An oriental garden room makeover

On average, shoppers spend 29 days researching ideas before kicking off a project, and then spend  £243 on updating their home décor. I was recently challenged by HomeBase to spend £243 in store on a room makeover. When i first received the vouchers, i thought about all the rooms in our house that we could do up but only a few weeks ago, my husband lost his dad. He had been terminally ill for sometime and he and his wife had to move out of their family home where they bought up my husband and his brothers into a bungalow so he had space to move around in a wheelchair and be able to get to all the rooms in the house. Gilles's mum ended up being a full time carer and didn't ever get a real chance to decorate their new house. They have a beautiful sun room which ended up being a bit of a dumping ground and i thought it would be so lovely to be able to transform the room for her into a peaceful, quiet place for her to sit in the sun and enjoy a cup of tea. 

When i phoned her to tell her that i wanted to give something back to her and give her the vouchers to spend, her reaction made me really happy. Being a blogger and photographer, you sometimes get amazing opportunities come your way and to be able to give something to her that would make her every day life just that little bit happier made me feel amazing. I made a Pinterest board of some ideas for home interior makeovers and then I took her to the big HomeBase in Milton Keynes and i helped her pick out all the bits and pieces she wanted for the sun room. She loves buddhas and loves oriental things, so we decided to go for that as a theme. She first picked out the paint for the room which was a warm pumpkin colour. After she had picked out a colour, it was easier to pick out accessories for the rest of the room. We decided to create a peaceful corner and she filled the trolley with things that she loved. 

We took the weekend to clear the space, sort out what was being kept and what needed to go to the tip and get painting before arranging the area and creating the space for her. The room is filled with all the things that her husband had collected over the years and she didn't even have anywhere she could sit in there. Here was the room to begin with

The room is so light and dreamy with door that open up onto a wrap around patio that then leads into the garden. The doors can be opened and with some lovely outside plants and potted flowers, having the patio filled with them would bring an even more enchanting feel into the room. 

I really wanted to make this such a useful space for her. We painted all the walls which completely transformed the room! We added some cushions onto the chairs, a new rug and table and a few wall pictures. We also managed to get some new candle holders and some solar panelled bamboo lights. My favourite thing we got was the butterfly palm plant. It brings everything together and creates that oriental garden room look we were going for. 

We are all so pleased with the end results. Everything we bought managed to come together and create that peaceful space i wanted to create for her. She now has a calming area that she can sit in and watch the birds in the garden and have her breakfast. It looks like a completely different room and i couldn't be happier that i managed to do this for her. Just seeing how excited she was as the room was being transformed made it all worth it. After years of being selfless and being a full time carer, she deserves something that is just for her. 

What we bought: Table, dulux paint in wheat honey 2, woven rug, butterfly wall art, Buddha canvas, Butterfly palm plant, candle holders, cushions, bamboo lights

(I received £243 of homebase vouchers for the purpose of this makeover. All opinions are my own)