Indholdsfortegnelse for December 2022 i Style At Home

If everything goes to plan, my new kitchen should be finished in time for Christmas, and I can’t wait to deck the halls, big time! But I need to do it on a (very) tight budget, so it’s time to get creative. Luckily, this issue is packed with brilliant, not-too-spendy ideas to help you make a decorating splash, without breaking the bank. Speedy Style Updates, from page 76, has everything from table decor to DIY wreaths. There are some things I love to craft myself every year, and an Advent calendar is one of them. We’ve got some brilliant how-tos on page 101 if you fancy doing the same. Making your own simple decs and gifts not only saves money, it’s a great way to fill your home with special,…

Why choose one colour when you can learn how to paint two-tone walls? If you’ve fallen in love with a paint shade but don’t want to cover an entire wall, a two-tone wall effect is the perfect solution. The combinations are endless, but a darker shade on the bottom with a lighter colour above will help make your rooms look taller. Don’t overcomplicate it Aaron Markwell, colour lead at Coat Paints says, ‘My number-one rule for two-tone paint schemes is keep it simple. Colour-blocking is key. If you’re decorating your hallway for example, do the dado rail, the wall below and skirting in the same colour. Bold colours are best for the bottom half to ground the scheme.’ Stick to the same family ‘The best approach is to use different…

A kitchen island can offer huge benefits, from extra storage and a central cooking zone to a sociable space for family and friends. From height to overhang, there’s a lot to think about, so we’ve narrowed down the essentials. Leave sufficient space Allow enough room for more than one person to move easily between the island and the cabinets around the kitchen perimeter. Ensure that you can open doors and drawers safely and aim to keep at least 1m between the island and surrounding walls or appliances. Get the height right An island should be high enough to be comfortable standing while cooking, as well as to pull up a stool. ‘Breakfast-bar height is typically in line with the worktop counter, with standard counter-high stools most common,’ says Lizzie Beesley…

Lack of space can make living rooms feel crowded, which isn’t ideal in a room where you want to kick back and relax. Working out how to make a small living room look bigger has its challenges, but there are simple techniques and easy tricks that can make it feel miles more spacious. Invest in a large rug When it comes to rugs, big is better in a small living room. It might seem counterintuitive, but a large rug can help to stretch the space, drawing the eye and making the floor area feel bigger. A large rug will also act as an anchor point for living room furniture – go for one that is as large as (or even wider than) your sofa. Let more light in Natural light…

Use outdoor pots Bring in planters from the garden to make a rustic table centrepiece. Fill a few pots with sand and pop a candle in each. Top with a layer of moss, trail with greenery and group in the centre of your table. Give it a twist Add colour by working a few bright berries or mini baubles into the foliage. Make napkin Christmas trees Add a festive touch by folding fabric napkins into miniature Christmas tree shapes. Use square napkins folded into simple triangles or pleat to create a layered effect, dotted with mini pine cones to decorate. Give it a twist Use green napkins and coloured pompoms to add a splash of festive colour. Go big with gold and glassware Bring out your best dinnerware and glass…

We’d just completed a four-year renovation on a house nearby, and Henry was only three months old, so we weren’t looking to move,’ says Stacey. ‘But when we saw this beautiful house for sale I convinced Chris to view it, and the moment I stepped inside, I fell in love. It had been empty for years, but had obviously once been a charming home that was crying out to be loved again. In the beginning The bathroom had been updated by the previous owners, so although it wasn’t to my taste, it was functional and there was more pressing work to tackle. We’ll usually give anything a go, but the bathroom felt like a major job as I wanted to incorporate a freestanding bath and redesign the room to be…

Few of us have the luxury of a separate dining room these days. For most of us, a dining table is part of an open-plan living room or is the epicentre of a busy kitchen. And for some, it still houses our work-from-home station. Dedicated dining room or otherwise, we need to be clever about where we store all the bits and pieces that make mealtimes possible. From smart integrated storage and multifunctional furniture to well-designed, wall-height shelving and stylish showcase cabinets for displaying crockery, we’ve got the ideas to make your dining space run more smoothly and efficiently, keeping it neat and tidy, too. UTILISE EVEN MORE WALL SPACE Max out on space by installing a whole wall of shelving and divide it into cubby-holes of varying sizes. Display…

Christmas just wouldn’t be complete without a cheerful, red poinsettia. Most people are familiar with this crimson plant, but breeding has produced many different shades and colours, from peach, deep maroon and cinnamon to pink, yellow, apricot and even white. Modern varieties also vary in size and leaf shape, with textures ranging from soft velvet to ripples and furled edges. Poinsettias can be fussy plants and without the right conditions and care, they will start to droop quickly after Christmas and die. To ensure yours lasts long beyond the festive season, make sure it doesn’t get caught in a cold draught. Always place poinsettias in a warm spot in good light away from radiators, and water them only when the compost has dried out. Read on for more…

BOOK CHRISTMAS TREE YOU WILL NEED An old book Craft knife Glue Glitter Double-sided tape 1 CUT INTO SECTIONS Use the pages of old books to create a vintage-look table decoration. Take a section of a book and separate off the spine with a craft knife – you’ll need at least 20 pages. 2 FOLD THE PAGES Take the first page, and fold the leaf in half towards the spine on the diagonal. Stick into place with double-sided tape, then repeat with the other pages. 3 ADD GLITTER Gather the edges together and paste with glue. Sprinkle with glitter and allow to dry. Then fan out and pop on a plate. DOME CENTREPIECE YOU WILL NEED Mini boxes Gift wrap and ribbon Double-sided tape Glass dome Wrap boxes in…

TIME AT HOME We’re all looking for ways to reduce how much energy we use at home right now. And as the nights grow colder, keeping warm without being hit with a massive energy bill is becoming more and more of a challenge. Electric blankets are the perfect winter warmer, making getting into bed extra cosy on a chilly evening, but are they a cost-effective remedy or responsible for pushing up our monthly bills? How does an electric blanket work? Electric blankets contain small electrical wires inside the fabric and when turned on, these wires heat the fabric. There are several types: an electric underblanket covers the mattress up to the pillow area; heated mattress covers reach across the entire mattress, but don’t have wiring under the pillow area; and…

These paper decorations from Talking Tables make a stylish, sustainable statement. The paper fans can be hung on the wall or from the tree, while the tissue-paper trees create the perfect table centrepiece. Simply fold flat to use again next year.…

For our furry friends For the homebodies For the foodies For the cool kids…

1 Make a rustic wooden tree ornament Add a traditional touch to your Christmas scheme by crafting your own tree ornaments from wooden twigs. To start, take two long sturdy twigs and join together with a hot glue gun, then twist wreath wire around them to support. Cut and lay out the crosswise twigs in pairs, going from small to large. Starting at the top, with the smallest pieces, glue a twig either side of the central one and secure it with wreath wire for extra support. Repeat, sticking pairs of twigs, getting larger, until you’ve created a triangular tree shape. Leave enough trunk free to push into a pot of compost, then finish with moss and faux berries. 2 CRAFT A CANDY CANE WREATH The kids will love this…

If you’re renovating your bathroom, chances are you have tiles on your shopping list. A striking style, colour or pattern can transform your bathroom in an instant, but it’s worth pricing up the job in advance. How much does it cost to tile a bathroom? The average outlay to tile walls and floors in a medium-size bathroom, including tiles, materials and labour, is around £700-800 (according to Checkatrade). The type of material that tiles are made from will have the biggest impact on costs and can vary considerably. ‘More durable materials are more expensive to produce, explains Kamila Swiatecka, Brand Manager at Tile Giant. ‘For example, porcelain tiles cost more to manufacture compared with ceramic tiles. However, porcelain is denser, less porous and more hardwearing, making it long-lasting and better…

Christmas is a super-busy time of year with events to organise, presents to buy and the house to prep. Ticking off a few tasks in advance will make you feel better prepared. Whether it’s clearing out the fridge to make space for festive fare, organising bedding for Christmas guests, or draught-proofing ideas to beat the winter chill, there’s plenty you can tackle in advance to make the big day stress-free. Get your fireplace winter-ready If you have a fireplace or wood-burner, have it inspected and the chimney cleaned by a professional sweep once a year (or about once every 80 fires) as built-up soot is a fire hazard. Clean out the firebox weekly using a fireplace shovel to remove the ashes, making sure they are cold first, then using a…

BEST WHEN ON A BUDGET VAX ONEPWR BLADE 4 TYPE CordlessSTYLE StickDUST TANK CAPACITY 0.6ltrWEIGHT 3.1kgPRICE £169 Budget-friendly, but surprisingly high performance, you’ll find cleaning a breeze. Its clever design makes cleaning underneath furniture, around corners and in hard-to-get-to areas easy, while its floor-head rotation means minimal wrist work to manoeuvre. It’s exceptionally lightweight and has a superb battery life, which can also be boosted with a back-up battery, so you don’t have to wait to recharge. It filters everything it captures, including pet hair, into a removable bin that can easily be removed for simple, hygienic emptying. For efficiency, it has a nifty brushless motor, offering the perfect balance of performance and intelligence, which monitors how much power you need. It comes with a crevice tool and dusting brush,…

If you want a bold scheme that’s going to fuel excitement for the little ones and conjure up all the nostalgic feels for the grown-ups, then nothing beats the cheerful combo of red and white candy stripes. Go all-out for a striking scene that will create festive memories and put everyone in a jolly good mood for the holiday season.…

It was Christmas 2019 when my husband Andrew got restless and suggested moving home, and by the end of January we’d moved into a brand-new four-bedroom detached house,’ says Gemma. ‘Having lived in our first home (a three-bedroom semi in Gateshead) for seven years, we wanted to buy something bigger as we both work from home. I’d grown up in new-build homes and used to work for a developer, so I pulled together a spreadsheet of 35 show home sites across the North East. Over three days we visited them all, but ended up back at the first one – a Bellway estate in Killingworth, Newcastle. Sociable style We’re party people so loved the Acacia house type with its open-plan kitchen-diner and living area leading onto a south-facing rear garden.…

We really didn’t have to move very far when we bought our new home – this house was just over the road in fact!’ says Ashley. ‘We lived opposite, so we knew the road and the neighbours already, and when we went to view it we could see it had lots of space and potential – so much so that we couldn’t resist it when it went up for sale. The property was actually out of our price range to begin with, but as the months passed by and the price dropped we took the plunge and bagged ourselves a great project. Although the layout wasn’t quite right for us, it was more a matter of knocking down walls to create a better flow rather than extending, which appealed to…

Being raised in South Africa meant Christmas for me used to be spent by the pool,’ says Justin. ‘December is midsummer there, so it’s all cold meats and salads, and ice cream for pudding! It’s 35 degrees and the last thing you want is a hot dinner. But I love Christmas in the UK, getting warm and cosy, and lighting the fire when it’s snowy… I actually prefer it.’ Starting point We wanted to be able to welcome mine and Zunaid’s friends and family in to enjoy the house at Christmas, and now that we’ve finally completed a top-to-bottom renovation, we can. The property looked a lot different when we first bought it in 2017, but we were determined to get on the property ladder after years of renting. We…

SPLURGE Blow the budget with these top picks USE HINTS OF BLACK, SUCH AS A LAMPSHADE OR SIDE TABLE, TO KEEP THE SCHEME CONTEMPORARY STEAL Grab a style bargain with these budget buys…

Invest in solar-powered jar lights and use the winter sun to create the loveliest lanterns that are perfect for an open porch or doorway. Decorate jars with glitter tape, cut into narrow triangles and stuck onto the glass to create icicles. Place a mini bristle tree inside each lantern, then watch them glow as night falls.…

HANGING PACKAGES YOU WILL NEED Gift boxes Mini paper bags Number stickers Twine Round scarf hangers 1 NUMBER PACKAGES Hide mini gifts or foil-wrapped chocolates in 24 handled gift boxes and bags. Then add 1 to 24 number stickers to each. 2 TIE THEM UP Cut varying lengths of coloured string or baker’s twine and tie them to each package. 3 HANG ON THE WALL Tie the gifts to the hangers in a staggered arrangement before hanging them on wall hooks. CONJURER’S CUPS YOU WILL NEED Paper cups in varying sizes Gift wrap and stickers Glue gun Pine cones, foliage and bottle-brush trees 1GRAB SOME CUPS Decorate a sideboard, mantel or console table with festive treats hidden under paper cups. Start by choosing cups in a selection of sizes. 2…

MARSHMALLOW SNOWMEN TAKES 30 MINS MAKES ABOUT 15-20 1 packet of Ginger Nut biscuits 1 packet of white marshmallows 1 packet of large chocolate buttons Box of mint Matchmakers 1 packet of Reese’s mini peanut butter cups 1 tube of chocolate icing FOR ROYAL ICING 3 egg whites 600g icing sugar 1tsp liquid glucose 1 First make the royal icing. Whisk the egg whites until lightly whipped, adding the icing sugar a few spoonfuls at a time. Whisk continuously until the icing sugar is incorporated. Add the liquid glucose. Keep whisking until the icing thickens and it reaches stiff peaks. It should be shiny and smooth, and with a consistency that is thick, but spreadable. 2 Taking one ginger biscuit at a time, spread icing on top. Push a marshmallow…

Cook it TIME AT HOME TURKEY & PARSNIP ONE-POT PIE 1 sheet ready-rolled puff pastry 100g diced pancetta 1 large leek, sliced ½ savoy cabbage, shredded 1tbsp cornflour 1tbsp Dijon mustard 200ml white wine 200g button mushrooms, halved 3 parsnips, chopped 400g cooked turkey cut into chunks 1 egg, beaten YOU WILL NEED Ovenproof dish 1 Cut a piece of pastry the size of your oven dish, then put in the fridge. Heat the oven to 190C/Gas 5. 2 In a large pan, cook the pancetta until golden. Remove, leaving the fat in the pan and add the leek. Sweat with a lid on over a low heat for 10 mins, stirring occasionally, until softened. Mix in the cabbage and cornflour, put the lid on and sweat for 10 mins,…