Decision fatigue is the real renovation villain – it's not about making the 'wrong' choice, it's losing confidence in the ones we’ve already made

Committed home renovators David and Andrew Harrison-Colley (better known on Instagram as The Home Boys) are part of Ideal Home's new Open House contributors, sharing their thoughts on making a home together and living through the tricky parts. See the rest of their articles here.

When people ask how the renovation is going, they usually mean one of three things: is it expensive, are we nearly done, and was it worth it?

They’re fair questions. Renovating is visible. There are rooms taking shape, materials arriving, budgets being stretched and timelines shifting. It feels measurable from the outside.

What we didn’t expect - as we moved from the big structural build into reworking the original cottage - was how mentally consuming it would be.

Because while renovation is physical and financial, the part that has surprised us most isn’t the plaster dust or the deliveries. It’s the constant decision-making.

Not just the headline decisions like installing structural glazing or committing to a new layout. It’s the steady stream of smaller choices that quietly fill every week.

The weight of small choices

In the past few months alone, we’ve debated the tone of the oak flooring running through the hallway and atrium, the exact shade of paint to sit against old beams, and whether to repeat terracotta tiles once again - even knowing how labour-intensive they are to lay.

None of these decisions are dramatic in isolation. But layered together, they begin to feel heavier than you expect.

You confirm one order in the morning. Reply to a builder with another answer at lunchtime. Spend the evening comparing two almost-identical finishes online. By the end of the week, you’re not necessarily tired from the work - you’re tired from choosing.

Renovation, we’ve realised, is as much a mental marathon as it is a practical one.

When confidence starts to wobble

Decision fatigue doesn’t usually arrive with a bang. It shows up quietly.

It’s the moment you start questioning something you felt completely sure about - like repeating terracotta floors because they worked so beautifully in our last home, or choosing glazing that echoes what we’ve loved before. It’s the voice that asks whether you’re playing it too safe. Or not safe enough.

There have been evenings where we’ve revisited decisions we’d already made, not because they were wrong, but because we were simply worn out.

Over time, we’ve learned that the real risk isn’t making the “wrong” choice. It’s losing confidence in the ones we’ve already made.

And in a long renovation, confidence is surprisingly important fuel.

Protecting your energy

As the project has evolved, so have we.

We’ve started creating small boundaries around decision-making. We try not to confirm expensive orders late at night. We give ourselves space before committing to something structural. We’ve naturally divided responsibilities - one of us taking the lead on flooring and materials, the other on budgets and logistics - so that not every choice feels like a joint debate.

It hasn’t eliminated the decisions, but it’s reduced the mental load.

And whether you’re renovating solo or with someone else, that feels key. Not every choice needs to be researched endlessly. Not every room needs to be perfect before you move forward. Sometimes momentum matters more than microscopic optimisation.

The comfort of repetition

One of the most freeing realisations has been that we don’t need to reinvent ourselves with every room.

Returning to materials we’ve loved before - terracotta underfoot, vintage pieces layered into newer spaces, warm neutrals that soften both old cottage walls and the new extension - has given us a sense of clarity.

There’s something reassuring about recognising your own design language and staying within it.

It quietens the noise. It makes the next decision easier because you’re building on something familiar rather than chasing something new.

And in a world where trends move quickly, that familiarity can feel grounding.

Choosing more gently

There are still weeks when it all stacks up. When three spaces demand answers at once. When budgets tighten and the stakes feel higher. When we’re balancing work, life, and a hallway that still needs flooring.

The house isn’t finished. It may not be for a while. But we’ve stopped expecting renovation to feel simple.

The dust settles. The budgets flex. Rooms slowly reach a point where they feel resolved - even if the wider project continues.

What we’re learning to protect most carefully now isn’t just the house. It’s our energy and our trust in the process.

Because behind every “before and after” are hundreds - sometimes thousands - of unseen decisions.

And perhaps the real skill in renovating isn’t making perfect choices.

It’s learning how to keep choosing - steadily, confidently, and just a little more gently each time.