Making your home work for you
I’m amazed at how many homes just don’t work for the families that live in them. Its quite common that the house you bought is pretty similar to the day you first bought it.
You probably inherited the previous owners carpets, wallpaper, bathroom suites and kitchens and haven’t really had the time to do something about it. Since you moved in you might now have kids and your family life has grown, but I often find that the house hasn’t grown with you.
This is when people make the mistake of wanting to move rather than looking at the potential of the house they already have. Why move and pay huge amounts of stamp duty, legal fees, estate agents fees and removal costs when, with a bit of creative thinking, you can invest this money to make your current house the HOME you have always dreamed of.
Space
Make a list of all the space and rooms that, for whatever reason, don’t work in the house. You know the ones I mean. The open plan living room that you just haven’t managed to get the layout to work properly for you, the family bathroom that is just too small, the kitchen that just isn’t the family space you want it to be, or that extra bedroom you have always wanted that would really make the house work for you for the first time.
Think about the balance of the rooms, their size, how they are arranged and how they link together. If you list out all of the problem areas then you will naturally begin a list of possible solutions.
Consider adding sensible extensions or additional space to your home, such as ground floor rear extensions, loft conversions or a separate building in the garden to create a new study space or play room for the kids.
Look at changing the internal layout of the rooms, knocking through a wall for example to make your kitchen space connect with a dining area, or reconfiguring a bathroom space to make it bigger and more efficient.
I always try to make space work incredibly hard in a home and I can’t stand wasteful, unused spaces such as dark, dingy corridors or wasted loft spaces. Make every single square inch of space work for you and your inefficient house will be come a wonderful home.
Budget
But, be careful not to over-invest and over-renovate. Do what is right for you, your family, and your home but just as important is to do what is right for your budget. Don’t go borrowing money you can’t afford and making changes to your home that will break the bank or the dreaded credit crunch will come biting.
Sally
on Jun 9th, 2009
@ 10:31 am:
Hi George,
I feel I have to write and let you know how brilliant I think The home Show is. In the spring of 2004 my husband and I viewed our home (1900 sand stone terrace in Glasgow) and I was about 2 feet over the threashold when I knew it was the house for us. It was then another two and a half years before we actually moved into it, in that time we spent months discussing what we wanted to do with it, mentally knocking down walls and changing walk in cupboards into en suites, opening up the loft and adding extensions. We finally moved into the house in December 2007 and to our shame have done practically nothing. The fear of actually doing it stopping us all this time. Your show has given us the confidence (or kick up the backside!) that we really needed. We took a weekend down in London and visited Grand Designs Live and were lucky enough to catch your seminar which was excellent (My goodness you can talk!).
We are about to start approaching Architects but are we better telling them what we think we want first or telling them what doesn’t work and let them come up with their ideas first?
Keep up with the good work and I hope there are many more series of The Home Show to come!
Kind Regards,
Sally
Gillian Tognini
on Jul 5th, 2009
@ 5:56 am:
Hi George
Love the show.Never miss it. Can you tell me what the paint manufacturer/colours used in the Chalfont House (kitchen and lounge)were? Regards Gillian
M Johnson
on Jul 13th, 2009
@ 6:44 pm:
Hello – we got an architect in to help us with just this issue. Came up with a fantastic design that we loved, but completely forgot/ignored the fact we are living in a conservation area and the plans would never have got past planning. Now, somewhat poorer and disillusioned, we still face the same issues about space. Any suggestions on finding the right architect for the job?
vanessa pattenden
on Jul 20th, 2009
@ 10:54 am:
Dear george,
hi, i am in the position to buy my 2 bedroom semi-detached next year in august 2010, a council house in Cornwall near Trebarwith strand and i would love to ask you to do the renovation please.I am a single mum of one. i have 30,00-50,000 for the whole project and would dream of living in my home with relaxation and comfort.with your creativity..my back garden is 90ft long maybe more,therefore a extension would be appropriate for a extra bedroom.the attic is huge and loads of space being wasted.
.the house was built in the 1950′s and because I’m on a very tight budget i wouldn’t want anyone else to do the build but you george,it would be my dream come true if you could do the project for my house.i can only see myself next year buying the house and selling the house and moving into another house which is more or less the same.i would not want to do this as i would love to have a contemporary modern clean- cut,sleek pukka home with huge enormous wow factor.
thank you for your time.
yours sincerely
miss vanessa ann pattenden
Treknow
North Cornwall
Helen Howell
on Oct 15th, 2009
@ 9:09 am:
We have been wanting to move because the house doesn’t work but we know it can. We have lived here for 9yrs and love the village and have just been able to buy part of the field so we have a great plot.
We need someone to give us that vision with feeling. I have spoken to two architeches who want to do things their way but not listerning to what we need.
Our house is a five bed detatched dorma bungalow. I am interested in raising the roof and extending the kitchen. Please can you help?
philip shaw
on Nov 29th, 2009
@ 9:03 pm:
hi george love all your home show programmes
what my question is is that me and my partner and young daughter live in 3 bedroom semi detached house which is open plan(kitchen,living room)we are wanting to decorate it but we are not sure of how to decorate it being that the living room is open plan with the kitchen,so what is the best way to go about doing it because we dont want the decor to follow through into the kitchen.
we hope you can help with any idea.
yours sincerely
philip shore
Mario & Litsa
on Jan 10th, 2010
@ 8:21 pm:
We are a growing family that require more space and are thinking of extending at the rear (adding a downstairs toilet) and maybe even an outhouse at the end of the garden for the kids. Do you think this is a good idea or should we just move home? We also like your ideas and were wodering how we could apply for the show and have you come over to get the job done (if this is what we end up having to do).
Thanks
Margaret Douglas
on Mar 29th, 2010
@ 10:38 am:
Dear George, I get so much pleasure from watching you helping people to transform their lives by changing the layouts of the homes.
Over the years I have bought houses and ‘done them up’. Sold them on and started again. But I am 75yrs old now and we have bought a bungalow already built to our requirements but for one thing.
The Kitchen is at the front of the bungalow and the lounge is behind it and it follows through to a sun room. (We built this on six years ago. The Bungalow was built in 2001/2. We would like to bring more light into the Lounge by opening up part of the kitchen wall that backs up to it. Then use this as a Dining room. We have a separate dining room although smaller we would like to use this as a small sitting room. Do you think it would work. I very much look forward to hearing from you. We watched the programme on Sunday night,(28.03.2010) when you helped the couple to realise their dream. Your Heart and Soul shone through with the delight at this acheivement, and topping that saving the church for dereliction. Top Marks George. Keep up the good work. Margaret Douglas and Doug.
Julianne Manning
on Apr 24th, 2010
@ 6:28 am:
Hi George,
I’m from Sydney, Australia and have just watched one of your Home Show episodes and loved it. You transformed a family home into the perfect space for a young family of 5 just like ours. We have just bought our first home! The block is 580 square meters and the house is a very badly designed 3 bedder. Is it better to knock down and start again, or should we tackle the renovation?? To make things more interesting, the yard is a steep slope!
Looking forward to getting more ideas from the show! Thanks
Julianne Manning
Lovie
on May 17th, 2010
@ 9:45 pm:
George hi,
Can I have your opinion on “Home Ventilation Systems”. Do you have them there in the UK? You know the ones where they take either outside air or air from the roof cavity. Push it through filters to cleanse & heat before redistributed throughout your home, out with the old in with the new. Its been well advertised here in NZ for a wee while to try & beat condensation hence retaining heat lost. If your got poor insulation which is the sad case here in NZ, your going to lose the heat anyway. Love the shows even if we are probably years behind lol.
Thanks for taking the time to read, your input is invaluable, kia ora.
Take care
Lovie x
Jim Cecchin
on Jul 27th, 2010
@ 5:04 am:
George , I live in london, Ontario Canada. I am wondering is there a site where I can watch your shows online. All they are showing here in London is the Build a new Home series. Thanking you in advance for your time. J. Cecchin
LARRIEU
on Jan 26th, 2011
@ 1:08 pm:
Je suis une fan de l’émission HOME SHOW, et je trouve toutes les réalisations fantastiques.
J’ai une maison à améliorer en FRANCE dans les hautes Pyrénées, mais je n’ai jamais rencontré un professionnel de votre qualité. J’ai une maison de 160 M2 avec beaucoup de petites pièces inutilisables sur 2 niveaux. si vous voulez faire une émission dans les Pyrénées, choisissez mon projet.
Et continuez à nous faire rêver. En France il n’ y a personne comme vous.
Cordialement
ELIZABETH LARRIEU
blueberry
on Apr 7th, 2011
@ 12:02 pm:
hi Mr G I just wanna tell you that you are amazing!!!