HOW TO COMPLETELY MAKE OVER YOUR BEDROOM // when you only have a tiny budget

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If one thing has become abundantly clear over the past year – while we’ve all been unexpectedly housebound – it’s how much your surroundings can impact your state of mind.

I took advantage of the original lockdown to finally complete my bedroom makeover, and since then it’s been my quarantine oasis (especially now I’ve conquered my six-year battle with insomnia).

It’s where I sneak to get a break from homeschooling, my escape when the girls have taken over the lounge for Minecraft. On the weekends, it’s where I quietly slip away to watch the Real Housewives of Anywhere, without OH muttering ‘What’s this RUBBISH you’re watching?!’

I’ve invested a modest amount of renovation money, not to mention a chunk of my spare time, into making this room just right, and I’m thrilled with the transformation from small, bland box to stylish bedroom on a budget.

When we moved in 10 years ago, our house was a standard 1960s semi-detached, the likes of which you see in sleepy suburbs all over the UK. During our big home renovation, we brought it into the 21st-century with a complete makeover, adding another bedroom, and loads more space to the downstairs living areas.

But – despite our ambitious plans – we were limited by the footprint of our plot. This meant the original bedrooms remained their same modest size, and lacked built-in wardrobes.

When you’re working with small spaces you need to think cleverly to make the most of every square inch. One of the first things I did was order a custom made mirror custom to exactly fit the alcove behind the bedroom door, which instantly added light and the illusion of depth to the room.

Then, I picked up a round mirror from William Wood (still available on their website for £80) to sit on top of my existing chest of drawers. Again, this added some depth to the room, making it appear more spacious.

My quest for a stylish bedroom on a budget was off to a great (and well-priced) start.

Next, I got rid of the bulky freestanding wardrobe and replaced it with a contemporary hanging rail with a more compact footprint, which I got from John Lewis for the bargain price of £120.

The Fjällbo shelf above was from Ikea, and set me back just £25.

I’d always admired a black wall, but never quite had the courage to go to the dark side myself. Now I knew – it was time to take the plunge.

Even while I was painting over the previously light grey walls, I was nervous the dark shade would make the room seem smaller. Luckily, it looked just as I’d envisaged it – cosy and inviting, without closing in the space.

I had the the paint colour-matched to Farrow & Ball’s Off Black, and painted the entire room for less than £50.

The dark venetian blind was next to go – replaced with an elegant roller blind. I absolutely fell in love with this Blinds Direct double blind, which cost £128, that had a black blackout blind in front and a light-grey privacy blind underneath.

This meant I could roll the blackout blind down at night time, but during the day I could just keep the sheer privacy blind in place; this opened up the room by allowing in loads of lovely diffused light.

I’d have loved to replace the worn-out carpet, or taken the Scandi-chic look one step further and looked into parquet flooring prices, but we had more urgent renovation projects to sort out first.

So, I did the next best (much cheaper) thing, and bought a modern geometric rug to cover the old carpet and instantly bring it up to date. This one was from Next (similar styles are still available online – search geometric rug) and cost me £115.

My old bed got a makeover of its own, with some gorgeous new Dusk linen (they have some brilliant sales – my duvet cover, fitted sheet and bedspread came in under £150), and some velvet cushions from Made.com (£35 for two).

A couple of Juniqe art prints and some pot plants later, and my stylish bedroom on a budget was complete.

The entire transformation was carried out for less than £500 – my cosy lockdown bolthole, and worth every penny.