye out for sales in designer shops or take a trip to your local Penneys, IKEA or TK Maxx and pick up a bargain there. A new print or colour can really change the feel of your bedroom and gives your room a new look.

6.       Lighting – Setting A Scene

Purchasing a new lamp for your side table, a new pendent light or even a few new scented candles can create a new feeling in your bedroom that make you want to lay down and relax. Personally I love having a selection of scented candle in my bedroom as I find it so relaxing to have a gorgeous scent in my room throughout out the day and when blown out it leaves behind a calming scent that I always find helps me sleep.

That is just my Top 6 tips on a budget, but there are so many more things that you can do to revamp your bedroom without breaking the bank, just don’t be afraid to get messy and think outside the box.

Enjoy!

Building The Dream - Design

When the opportunity to build our first home together came to us we were blown away with the amazing opportunity we had and quickly became extremely excited with all the ideas of what we could do – and some were ridiculous when we look back on it now e.g. a passive house with a basement which we presumed would only cost €150k…. then reality hit us with a slap in the face!!

We didn’t have anyone in our circle of friends or family who had built a house before so we weren’t really sure as to how to go about designing a house, but I think we did a good job considering and here are a few tips that I have picked up along the way.

Go Snooping

We always had an idea of what we wanted the inside of our house to look like but we were really unsure of what we wanted the outside to be. We found ourselves driving around lovely housing estates looking at houses to find some inspiration. We actually found a house in Glasnevin that we both loved the shape of and took a sneaky picture of it to pass on to our architect at the time and we got it copied and drawn up in our plans.

Like It, List It

We sat down together and talked about what we both really wanted from our home and what we thought we would need from the house in the future as we want this house to be a home for life - I am not going through all this again!! We both wanted an open plan living area, the master bedroom in the attic and three double bedrooms. Unfortunately, the four bedrooms didn’t work out as the attic roof was designed too low so we have lost a bedroom and the open plan living area wasn’t as big as we had hoped for, but we’ve gotten over it and its worked out perfect for our budget and our needs.

Become A Pinterest Addict

I am well and truly a Pinterest addict if you have not guessed yet! Going through Pinterest and finding pins that reflect the home you would love is a great way of finding inspiration when designing. I found the style of kitchen we were looking for so we could show it to our kitchen designer and our style of bathroom that we could show our builder and get quoted and designs for both.

Ask Around

I decided to ask family and friends if they would have anything in their house what would it be. My mam was a great help in this, she gave me some great ideas like having lots of storage or having a large utility room. It was great to get ideas from home owners on if there were given this opportunity what would they do.

Become A Couch Potato

I absolutely love watching home shows on TV, Grand Designs, Room To Improve, Love It or List It…. I just can’t get enough of them and they are great for finding inspiration. Shows like these also help you realise the pit falls of building and that the worst really can happen.

Use and Abuse

Show Homes, restaurants, hotels and offices pay for interior designers to kit out their spaces so they are great places to find some inspiration so visit as many as you can to use the design available. I spent lots of time going to show houses to get different ideas on how to design a house and to also get some interior design ideas.

Finally…..

Go to Chic & Cheerful’s blogs, Facebook page and Instagram account to find lots of tips, tricks and inspiration.

DANU Designer Ceramics

Former NCAD student Ruth Power is the design maker behind the fabulous company DANU Designer Ceramics which specialises in handcrafted, designer ceramic homewares based in her studio in Dublin.

Ruth says that her brand DANU Designer Ceramics is organic yet refined and displays urban and rustic settings which have been inspired by her travels, nature and wanderlust.  

The name DANU steams from the ancient Celtic Goddess of earth and creativity, and the Hindu Goddess of water. These are what Ruth says are the three elements that are required for the creation of ceramics. The Irish and Asian elements also an influence on the pieces that Ruth creates in regards to pattern, colour, shape, design and function. Ruth says every piece she creates has its own story. And I just think that every piece is just simply beautiful.

Here are a few pieces that stood out to me and just think are simply stunning. I love the colours used, and the simple print and shape of the pieces. A truly beautiful piece of homemade Irish artwork. 

These ceramics are stunning, handcrafted pieces of art that you can welcome into your home. Artwork you will cherish forever.  

These pieces can be purchased on Etsy.com. But also make sure to look out for Ruth’s Facebook page for up and coming pieces.

My House of Prints

Based in South West London these absolutely stunning artwork is created by My House of Print in their home studio.

This company offers beautiful personalised prints with thoughtful and creative hand crafted features. This new company is providing top quality service with a personal touch.

These amazing prints can be purchased through their website www.myhouseofprint.com and here is a small taste of what they offer....and they are STUNNING!!!

Personalised New Home Print

I would absolutely love to have the gorgeous print to welcome me to my new house next year and to mark the occasion. This personalised gift is £32 and marks a memory forever. A great gift for family and friends - hint hint to mine LOL!! 

Box Frame Animal Prints

I think that these prints are just stunning and would make a child’s bedroom or nursery so stylish!! These prints come in a Zebra, Elephant, Tiger or Giraffe (along with their party hats) for £34. And at the moment there a special offer for 3 prints for £99 – which is especially great because it is so hard to just pick one print because they are all stunning. This is a gift that your child or family member will cherish for life.

Ps. I don’t have a baby, but I would still put these in my house as I think they are amazing pieces of funky artwork!! Not just for kids! 

Make sure you look out for My House of Prints on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram to see more shots of their amazing work!!

Chic & Cheerful Review: Olivia Rose Ireland

If you follow my Facebook page or Instagram you may have seen last weekend that I received two absolutely gorgeous candles by a new brand called ‘Olivia Rose Ireland’.

These handmade candles smell amazing, I got ‘Midsummer’s Night’ and ‘Blackberry Sage’ – I can’t decide which one I love more, the warm musk of Midsummer’s Night or the sweetness of Blackberry Sage.  They are handmade in Ireland with all natural products.

I met Eddie the creator of Olivia Rose Ireland last weekend and he told me all about the background story of how the brand came about. Basically he was sent on a shopping trip by his wife to pick up a candle in town and when he found the candle seen that it was €30 he called her to ask if this was a mistake which he was told it was not. He decided to he wasn’t spending that kind of money on a candle, he would make his own!! And thankfully he did as they are really special!!  

There is a range of sizes available at very reasonable prices. The sizes are:

4.5oz (30-35 hours burning) €8

5.5oz (35-40 hours burning) €10

7oz (45-48 hours burning) €12

They have great burning on them and the scent travels so well throughout the house – I can smell it from the second I walk in the front door. Even unlit the candles give away a beautiful subtle scent.

Fragrances Available:

-          Pink Sugar

-          White Tea & Ginger

-          Midsummer’s Night

-          Vanilla Spice

-          Baby Cuddles

-          Blackberry Sage

-          Sea Breeze

-          Ylang Ylang

-          Strawberries & Cream

Something to please everyone!

 If you are interested in picking up a candle of your own you can purchase through Olivia Rose’s Facebook page, Top to Toe on Aughrim Street in Dublin 7, Allied Home Interiors in Finglas in Dublin 11 and Olivia Rose will also have a stall in Red Stables Market in St. Anne’s Park in Dublin 3 soon so keep an eye out on their Facebook page for more details.

I couldn’t recommend these more, they are my absolute favourite candles at the moment and I cannot wait to try out their new scent ‘Coconut & Lime’ when it is released. 

D.I.Y Corner: Simple & Easy Furniture Revamp

It is so easy to breathe new life into your home by simply painting your furniture. 
This is really on trend on the moment and for good reason, it is so simple and easy to do – if I can do it anyone can!! So many shops are now stocking various brands of chalk paint or egg shell finish which can be used for a revamp project. For the price of a small tin of paint you can have a brand new piece of furniture and it leaves your room feeling fresh and new.

IKEA Bedroom Furniture Lightened & Brightened

I had the full range of ‘Edland’ IKEA furniture in my bedroom and although I loved the original colour after a few years I felt that it was a bit dark in my small bedroom and I really wanted a change. I decided to use Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in ‘Paris Grey’ and finished off with a light coat of Annie Sloan light wax. I love working with Annie Sloan Paint, it’s beautifully fluid and for a messy painter like me it is perfect as it easily wipes away if you paint anything you weren’t meant to (like the floors, tiles or even your hair if you are like me!). This paint really transformed my furniture and in turn brightened and lightened my bedroom.

Giving Life To An Old Rocking Chair

I purchased this rocking chair on Adverts.ie with the purpose of making a D.I.Y project of it. I decided to step outside my comfort zone colour scheme wise and go with this beautiful lilac shade of Annie Sloan paint in ‘Emile’ and I then finished it off with Annie Sloan light wax. I absolutely loved this piece when it was complete, I felt that it was a beautiful statement piece and really revamped and modernized an unloved piece of furniture.

Revamping An Old Family Dresser

This dresser was originally pine and was painted over in cheap cream paint by my mam a few years ago. This did the job for a little while in revamping the original pine which had become outdated. We decided to go with Farrow & Ball eggshell finish paint in ‘Pigeon’ for a new look. This was my first time to work with Farrow & Ball paint and I found it very different to the usual chalk paint i use as I am quite a messy painter and this is quite sticky in texture and hard to remove from other surfaces if you splash or spill any by accident - which I do a lot. I love the selection of colours Farrow & Ball have available, there is so much variety. I am a huge fan of Farrow & Ball and it is my dream to paint my entire house in their paint!!!

Dining Chair Made New

I painted this chair featured in the picture below for a friend along with her dining table and other chairs last Summer. She felt that her kitchen needed a bit of a face lift and wanted to go with Annie Sloan chalk paint in ‘Versailles’. I loved how it turn out, it had a lovely shabby chic feel to it as we decided to go without a wax finish and left it with the famous Annie Sloan soft chalky finish. 

So that's my little attempt at D.I.Y, it is so easily done and if I can do it anyone can!! 

Don't be afraid, get your paint brush out and just go for it!! 

Elaine Kellegher Photography & Design

Elaine Kellegher Photography & Design

I came across Elaine Kellegher Photography & Design's website through Facebook recently and I have to say I am just blown away by her gorgeous photography & selection of prints available on the site.

Elaine has a large variety of prints available on her page and different categories including General Wall Art, Dublin Series, Irish Series, New Home Series and Father Ted Series.  I think that these prints would make fantastic gifts for family and friend or even a treat for yourself.

As there are so many fabulous designs available on the site and I thought that I would share my favourite piece of each category with you all.

These prints can be found on Elaine's website:

http://ekphotographydesign.com 

and also on etsy.com under the same name.

All details of pricing and P&P can be found on the links beside each print which will bring you to Elaine’s website.

General Wall Art Prints: 

http://bit.ly/ccekwallart  

“Be Yourself, Everyone Else Is Taken”

This is probably my favourite piece from Elaine’s entire collection as it is one of my favourite quotes by the great Oscar Wilde. A great self motivation! 

Dublin Series Prints:

http://bit.ly/ccekdubprints 

'Poolbeg Chimneys'

The famous Poolbeg Chimneys beautifully captured in block colour has to be my favourite piece from Elaine’s Dublin series. I think that the colours used are beautiful and it is so simple yet gorgeous!

Irish Location Prints: 

http://bit.ly/ccekirishprints 

'Cork City' 

For the Cork Rebels a feisty print which would give pride in any room. There are a variety of towns and counties available in the Irish Location series, this is just one example.

New Home Print: 

http://bit.ly/cceknewhome 

“Welcome Home Deer”

This print can be customized for each new home owner with their town or county. I love the wacky concept and I think it adds great fun to a room.

Father Ted Prints: 

http://bit.ly/ekfrtedfb

“That Money Was Just”

A great piece of fun and Irish comedy to welcome into your home from Elaine’s Father Ted series. There a several pieces available from this new collection which can be found on Elaine’s website or on Etsy.com

Elaine also has a range of prints available including custom prints, cards for all occasions and so much more. I would highly recommend that you check out her page as there are some really beautiful prints there. 

https://www.facebook.com/ekphotographydesign?fref=ts