Our Home, in Mood Boards
In a handful of weeks, my boyfriend and I will be moving in together to his place. We’re so excited for this new chapter and have been making décor plans for months now! My Pinterest boards are finally coming to life! I’m unsure whether I’ll share much of our place, since my boyfriend isn’t online and we’d also like to reserve most parts of our life for private consumption. You’ll likely see snippets here and there, of course, but I won’t be creating a home Instagram account or sharing a house tour. But, I thought a good compromise would be to share our room-by-room mood boards so that you can see what the vision is for each space in the house.
We’re really lucky in that we have a lot of space for the two of us, and my boyfriend owns his house so we don’t have many, if any, limitations of what we can transform here. The plan, however, is to stay here short-term before my boyfriend sells up, and we buy more of a forever home together in a few years’ time. With that in mind, our mood boards are focused more on paint colours, décor pieces and storage, as opposed to any renovation work or investment furniture. (Also, I don’t plan to share our master bedroom board! Nothing sinister or spicy, I promise, I just want to keep that space for us.)
Lounge
Dulux Summer Linen wall paint · Pooky rechargable table lamp · IKEA sofa · Ruggable machine washable rug · Lift-top coffee table · Tabletop fireplace.
I’m very much a ‘lounge’ sort of person, especially after a long day. Our 1.0 plans are simply to furnish the space – it’s currently empty bar a TV and the pictured IKEA sofa – with a coffee table, a cosy rug, and soft lighting. Right now, everything is neutral but warm with darker tones, but it’ll of course grow more colourful as we add our travel trinkets, books and everyday clutter.
Home Office
Dulux Ballerina Dance wall paint · Standing desk · Desk strip lighting · The Lakes print · marjorie lyrics print · IKEA bookcases · Beanbag chair.
I only work from home once or twice a week these days, but my boyfriend and I are both big readers and I, of course, am a writer too. So the smallest bedroom in the house will become our home office and library. I’m planning to buy wood frames for beds, a standing desk and some ambient lighting, hang some lyric posters, add a cosy reading chair or beanbag, then create a wall of bookcases.
Guest Room
Ottoman bed · Bedside tables · Bean bag · IKEA PAX wardrobe.
We’re lucky enough to have a guest room in the house, which I’m really struggling to moodboard for. It’ll be where my wardrobe lives, as my boyfriend’s wardrobe is already full to the brim! Aside from that, we do also need to furnish it – albeit minimally – as his sister will be staying with us over the summer before returning to university. Our priorities are a lick of paint – perhaps sage green(?), a bed and some practical bedside tables. I really want this to eventually become the fun guest room with seasonal bedding and OTT decorations!
Dining Room
Dining table · Dining table chairs · Set of plates · Dim sum print · Pho print · Shell vase.
Our dining room isn’t high on the priorities list either, but since finding this table I’m dying to get started! We already have a table and chairs that my boyfriend’s parents handed down, but I’m thinking we’ll replace it with something more modern and extendable so that we can host friends and family more easily. And, since it’s a foodie room, I’d love to hang some wall art from our home countries!
Snug
Our tiny half conservatory is currently home to a treadmill and lots of things-to-be-organised. As both of us enjoy me-time, we thought it was key to create some spaces that we can go to to be alone. And what better than an unconventional snug?! Floor cushions, fairy lights and a low bookcase will be perfect in this area, and the existing treadmill and dumbbells can be moved into the ‘gym shed’.
Kitchen
Finally, I’m looking forward to the challenge of updating the kitchen. Our kitchen is a little dated but functional, so I’d love to give it a facelift with some cupboard organisation, refreshed tiling and wrapping the kitchen counters. I love cooking, so having a lovely kitchen space is key for me.
Needless to say, I’m incredibly excited to finish moving in and to get started on all of our home upgrades. My girls and I are already scheduling in furniture and painting parties together – ah life in your thirties! Let the Marketplace, Vinterior, charity shop and interior shop perusing begin!
