Home makeover: 'Our summer wedding inspired the colours in our new home'

When decorating her 1930s property, Diandra Gardner chose the palette from her wedding, as these colours hold lots of fond memories

Home makeover: 'Our summer wedding inspired the colours in our new home'

Published: May 4, 2021 at 1:55 pm

When house-hunting, Diandra and Samuel Gardner struck gold with the first property they viewed.

‘We booked in seven house viewings in one day and this house was the one we saw first thing. As soon as I walked in, I got good vibes from the space, and I loved the period features,’ explains Diandra.

Diandra chose purse-friendly pieces with a high-end look, like the IKEA table and Wayfair rug. The quotation at the centre of her gallery wall is an art print version of the cake topper from their wedding day
Diandra chose purse-friendly pieces with a high-end look, like the IKEA table and Wayfair rug. The quotation at the centre of her gallery wall is an art print version of the cake topper from their wedding day

‘This house set the bar high and as a consequence none of the other houses we saw that day were in the same league. We put an offer in as soon as we could because we were frightened about losing our potential dream home.’

For her bright, affordable cushions and throws, Diandra shops at Homesense. She looks out for tactile, textured fabrics to create a luxurious feel on a budget
For her bright, affordable cushions and throws, Diandra shops at Homesense. She looks out for tactile, textured fabrics to create a luxurious feel on a budget

After renting in London for two years, the couple were ready to take that first step on the property ladder.

‘As a child, I remember enjoying family day trips to Southend. I’d always wanted to move closer to the coast and yet we’re still only an hour from London by train. It was the perfect location for us both and the houses prices were reasonable, too.’

Diandra painted the chimney breast in Racer Green from Dulux, and added a canvas print of the couple in their wedding car. ‘This original fireplace was one of the reasons I fell in love with this house,’ she explains. ‘We’re saving up to put in a working fire one day’
Diandra painted the chimney breast in Racing Green from Dulux, and added a canvas print of the couple in their wedding car. ‘This original fireplace was one of the reasons I fell in love with this house,’ she explains. ‘We’re saving up to put in a working fire one day’

Buying the house had eaten up the last of their savings, so when it came to decorating their new home there was very little money leftover.

‘We’d got married the previous summer and all our cash had gone on the wedding,’ Diandra explains. ‘We moved in with a couple of suitcases of clothes, a guitar and a mattress. That was it. We were starting from scratch!’

Diandra had unexpected good luck with her dining table – as the company made a mistake with delivery, they gave it to her for free! ‘I love the rustic wooden tabletop and black metal legs, and I styled it with black wooden chairs from IKEA,’ she says
Diandra had unexpected good luck with her dining table – as the company made a mistake with delivery, they gave it to her for free! ‘I love the rustic wooden tabletop and black metal legs, and I styled it with black wooden chairs from IKEA,’ she says

Her in-laws helped clean the house from top to bottom, so it was ready to move in. ‘Our plan was to call in the help of family and friends to decorate and furnish the house, but then lockdown happened and suddenly our plans changed! It was just the two of us left to renovate the house. Luckily, we both love a challenge.’

Welcome to our home...

We are Diandra Gardner (on Instagram @homeandaway_dg), 28, a scientific research consultant, and my husband Samuel, 29, a music tour manager.

Our home is a 1930s, three-bedroom, semi-detached property in Southend-On-Sea.

Diandra Gardner

Overall, the house was in great condition, with a fairly new kitchen, but the décor was a little underwhelming to say the least.

‘All the walls were painted magnolia or cream, and there was an ugly brown carpet laid throughout the house. There was the odd feature wall painted in baby blue, which felt cold and unwelcoming.’

The couple are always looking for thrifty solutions, so plan to include elements of their current kitchen in a future extension. ‘We may use the carcass of this kitchen in the new design, and then we only need to buy door fronts,’ explains Diandra
The couple are always looking for thrifty solutions, so plan to include elements of their current kitchen in a future extension. ‘We may use the carcass of this kitchen in the new design, and then we only need to buy door fronts,’ explains Diandra

Not able to wait any longer, within weeks of moving in Diandra and Samuel had ripped up all the carpet and had new, grey carpets put down.

‘With hindsight, we should have waited until we painted the walls but as we were sleeping on the floor, I couldn’t wait any longer.’

Although they’d like a new kitchen, Diandra has made the existing one their own with DIY touches. She fitted the shelves herself and decorated the jars with vinyl letters from Kady’s Creations
Although they’d like a new kitchen, Diandra has made the existing one their own with DIY touches. She fitted the shelves herself and decorated the jars with vinyl letters from Kady’s Creations

With lockdown giving them more spare time to work on the house, the couple could take on the main DIY tasks themselves.

‘With Samuel’s music tours cancelled, he had time on his hands for the bulk of the DIY. To save money, he fitted the carpets himself and laid the wooden flooring in the living spaces,’ explains Diandra.

‘We painted a wall black to create the look of a chalkboard,’ says Diandra, using Durable Liberty by GoodHome at B&Q. Copper art from Let’s Be Wired pops with the black wall behind it
‘We painted a wall black to create the look of a chalkboard,’ says Diandra, using Durable Liberty by GoodHome at B&Q. Copper art pops with the black wall behind it

It took the couple three weeks to paint the house from top-to-bottom.

‘We might have been quicker, but I kept changing my mind on the colours for the room. I quickly found that B&Q became my second home as I popped by there so often.’

Samuel stripped back the floor in Diandra’s home office to reveal stunning original floorboards. Diandra plans to add orange tones to energise the space now she’s working from home full-time
Samuel stripped back the floor in Diandra’s home office to reveal stunning original floorboards. Diandra plans to add orange tones to energise the space now she’s working from home full-time

In the end, Diandra decided to choose the same colours for her home that she picked out for her wedding day.

Diandra painted their bedroom in Vence by GoodHome at B&Q – a soft, atmospheric navy that creates a restful look. She found the plush grey bed for £200 through Wowcher
Diandra painted their bedroom in Vence by GoodHome at B&Q – a soft, atmospheric navy that creates a restful look. She found the plush grey bed for £200 through Wowcher

‘We had spent ages choosing our wedding theme, which was green, black and white with bits of silver. These colours had been used on the invitations, flowers and menus on our big day. And Samuel even wore a khaki tux jacket. As we love this colour combination, it made sense to use this palette throughout our home.’

A bit more about our home...

My best bargain was my grey sofa, which I picked up for £10.

Shops I love are Dunelm, Homesense, The Range, and when I visit the USA I make a stop at Home Goods.

I learned that If something goes wrong you can always fix it if you don’t like it – you can repaint walls, move shelving and rehang art. There are always ways to change things if you don’t like how it turned out.

Diandra's home

Over the next few months, the house started to take shape. ‘As we were not going out as much, we could save money to spend on bigger furniture items,’ she says.

‘And I love a bargain, so I spent hours shopping around online looking for bigger pieces at prices we could afford. We just had to be patient with delivery times, but slowly we got there.’

To contrast with the bedroom’s navy walls, Diandra chose a Flora Nouveau Peacock print from Dunelm for her first go at wallpapering. ‘We chickened out of using it in the living room,’ she says. ‘But in here I felt we could be a little braver with pattern’
To contrast with the bedroom’s navy walls, Diandra chose a Flora Nouveau Peacock print from Dunelm for her first go at wallpapering. ‘We chickened out of using it in the living room,’ she says. ‘But in here I felt we could be a little braver with pattern’

They have big plans for this house, including extending across the back of the house by installing a larger new kitchen.

It took Diandra three attempts to get the guest room painted the right colour, until she found the perfect shade of calming green
It took Diandra three attempts to get the guest room painted the right colour, until she found the perfect shade of calming green

‘With every room that is decorated, I’m getting a little braver when it comes to choosing colours and patterns,’ she says.

The couple plan to replace the bathroom with a free-standing bath and new tiling, but for now they’ve added pretty lilac touches to the current neutral space
The couple plan to replace the bathroom with a free-standing bath and new tiling, but for now they’ve added pretty lilac touches to the current neutral space

‘This house has taught me to be more confident in my design choices, and after renovating it on our own we’re certainly not afraid to give things a try to create a home we love.’

Feature Maxine Brady. Photos David Giles.

This is a digital version of a feature that originally appeared in Your Home magazine. For more inspirational home ideas, why not subscribe today?

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