A Look Around Our House, One Year On | IKEA x HAY

How much have things changed in a year of being first-time homeowners?

I can hardy believe that we have been homeowners for nearly one year now. We moved into our neighbourhood on the 1st December 2016, and at the time I really couldn't even imagine what life would be like three months down the line. Being self-employed I was more worried about being able to pay the bills, than what colour we should paint our front room...

Anyone who has been in a similar position to us will know that the concept of turning a house into a "home" can be a very slow process. It took us months of DIY (with a lot of help from my new father-in-law), endless phone calls to contractors, and sensible spending to be in a place where we could start to think about how we wanted each room to look. One year on and we've only tackled a couple of rooms, but this anniversary was timed perfectly with the release of IKEA + HAY's debut YPPERLIG collection, so it felt like the perfect opportunity for us to do a proper house update. 

Take a look at how we styled the new YPPERLIG collection in our home.

 Injection moulded plastic YPPERLIG chairs

 Beech bench with Green Vase + Tealight Holder

First up is the open plan living room and dining area. This bright space lends itself to being one of the more modern spaces in our house, with large white walls, pale woods and dark floorboards throughout. We spend a lot of time in here, and if we have guests drop by this is where we usually end up – the fridge is stocked with beer and the coffee is always on – so, along with building a new shelving system, this is where you'll find a good portion of our IKEA + HAY picks.

The greens and off whites of the YPPERLIG collection compliment our existing antique and modern furniture, along with the exposed brickwork - making the dining room one of my favourite spaces in the house!

 The Nest of Tables is working a treat in our open-plan living room

Down at the opposite end to our dining area is an open-plan living area, with patio doors which lead out to our garden. We haven't spent much time on the outside just yet - one for next spring! - instead we've concentrated on the inside with a few small lower priced renovations, which had a big impact. 

We created shelving space within the alcove, which gave us loads of new space-saving options for our books, records and momentos, and we also invested in some white venetian blinds, making the area a little more private for when we're watching tv or have some buddies around.

 YPPERLIG Armchair, LED Floor Lamp, Candle Holder + Fleece Throw working nicely with Hollie's cabinet of antiques, vintage coffee table, Sofa Workshop sofa and IKEA sideboard

Tealight Set with our old IKEA drinks tray

Next up is the lounge, and it's all change in here! Over this past month we've manage to transform our front room from a plain white space (lacking personality) into something a little more traditional, which is in-keeping with the interior's original 1930's features. We wanted to create something which reflected both our tastes, so we took the plunge to paint the wall in a rich navy colour, and accompanied it with bold accent colours.

The soft Scandinavian colours of the YPPERLIG collection felt like a solid base for us to to build up, giving us the freedom to experiment. Someone once described our choices it as "tasteful kitsch", which I'll take as a compliment! In here you'll find the YPPERLIG armchair, floor lamp, candle holder, tealight set and throw.

Multifuctional Stationery Set, on my Dan Marc Writing Desk, with Green Chair

The YPPERLIG Wall Shelf is the best desk tidy you ever did see

Our individual tastes are heavily influenced by pop culture, graphic design, film + colour. You'll definitely see this throughout the office space. A tiny room with a lot of character! Books, trinkets and artwork that we've collected are all dotted around the house, but most of them seem to congregate in here. The newest addition in here is the YPPERLIG wall shelf, otherwise known as the best desk tidy ever - where my latest reads, progress journal and other bits & bobs can be reached for comfortably from my desk. 

I switched out my old swivel chair for the lightweight green stackable number – my favourite piece from the collection – which has given me a little more floor space, and fits under my Dan Marc office desk perfectly. Dan would love this space! The flexibility of the injection moulded plastic chairs means they'll be perfect on the patio in the summer too.

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Our first year of being homeowners has flown by, and like any big project you take on it's always going to be a work in progress. I can safely say that we're happy with what we've done so far, but we're still to tackle the outside yet! I'm excited to see what the next year has in store for us, and how we continue to make IKEA + HAY's YPPERLIG collection a big part of the ongoing journey.

Photography by Jake Millers.

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