Colour blocking and clever upcycles have added personality to this four bedroom new build

When the owners moved into this four-bedroom detached new-build in Leicestershire it was a blank canvas with a neutral kitchen and bathroom chosen by the developers.

Now it's been decorated in a boho industrial style, with upcycled furniture and new flooring. Plenty of colour, botanical art prints and hanging plants have been added in most corners.

The exterior

When the couple bought the property, the cap for the Government’s Help to Buy scheme was higher. This meant they only needed a first-time buyers mortgage for 75% of the value. An interest-free loan covered the rest.

What's more, homes over a certain square footage received upgrades as standard, including quartz kitchen worktops, a rainforest shower and better taps in the bathrooms.

'Going from a two-bedroom to a four-bedroom house was a great opportunity to buy new furniture and replace things we weren’t keen on, like our old bed,' explained the owners. 'Most of our previous living room furniture is in the snug now, as we wanted to buy new sofas and furniture for the main living room at the rear.'

The living room

Pink and green are the threads that run through the house, except in the living room. Here, Cornforth White – a deeper, warmer grey by Farrow & Ball – adds to the cosiness and allows the new navy sofas from Next to pop. Although it faces north, it’s still super bright because of the French doors.

To add to the boho rustic look, scaffold boards from B&Q stained in Ronseal Dark Oak make the perfect living room shelving idea. The mango wood cabinet was only £150 from Homesense. It makes a great drinks cabinet.

The kitchen

The white kitchen idea was the exception to the magnolia used in the rest of the house. The owners waited a few months before painting a green feature wall by the dining area to break things up. They then added pops of pink through accessories like the kettle and toaster.

'We were happy with the cabinets the developers chose, but we might add an island or breakfast bar in the future,' the owners told us.

The dining area

The industrial-style dining table and benches from Made are a great space saver, as they can be pulled out when people come round. The wall is painted in Valspar’s Secret Retreat.

The utility room

The owners painted two walls with leftover paint from the bedroom as a budget utility room idea, and added shelves and hooks.

The hallway

The shelving unit was originally in the office but it worked better as a hallway storage idea. The lamp is on a timer, so it gives a nice cosy ambience in the evenings.

The landing

'I’ve tried to go down the botanicals route with prints from Desenio in greens and warm oranges, but have used different frames so it looks less uniform,' explains the owner.

The home office

The office at the front is south facing, so the owners wanted there to be a warm and inviting feel in there. They picked Tortoiseshell Specs by Valspar for the window wall, even though the rest of the house is mostly pink, green and grey.

'As we both work from home a few days a week, it’s nice to have a separate office space. You can just shut the door and work is a distant memory,' says the owner.

The master bedroom

The main bedroom at the rear is north facing and has an en suite shower room.

The owners gleefully replaced their old black leather bed with this burnt copper frame from Made. The feature wall in Farrow & Ball’s Duck Green makes the room feel super cosy. 

The guest bedroom

'We didn’t do anything with this room for a while but then I painted a three-quarter wall and bought a sofa bed,' says the owner. 'In the future it might be a nursery, so we’ve kept it quite neutral.'

The painted arch behind the console in Wise Old Sage by Frenchic adds interest. 'Colour blocks and wall arches are a really easy way to add colour and interest without painting the whole room,' advises the owner.

The dressing room

A good tip is to use self-adhesive vinyl stickers, which just peel off and won’t damage the wall if you fancy a change. The owner used them to create a spotty feature wall in her dressing room, which only cost around £12.50 in total.

The dressing table is a desk painted in Dusky Blush by Frenchic. 'It’s the best of all the furniture paints I’ve tried,' says the owner.

The gallery wall features pale pastels with wooden frames and includes a few pieces with memories like a Galentine’s Day card from a friend. The macrame hanging shelf and plant add texture.

'For a gallery wall, I usually have a statement piece in the middle, then random pieces dotted around it so you can expand it as you go. The jumbled look works for me!'

The bathroom

Adding hanging plants and accessories, like the bathmat from Pineapple Elephant, has made a standard new-build bathroom look miles better. The strip of Dusky Blush by Frenchic on the wall has made a huge difference.

'Looking back, I wish I’d gone for a warmer tone on the flooring,' reflects the owner. 'For big decisions like that, it’s probably best to wait till you’ve painted walls and bought furniture first. I’d also recommend not rushing important buys like sofas. With a new build, you should wait till you can measure up properly and don’t go off the plans.'