This two-bed Victorian apartment in Edinburgh shows how to style a rental

living room with blue sofa and dining table

(Image credit: Future PLC/Douglas Gibb)

last updated 31 May 2022

Looking for ideas to make a rental flat feel more homely? Look no further than this stylish apartment. The resident, interior designer Salsabil El-Awais, @seinteriors, has cleverly infused her rental flat with subtle colour, using wall art and a growing collection of houseplants.

Salsabil lives here with her husband and four year old son. When they moved in it needed re-carpeting, which thankfully for them the landlord did straight away. There are plans for a new kitchen to be fitted in the future. But for now the family have decorated throughout and invested in some good-quality furniture and artwork.

‘We moved to this apartment when our son was still tiny' Salsabil explains. 'Although we knew we wanted to rent long term, we saw no reason to live in a magnolia box. And happily, the landlord of this property gave us free rein to decorate as we wish. The up-side of renting is that we don’t have to spend money on maintenance; we just get to do the fun things!'

Hallway

The hallway has been updated with a lick of paint. ‘I have painted up to dado rail height in the same shade of blue as the back wall of the living room’

'We painted the whole place white initially, and then added some quite bold accent colours' Focusing on each room in turn. 'As and when we could afford it, we’ve splashed out on investment pieces of furniture and some lovely artwork. Knowing that we can take them with us to our next home.'

Salsabil's first top tip for styling a rental property is to invest in rugs. ‘Rugs work well in a rental as they protect the landlord’s wood flooring from scratches and furniture dents’.

Living room

'In the living room I have created vignettes with collections that I change up, as and when I wish’ she says. Before adding, ‘We can take them away with us to our next home. I would rather do this than spend money on expensive wallpaper, fittings and fixtures that I would have to leave behind.'

For instance rugs are a great investment for a rented apartment; simply take them with you when you move.

white living room with white shelves and armchair

‘I started collecting houseplants when we moved in. Plants are a delight to have in a flat, the greenery brings such a sense of life to the space.’

'We live minimally and find this way of life really tranquil. We have no television for instance (although we would love a Samsung Frame TV, a beautiful object that serves as an artwork when it is switched off). But I would rather watch whatever I want on my laptop than have a huge looming TV on a stand in the corner of a room.

navy blue living room with sofa and fire place

'I was born in Palestine and my family moved to Scotland, as refugees, when I was two years old,’ says Salsabil. ‘When I left school, I chose to study interior design in Syria, at a university near Damascus.' She lived there for three year but came home after graduating.

'I worked for Homebase for a number of years as an in-house interior design consultant, which I really enjoyed. When our son was born I set up my own business, so that I could work from home, as well as be with him' she explains.

Speaking of her design ideas and inspirations she says, ‘I am hugely inspired by travel and my Middle Eastern heritage. I love going to countries like Morocco and Turkey; the colours are amazing, but I tend to pare them down to paler versions when I use them in my own home – it’s just a better fit. I love decorating with pale greens, soft pinks and white.’

Kitchen

‘The kitchen is yet to be refitted, but it functions perfectly fine and we have focused on creating practical, temporary storage solutions in this room' says Salsabil. 'I painted the cabinetry a soft blue, which has freshened it up nicely.'

Inspiration: Stunning green kitchen makeover offers a traditional look with a trend-led twist

A creative top tip, 'By choosing only crockery and glassware that you truly love, and then displaying it on open shelving you can soon put together a beautiful scheme with the things you use every day and at very little extra expense'

'I have repurposed a white Billy bookcase from Ikea as a pantry. It makes great storage because it is so shallow’

The couple have splashed out on some investment dining chairs. The classic Hans Wegner wishbone chairs are replicas from Cult Furniture. Another top tip for displaying artwork and poster in a rented home is affixing them with Washi tape, meaning there's no damage to walls.

Master bedroom

bedroom with pink walls and carpet floor

‘I added the white painted MDF panelling myself' Salsabil explains. 'Above it I painted up to the cornice in Farrow & Ball’s Sulking Room Pink’.

‘For me, interior design is all about balance. I love organic forms and materials teamed with soft colours that hint at nature. I like to consider every detail very carefully, and of course, in a rented apartment you do have to compromise. But it is amazing what you can achieve with a little layering and by displaying personal collections.'

Childs bedroom

'I bought the grey cotton canopy on Amazon' she explains. Going on to explain 'hanging a canopy creates the illusion of a lower ceiling’. Helping to make a child's room feel more cosy.