PLANNING A REVAMP
Before you pick up a paintbrush, work out what you want from the end result. House Beautiful’s renovations and DIY expert Jo Behari gives her advice
Making over a room takes time and costs money, so before you even buy a pot of paint or a roll of wallpaper, make sure you know what you’re trying to achieve. Start by taking the time to plan the room properly, taking into account not just the colour you want for the walls, but where the furniture is going to go, how you’re going to dress the windows, and where the light will fall.
A MEASURED APPROACH
Firstly invest in a good tape measure, one that goes up to at least three to four metres. Poor measurements lead to poor space planning and layout. Measure your room accurately and plot it out on a piece of paper, or do it electronically using a room planning app.
Ensure you include all doors including the sweeps, windows, recesses, radiators and fixed bits of furniture. It can be tricky to get this right so take time over it and ask a friend to help if necessary. And double check all of your figures – it’s always better to measure twice than to make a mistake.
CHANGING THE SHAPE
A room is considered to be
small if any dimension is less than three metres. In small rooms it’s important to use space efficiently, and pale colour palettes can help to create an airy feeling. Natural daylight makes a room feel bigger so don’t crowd the windows with bulky fabrics and window coverings. Putting an eyecatching item in the corner of the room will elongate the space.
Long thin rooms, where one length is more than three
metres, need clever lighting, and benefit from zoning to break them up. Oversized items can stop the space feeling cavernous, and keeping the main walkway to one side will help the flow.
Large rooms, where one dimension is larger then nine metres, may feel like a blessing, but furniture can often feel lost. Two-tone wall colours help to break up the room and again creating zones can give it multiple functions, and add to the flexibility of your home. Statement pieces work well in large rooms so look out for items that might be a talking point and add a focus. Don’t forget the natural world – large houseplants help to create a cosy feeling as well as a sense of wellbeing.
SKETCH IT OUT
To plan the room effectively you need to detach yourself from it and it’s current function. List all the things you want to be able to do in it, whether it’s lounging or entertaining – it could incorporate office space, a children’s den, adult living area, anything you want.
Once you’ve measured your room mark the electrical points, radiators and anything else that can’t be moved onto the sketch. You then have your blank canvas to work on. I like to cut out little 2D models of the furniture that will be staying or I want to buy, and then I can place them on my sketch and move them around until the space works. I also draw little lines as if a person were moving around the room so I can assess the flow.
There are, of course, many online resources to help with your space planning. These include websites and pieces of software that allow you to build your room from scratch, play around with furniture and apply different wall colours, flooring, and lighting so you can really get an idea of what works in your space. This is especially important when you’re working on a large project so you can make sure you get every room right.