The renovation diaries
When it comes to documenting a home makeover project, interiors journalist Kate Watson-Smyth believes the best way is to down devices and put pen to paper. Here, she explains the joys of going old-school, and how it became the subject of her new book
When it comes to planning a project, Kate Watson-Smyth believes nothing beats putting pen to paper
Ten years ago, I fired my architect after he admitted to working to a planning regulation guide that was several years out of date. When our application to extend our new home was subsequently, and inevitably, turned down, he told me to ‘just have a glass of something relaxing’. This came on top of the discovery that he had failed to actually file the application when he said he had, a fact we only discovered when the council emailed to inquire why we had so kindly sent them a cheque for £150. He blamed this on having had to do the school run for a week while his wife was ill. And that he hadn’t owned up to his error because he’d gone on holiday to a country with no Wi-Fi. He was in Poland.
Time has erased his name from the folds of my brain and many of the details would have gone the same way had I notre discovered a written account of this some years later (by which time the steam had stopped coming out of my ears). The house had been finished with the help of an imaginative builder and some graph paper.
Four properties in and I think I am getting the hang of doing it myself. Every time I have moved, I have joyfully bought a new notebook as a place to keep vital measurements, record ideas and sketch out floorplans, as well as somewhere to be
able to refer back to the name of that paint when I am looking at cushions and to add to (and cross off ) the enormous to-do list.
It’s all very well relying on Instagram and Pinterest, but sometimes you just really, really need to make a note. Or a list. House renovations are all about lists. And it’s just not the same on your phone.
Not for nothing has the Bullet Journal exploded in popularity – a place to write notes and lists, meals you have eaten and calories burned, motivational quotes and events you want to remember. Even the act of writing it makes you feel productive and in control in a way that a text to self doesn’t.
But while all this note-taking focuses on self-care and personal development, it has remained firmly apart from the process of creating a home. And yet, I would argue, it’s a vital part of the experience.
Write down the things you love about your new pad – the way the light hits that spot on the floor at 3pm on a wintery afternoon so you can remember not to build a cupboard there but to find a lovely chair – as well as the things you want to remove and replace alongside your hopes and dreams for the space. Otherwise, when it’s all done and (literally) dusted, you will forget. And given that a renovation is probably one of the most expensive journeys you will undertake, it seems a shame not to record every twist and turn along the way. Not to mention all the practical details, so you are better prepared when you travel that road again.
A renovation diary is a mix of a little black book, a planner, an analogue spreadsheet and a diary. You can use it for a rented flat or a first-time buy, a room or a whole house.
And, of course, while you can still show off your beautifully curated Instagram feed of befores and afters, it is just that – a curated highlight of best bits. The real story, as always, lies in the secret pages of your journal. ‘Mad About The House Planner: Your Home, Your Story’ (Pavilion Books, £18.99) is out now. Kate’s online interiors store Design Storey is at designstorey.shop
‘RENOVATIONS ARE ALL ABOUT LISTS. AND IT’S JUST NOT THE SAME ON YOUR PHONE’