"We had the architect's plans. We just didn't know how we were actually going to live in it."

Becky and her husband were in a position many families find themselves in mid-renovation: the architect's drawings were finalised, the builder was coming - and had just moved the timeline forward, and yet the biggest questions remained unanswered. How should the kitchen be positioned? Where does the dining table go without feeling crammed into the kitchen run? And how do you design a space that's genuinely wow, not just bigger?

"We couldn't quite put our finger on why it wasn't working - but something felt off."

Kat was at a pivotal point in their renovation. She’d had planning approved for a ground floor extension and their architect had produced a proposed layout. On paper, it ticked many of the boxes: a utility room, a new playroom, an extended kitchen. But every time they looked at the plans, something nagged at them.

"Our concerns were that it would create an overly complex, convoluted journey through the house - and make both the kitchen and playroom feel narrow."

She knew they needed an expert pair of eyes before the builders arrived. So they booked a Power Hour.

Let's be honest. You've had a tab open on that sofa for about six months. You've saved approximately 400 things to a Pinterest board that somehow manages to look both too much and not enough all at once. You've stood in the middle of your living room more times than you can count, hands on hips, staring at a space that just... isn't quite right.

Sound familiar?

You're not alone. Designing a room that actually works - one that feels like you, functions for your real life, and doesn't make you wince every time you walk into it - is genuinely hard. And it's not because you have bad taste. It's because knowing what you love and knowing how to make it happen are two very different things.

That's exactly why we created The Complete Design.

White paint is the timeless, classic choice for your home, but choosing the right shade can be tricky!

With so many shades to choose from, where do you start? And how do you make sure you don’t end up with a cold, characterless white box? It’s a question we often get asked - “What is the best white paint colour to use?” - and so we have put together our tried and tested favourites, along with some do’s and don’ts to help you get it right!

A north facing room has a pretty bad reputation - cold, gloomy and a bit dismal. No matter how large the windows are, the room will lack sunlight. Not the best start! However, all is not lost. Your cold dark room doesn’t have to stay that way. Understanding the light you do have can help you choose the right paint colours to cosy it up and make it an inviting space.

Planning an extension or a renovation project can bring up so many mixed emotions - it’s exciting and can lead to your dream home, but it can also feel overwhelming with so many decisions to make and such pressure to get it right!

We’ve all seen the beautiful pictures on Pinterest of a room centered around the fireplace. It provides character and symmetry - and of course is amazing at Christmas time. It’s the all important focal point that designers talk about, and the starting point for the design and layout of the whole room.

An L shaped room is a tricky space. It’s not easily designed with awkward angles, dark corners and narrow spaces. Not to mention various doors and access points to consider. It can be hard to find the balance between keeping it open but still feeling like it’s a cohesive space. Whether the space is big or small it can be a challenge - but we can help you work with what you’ve got and make the most of your L shaped room.

For most of us, the biggest challenge with curtains is how to hang them. We often see the same mistakes made over and over, and they are easy to avoid.

This is a really common problem with these shaped rooms, especially in new builds. We get asked for help with layouts often and for good reason. It’s tricky to get right!!

Many years ago, when I first moved into my home I was stumped as to what colour to paint my Victorian living room. It was all white, and although a light blank canvas it lacked something extra.

November already? How did it come round so quickly?! Time to pack away the autumnal decorations and enter Christmas mode. It feels like Christmas hits the shops and online earlier each year, giving you that buzz to get organised and start shopping for your friends and family.

Interior design is an exciting and creative process that can transform a room into a beautiful and functional space. However, it is essential to avoid common mistakes that can derail your interior design project.

We’ve been working with a lovely customer this week who has a new build house with a long rectangular living room. She was desperate to get away from the corridor effect in the room - lining up the sofas and TV on the long walls, but didn’t know what else to do. She was feeling seriously stuck.

Here at The Living House we love panelling! It can instantly transform a room from bare and mundane to stylish and engaging. It is so versatile and can add character and definition to your space. It can even help to change the feel of the room, increasing the sense of height or drawing your attention to (or away from) a certain feature. But knowing where to start can be tricky.

No one wants to get it wrong when it comes to updating their home. It’s costly and demoralising. It’s definitely not what you set out to achieve and yet when we meet new customers, we often get asked ‘why doesn’t this room work?’, ‘why doesn’t it look how I imagined?’ and ‘what’s wrong with it??!’.

Every year there’s a new round of trends and ideas to bombard us with. At The Living House we love to see what’s next around the corner, but we’re not saying you need to change your home every year as that would be ridiculous (who has the energy for that?!). Sometimes though it’s fun to see where the trends are taking us and incorporate a few new updates here and there into your home.

It’s a new year, the Christmas decorations are all packed away and your home looks a bit, well, empty? Right?

I know there are definitely a few empty spaces in my living room, so here at The Living House we have had a look at the new collections hitting the shops and put together our favourite interior finds. Take a look and see if there is something just right to fill that gap in your home and spruce up your room for the new year.

It wouldn’t be Christmas without adding to my collection of baubles every year! It’s always so tempting to just add a couple more. And once the children get involved, they always see something that they just have to have!! But I don’t mind. For me it all adds to the traditions of Christmas, and the memories from each year - trying to remember who was responsible for the crazy Santa on a motorbike decoration they chose when they were four.

Everyday we meet lovely customers and chat to them about their homes, and their design problems and dilemmas. And although every customer and every home is unique, there are also themes to the questions that we get asked. Below we have answered 5 questions that have cropped up recently in our chats to customers.