Ed’s letter Sarah explains the importance of a moodboard

Renovating is a truly massive, daunting prospect, even when you’re talking about making over just one room. I get asked for advice all the time on where to start, and friends and family assume I have an arsenal of experts at my fingertips set to help them with their own renos. But there are so many factors that make my dream team particular to just me. It depends on what you want, where you live, your budget, and of course, your personal style.

But the starting point, I can help with: a moodboard, setting the scene for what you want your finished project to look like. Tearsheets from Home Beautiful, screen grabs, pictures of products you love – pull them all together and you’ll start to see which style speaks to you. Ultimately, this will drive almost every decision you make along the way. If you’re really handy – like former House Rules contestants Carly and Leighton, whose amazing project is featured as part of our new-season preview, on page 166 – you might be able to take an active part. Leighton created a lot of the joinery, and his attention to detail is remarkable. Closer to home, my dad has been renovating the bathroom in our family house to his exacting standards for well over a year now. To be fair, he does take regular breaks to go holidaying around the country with my mum, which presents its own challenges – like when they had to order more tiles 18 months after purchasing the original batch, for example (no, they didn’t match). When their new bathroom is finally finished, I can’t wait to have the grand tour, and I know they are both really proud of what he’s achieved already.

This issue stars our real-life renovation special – from page 179 – and we’ve featured three beautiful homes that span the style spectrum. It’s my hope that one of these homes will end up on your moodboard – I’ve torn out the deck on page 198 for mine!

I can’t close without mentioning my other favourite feature this month – our gorgeous bedroom decorating feature, from page 47. So beautiful, it became our cover star! It’s so simple to create impact in the bedroom – some cosy new bedlinen, a lick of paint or statement wallpaper – and there’s no better time than as the season changes. House Rules season one heroes Carly and Leighton worked miracles in their South Australia home (top left), while this Sydney abode (left) has had a magical makeover to deliver a wonderful family home.