Mantras for a SUCCESSFUL reno 👷🏻‍♀️💯

Building our first home was a very expensive endeavour (and the most money we had spent in our lives, apart from on the house) 💸 It’s also the one project where we had to make many decisions and purchases within a short span of time, so there were many times it got a little overwhelming 😮‍💨

To make things easier, we had several mantras whenever we had to make big decisions:

1️⃣🤑 BUY ONCE, CRY ONCE

Because we planned to stay in our place for a long time and wanted to use the same items for as long as possible, we chose to splurge on more expensive but very reputable items so that our items could last a long time (e.g., reputable ID, good quality fixtures & appliances, tiled floors, quartz counters). This would mean that although we had to spend more upfront, ultimately we would save money because our items would last a longer time.

2️⃣☝🏼 FUNCTION, THEN FORM

We ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS thought about how we were going to use something before deciding what to buy. We wanted items and features that were easy to use, easy to maintain, had good flow throughout the home and provided what we needed. We made these things a priority FIRST, then designed aesthetics around that.

3️⃣😍 ONLY BUY THINGS YOU LIKE

Things at home are something you see every day and can really change your mood, so it’s super important to buy things that spark joy because they can make you happy! This mantra was also super useful when we were stuck on choosing laminates, because there were so many options. We’ve also realized that as long as you choose things you like, all the different items will work well together because they just fit your taste.

4️⃣🏠 BUILD ON YOUR HOME’S CHARACTER

I think many of us are very inspired by many different designs, but we can’t have them all! At the same time, each of our homes has a unique placement with its own layout, and one thing that gives our homes character is capitalizing on the unique opportunities that the layout/build of our home offers. For us, that meant going with a feature backsplash, feature tile in our bathroom, and wall shelves (will share more on this next time!)

Five months on, we’re happy with many of the decisions we made, so hopefully these mantras would help you too! 💯 Save this post for your reno & follow us for more! ❤️

#home #homeandliving #homereno #homedecor #hdb #hdbbto #reno #renovation #adulting101