Making your rented place feel like home is easier than you think. New homes are a black canvas, just waiting to be filled with life and colour. Small changes make a big difference and these easy tips will have you settled in before you know it!.
A big part of feeling happy in your home is feeling comfortable in your neighbourhood. If you’re moving to a new area, make sure you do a bit of research before you commit yourself to anything. Spend a bit of time in the area – try it on for size and see how it fits. How’s the walk to work? Does it feel safe? Will that little coffee place be your saviour at weekends? If you can’t explore the neighbourhood in person, try this useful from CIA Landlord Insurance. Enter a postcode to get the low-down on the safety of the area.
A big part of feeling happy in your home is feeling comfortable in your neighbourhood. If you’re moving to a new area, make sure you do a bit of research before you commit yourself to anything. Spend a bit of time in the area – try it on for size and see how it fits. How’s the walk to work? Does it feel safe? Will that little coffee place be your saviour at weekends? If you can’t explore the neighbourhood in person, try this useful from CIA Landlord Insurance. Enter a postcode to get the low-down on the safety of the area.
Add character with furniture, soft furnishings and accessories
Clever accessorises are your friends. Faded, stained carpets or tatty laminate floor? Cover them with a rug you love, and your home will be feeling more homely in no time. Renting a furnished flat with a sofa you hate? Cover it with all your favourite throws and cushions. If you’re buying furniture, choose items which will make an impact on a small scale. Invest in bright footstools to dot around the room, a velvet cocktail chair or a quirky little side table.
Not allowed to hang pictures?
You can still create your own little gallery space on a bookshelf or window. Add other mementoes, like flowers and keepsakes. Change your display according to the seasons and it will always feel fresh.Lean your large picture frames against the wall for laid-back cool.
Give the kitchen and bathroom a mini-makeover
The kitchen and bathrooms in rented properties are always going to be chosen for practicality, rather than beauty. They may also be a bit tired and tatty around the edges too. This is another chance for you to put your mark on the place! Invest in a few of life’s little luxuries for the bath room – like some new fluffy towels, bath mats and some pretty storage jars. In the kitchen, cover an ugly work top with a gorgeous wooden or marble chopping board and add colour and personality with your kettle, toaster and mugs. Remember, simple changes = big difference.
Houseplants – the gift that keeps giving
Buying a new plant for a new home is a bit of tradition isn’t it? And it makes a lot of sense – they not only look great, they also work hard to purify the air too. Having something of your own to nurture and grow in your home is such an important way to connect with your space. Invest in large fiddle fig or some palms to cover ugly corners of a room, and dot smaller succulents and cacti around to bring your space to life.