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A women spent two years transforming her 1980s bungalow into a chic home using DIY hacks 

A woman who quit her job to offer home renovation tips online has revealed some of her favourite cost-cutting DIY hacks.  

Michaela Shoebridge, 35, and her partner Lee moved into a dated four-bedroom property in Kingston upon Hull in 2019, and set about transforming it into a modern home. 

The couple modernised the kitchen, conservatory and bathroom, all while saving money by upcycling furniture and doing some of the DIY themselves. 

One of her favourite projects has been the terrazzo flooring, which can be expensive to achieve professionally. Instead Michaela achieved the look by painting the base tiles then scattering paint chips on the wet paint. 

The cost for the hallway and kitchen was less than £50. 

Michaela Shoebridge, 35, and her partner Lee moved into a dated four-bedroom property in Kingston upon Hull in 2019, and set about transforming it into a modern home. She spent £500 on a new fridge, freezer and vinyl cabinet covers to transform the kitchen (pictured before the renovation, left, and after)

Michaela, pictured, took to Instagram to document her journey and quickly built a following. She now has 208,000 fans on Instagram where she shares her tips for decorating on a shoestring budget

Making a house a home: The original 1980s property lacked character (left) but Michaela added texture and depth with home furnishings sourced from Zara Home, TK Maxx and Facebook Marketplace (right). She also added exposed wood shelving

Cost-saving: Michaela loved the look of ceiling beams but saved money by choosing hollow lengths of timber (as seen)

Home makeover for less! Michaela’s cost-saving ideas

Kitchen: New fridge, freezer and cabinet covers (vinyl instead of buying new), £500 

Flooring: DIY terrazzo flooring using paint chips and plain paint, £50 

Ceiling: Saved money by using four timber lengths, screwed into the ceiling joists, £500 

DIY dining table and chairs: £470 

Big expenses

Bathroom overhaul: £10,000

Double-sided log burner: £4,000

Rather than pay for new kitchen units, Michaela decided to cover her existing doors with a robust form of vinyl. 

She estimates it was 60 per cent cheaper than the cost of a new kitchen. The total cost of covering her cabinets and buying a new fridge and freezer was around £500.

Michaela said La Redoute, Ferm Living and Primark Home are her ‘go-to shops for amazing but cheap textiles and decorative pieces’.

One of the biggest expenses was the new wood burner, which cost £4,000. 

The homeowner took to Instagram to document her journey and quickly built a following.

She now has 208,000 fans on Instagram where she shares her tips for decorating on a shoestring budget. 

Eventually she started gaining enough traction that she was able to quit her job in communications to run the page full-time.  

On moving in, Michaela decided to lighten up the house and bring the outside in with a lot of neutral colours and plants. 

‘This resulted in a minimalist yet cosy Japandi interiors mashed up, whilst also giving a chic, contemporary feel to the space.

She sources most of her textiles and furnishings from Zara Home, TK Maxx and Facebook Marketplace.

Inspired by influential US designers Studio McGee, the couple installed wood beams across the living room ceiling. 

Worthy of a plush hotel: Inspiration for the master bedroom came from Soho House’s statement bedroom suites. Pictured, the bedroom before (left), which was bland and dated. Right, now the bedroom is filled with soft furnishings and clever storage

Adding character: In her dining and sitting room area (left) the interior expert knocked through the middle wall and installed a double-sided log burner which cost £4,000. Right, the wood beams, wood burning stove and DIY dining table and chairs

However rather than buying expensive solid wood beams, Michaela achieved the same effect for less. 

‘The beams are hollow, constructed out of 4 timber lengths, screwed into the ceiling joists,’ she said. 

The beams were varnished, the planks were screwed together and then screwed onto the ceiling and they cost Michaela £500 in total. 

In her dining room and sitting room area the interior expert knocked through the middle wall and installed a double-sided log burner which opened up the space. 

She also went as far as stencilling her conservatory floor to create a terrazzo tile design. 

She said: ‘I ordered paint chips and epoxy resin, painted the original floor tiles a few at a time then sprinkled the paint chips while the paint was wet in little sections.’ 

Major project: Michaela said her ‘builders couldn’t understand why I wanted to get rid of perfectly fine tiles’ in the bathroom

Modern oasis: The bathroom was gutted, reconfigured, retiled and had new fittings installed for under £10,000

Labour of love: One of her favourite projects has been the terrazzo flooring, which can be expensive to achieve professionally. Instead Michaela achieved the look by painting the base tiles then scattering paint chips on the wet paint. She used the effect in the conservatory (pictured before and after) and the kitchen, and it took her three-and-a-half weeks to complete



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