A Creative Lifestyle Blog By Zoe-Lee Skelton

Zoe-Lee Skelton

Designer Radiators Really Do Exist And Can Transform Your Home

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If your home’s interior is looking a bit dull and dreary, there are plenty of ways to give it a fresh new look such as a fresh coat of paint and new accessories, but I bet many of you don’t give much thought to the radiators, which often go overlooked. Fitting new designer radiators might not seem glamorous, but given that there are loads more designs, colours and styles to choose from these days, they really can provide a polished look to  any room.

Gone are the days when all you had to choose from was a plain white radiator in a variety of sizes, which was only going to replace a radiator that looked pretty much the same! Today, when shopping for a new radiator, you’ll be surprised at just how many designs are available that will enhance any décor – modern or traditional.

But, there’s more to radiators than meets the eye, so check out these top tips from BigBathroomShop.co.uk on how to choose the best one to suit your requirements.

What to consider before buying a radiator

Before buying new radiators, it’s important to work out the heat that’s required to warm your chosen room. The heat output from all radiators is measured in BTUs (British Thermal Units), and there’s plenty of BTU calculators available on the web that you can use to work out the required heat output.

You may find that one radiator produces enough heat to warm your room, or you may need more than one to deliver the required amount of BTUs. You can roughly work out how many BTUs are needed by multiplying the height, width and length of the room in feet, and then multiply this figure by 4.

Enhancing a modern interior

Designer radiators are ideal for enhancing any modern interior, and they come in a variety of colours such as black, anthracite and red, as well as matt and glossy finishes to match in with your décor. Offering more than just a heat source, a designer radiator can make a statement and transform the look of any room without too much effort.

Vertical designer radiators are popular with interior designers, as well as homeowners, and they are a great option for where there’s limited wall space. A vertical radiator heats a large area but without taking up too much wall space. Some even incorporate a full length mirror, which is ideal for hallways and bedrooms.

As well as colours and sizes, designer radiators come in a range of profiles. Flat panel radiators help to save space and create a sleek, contemporary look. There’s even radiators with tubular shaped and diamond shaped columns if you fancy something a bit different.

Enhancing a traditional interior

Contemporary not your thing? Then how about opting for a traditional column radiator? Perfect for adding vintage style to your home, a column radiator is made up of vertical tubes and are typically two, three or four columns deep. The more columns, the higher the heat output.

This style of radiator is available in a range of sizes, as well as vertical and horizontal designs. There’s also various finishes including white, black and anthracite. Column radiators can be fitted to the wall or mounted to the floor with specially designed feet and a bracket.

The best place to position your radiators

Ideally your new radiators should be positioned in the coldest part of the room – this is usually next to or underneath the window, or on an outside wall. Before fitting a radiator, it’s a good idea to check the condition of the wall, and repair any cracks.

Take the type of wall into consideration too, as it will need to be strong enough to support the weight of the radiator. A solid wall constructed from brick for example will support a heavy radiator. But if the wall is plasterboard, you will need to identify the location of the studs – these are the timber pieces that plasterboard is fitted to. The radiator should be fitted to the studs as this will be the strongest part of the wall.

If you are experienced at DIY you can fit your new designer radiator yourself, but if you lack the skills, it’s worth paying a professional to install it for you.

 

*this is a collaborative post

DIY Ikea Desk Storage Luxe Makeover

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If you have some rather bland looking storage, I’ve put together a real simple D.I.Y Ikea hack.

I’ve used the Ikea Mopp drawers as it’s easy to put your own stamp on them. Plus, they’re made from real wood so are of a better quality.

In order to complete the luxe makeover you’ll need:

  • Rust-Olem Furniture Finishing Wax Dark
  • Ikea MOPP  set of drawers
  • An old rag
  • Paintbrush
  • masking tape
  • White paint
  • two different coloured paints of your choice – I’ve used copper and a mint green colour

Here’s what the drawers looked like originally:

Not bad – but it’s crying out for a chic overhaul.

I’ve used some Rust Oleum varnish to stain the wood a darker colour. Although dark wood has lost favour in recent times due to the more minimal “white” trend. I actually quite like adding in pieces of darker wood here and there as part of my interior style. Here’s how you can achieve the look:

Step One: Apply the Rust-Oleum Varnish

I’ve used an old rag to apply the Rust-Oleum Finishing Furniture Wax Dark in small circular motions. This should ensure optimum coverage without any smearing or signs of application. Make sure you leave this to dry overnight.

Step Two: Masking Tape Stripes

You’ll need to apply masking tape to ensure the lines are straight. Then I painted a white undercoat to make the colours more vivid.

You’ll need to do this twice or just the once if you only want to apply one coloured stripe. Of course you don’t need to add the stripes to the bottom draws, you could do them across the top or middle. It’s up to you.

Step Three: Apply the Colours

Use a smaller brushh to apply your colours over the dried white emulsion. I chose mint green and copper colours as this combination are my favourite right now.

For the second copper colour I found that I had to do two coats so bear this in mind.

Step Four: Peel off the Masking Tape

Carefully peel off the masking tape and see if there are any areas you need to touch up or have bled under the tape edge. You can always go over bleeds using a smaller brush and the varnish.

And here’s the finished article.

  

In all, this took half an hour (obviously without the over night drying time) but this is such a simple way to give your storage a stylish new look.

Let me know if you have any questions in the comments.

Contemporary Living Room Design Inspo

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It seems like the current trend is very much to create a room that looks contemporary, rather than something cosy and old-fashioned. Keeping that in mind, I’ve put together a short article listing some contemporary design inspiration for your modern living room. Give it a read to find out everything:

Effective Use Of Space

One of the main ideas with current living room design is that you make the most out of the space you have. Effectively, this means you try and keep the room as clean and clutter-free as possible. It changes the way you organise your furniture as well. Instead of bunching everything together and creating a cramped atmosphere, you could try to arrange the room so it feels more open and spacious. Basically, try and live like a minimalist! For this reason, it’s not recommended you include loads of furniture in this room. A sofa or two and a small coffee table are all you really need.

Simple Colours

With regards to colours and modern living rooms design, you can keep things simple. Steer clear of elaborate colour schemes here, and this applies to all elements of your living room. If you look at a wide range of sofas for modern living rooms, you’ll see most of them are different shades of grey or black, sometimes brown. There are no crazy patterned designs or colours. The same goes for flooring and walls, try to keep these plainly coloured and free from any complex designs and patterns.

Cleared Walls

Another core concept of modern living room design is keeping your walls as clear as possible. By this, I’m saying you shouldn’t have too many photos or pictures hanging up. This goes back to something mentioned in the first point that you want to avoid clutter. Ideally, you should have one or maybe two pictures hanging on each wall, and that’s it. Anything else is overkill and starts making your room feel more cluttered. If you truly want to achieve a modern living room, you should hang contemporary art pieces up instead of photos. Remember, keep your walls bare and don’t go overboard.

Hardwood Floors

In the past, it was a foregone conclusion that every living room would be carpeted. Nowadays, modern design is more about hardwood floors. A nice hardwood or laminated floor is seen as far more modern than a simple carpet. It just creates a more contemporary feel to the room, and this is reflected in how it looks too. There are some people that are reluctant to take this step as they enjoy the comfort of a carpet. However, this can be assimilated with some nice modern rugs on the hardwood floor. So, you almost get the best of both worlds, and your living room remains modern.

*this is a collaborative post

The Big Question: Buy Or Build?

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I’m lucky enough to be at a stage where I can afford to buy my first home. But I’m having difficulty finding somewhere I actually like. Whilst I’m not afraid of hard graft to bring a house up to the standard I would like, many times throughout the whole process I have asked myself if; is it better for me to buy a property or build one? The only way to answer that question involves taking a look at all the pros and cons of each decision. With that in mind, the information you require is published under this paragraph. Read it and try to work out which is the best option for you.

The pros of buying a home

Firstly, we’re going to take a look some of the plus points you might encounter when purchasing a house. There are lots of developers building new homes in every corner of the United Kingdom. For that reason, it doesn’t take much time to find something suitable and complete the paperwork. People who choose to purchase a property will have a relatively stress-free experience. They get to see the home before they spend money, and it comes will all the essentials included in the price.  

The cons of buying a home

There are lots of downsides to buying a house, and most of them relate to suitability. It’s hard to find a property that meets all your needs and requirements because the designs were created by other people. Still, many developers have become aware of that problem. That is why they now allow buyers to purchase the property before it’s finished. The individuals can then ask the architects to make any necessary changes to the design before construction takes place. New homes are also pretty expensive.

The pros of building a home

If you decide to build a house, you will keep full control over the process. You will pay an architect to create the design based on your requirements and stipulations. So, it’s possible to get something perfect for you or your family, even if it’s small. You also keep control over the location of the property because you have to purchase the land first. Have you always wanted a games room or a home office? Well, you can have whatever you like if you build.

The cons of building a home

Contrary to popular belief, building a house isn’t much cheaper than buying an established property. That is due to all the hard work and regulations. For example, you will have to purchase some land first. You then need to get permission to build, and that can take a while. After that, you’ll need to pay an architect, buy materials, and find tradespeople. Also, the job can take as long as six months in some situations.

So even after reading all those pros and cons, you still might not have reached a decision. I’m not going to tell you what to do because the right path forward is an individual thing. It all comes down to how much money you have to spend, and how long you can afford to wait. Also, there’s little point in building a house if you lack imagination. Whatever you decide, I’m sure you’ll end up with the perfect property eventually.

 

*this is a collaborative post

5 Ways To Prepare Your Home For Winter During Summer

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While the summer months are here, enjoying your home is pretty easy. Once the colder weather arrives, though, you will have far greater demands for the property. It may not feel like it right now, but it’s important that you make the preparations with plenty of time to spare.

Fail to make them, and the beginning of winter will be a very uncomfortable time indeed. So, what are the jobs that should be at the top of your ‘to do’ list? Let’s take a closer look.

Create Space

You will inevitably spend more time indoors when the colder weather arrives. After all, nobody wants to go for a walk when it’s dark, wet, and windy. As such, you need to ensure that the available space is being used in an effective manner. It might not add physical dimensions to the property, but it can have an equally big influence on your relationship with the home. This can only be great news for all the family.

Increase Security

Protecting your family and possessions should always be a priority. Keeping out intruders is an important feature of this task. The dangers will increase when the cold weather arrives. After all, it’s darker while burglars know households will often have more possessions. Find out about the latest CCTV equipment at http://www.techradar.com/news/10-best-cctv-cameras-of-2017. Install them ASAP to protect your home throughout the summer, as well as the winter, and you will not regret it.

Improve Bathroom

The bathroom plays an important role in our lives on 365 days of the year. Having said that, the simple joys of having a deep bath are greatly increased when it’s gloomy outside. Ensuring that water pressure and temperature are at the desired level is key. Meanwhile, simple additions such as vanity units can transform the space. Use a few simple accessories to create a theme and combine this with candles for an ideal aesthetic. This will help this unsung hero become your favourite room throughout the colder months.

 

Boost Heating

Right now, there’s a good chance that you haven’t touched the heating for weeks. But this cannot be an excuse to forget about the issues you had last winter. Visit http://www.onlyradiators.co.uk/blog to learn about the best options for your home. Get them sorted before the colder weather arrives, and this winter will be far more enjoyable. Meanwhile, if you have any issues with roofing insulation or windows, these should be up for repair work too. Sadly, ignoring it now will come back to haunt you in the long term.

Adapt Gardens

The summer months are a wonderful time to enjoy the luxury of the garden space. However, you can still utilise those external areas throughout the colder months; it just requires a little adaptation. Add heaters and solar lights to keep the garden spaces looking and feeling great all year long, and happiness in the home should soar. Even if you decide not to use this area as often in the colder months, it will increase the enjoyment throughout summer and autumn. For immediate and long-term benefits, it’s well worth the investment of time.