INTERIOR trends come and go but when you have one that’s super easy to do and incredibly cheap, chances are it’s here to stay. DIY fanatics have since moved on from bold block colours and are creating trendy polka dot feature walls instead, which instantly transform a boring room into a super stylish space. You […]
INTERIOR trends come and go but when you have one that’s super easy to do and incredibly cheap, chances are it’s here to stay.
DIY fanatics have since moved on from bold block colours and are creating trendy polka dot feature walls instead, which instantly transform a boring room into a super stylish space.
You don’t have to be a whizz to execute it either as it couldn’t be easier to do, and people have been using various techniques and tools to get the job done.
From hand-painted dots to sticky-back cut-outs, you can let your creativity run wild – some even reckon vegetables help get the perfect look.
Don’t believe us? Well, one woman decided to create a feature wall in her bedroom, and she shunned paint brushes to use potatoes instead.
She used two spuds, each cut in half, and dipped it in black paint before transferring it to the wall.
Another thrifty mum-of-two also swapped out her brushes for an unlikely tool, using celery stalks to create the trendy design.
She managed to transform her kids’ bedroom into a gorgeous shared space for just £34 by creating a black leopard print design with paint tester pots.
She dipped the ends into paint before pressing the tops onto the wall, and added green and pink hues for a pop of colour.
The stylish trend isn’t limited to just bedrooms though, as one woman transformed her entire bathroom using the eye-catching spotty design – but not with black paint as you’d expect.
Sharing snaps of the transformation online, Chloe Carmichael, who runs Chloe’s Deal Club, revealed that she wanted a feature wall with trendy Dalmatian spots but various Etsy sellers were charging upwards of £70 for stick-on shapes
So armed with a scalpel and a roll of matt black self adhesive vinyl, she cut out shapes herself and arranged them on the wall.
She revealed it only cost her a tiny £4 to do, so that’s a saving of £66 just on the feature wall alone.
The benefit of using sticky-back plastic is that the spots are easily removable – so ideal if you change your mind on the design later on.
Elsewhere, another DIY fan used a £1.75 circular sponge she’d picked up form Wilkos to create the look for her son’s nursery.
And rather than using a bold black hue, the mum from Nottingham used a golden honey shade instead creating a softer look.
Or you can take it up a notch and swap spots for swipes as one woman did using a modern grey hue and the side of a sponge to spruce up her bland white hallway.
The best part about taking on the polka dot challenge is that you save a fortune on wallpaper while still getting the same stylish look.
According to Lick Home’s colour expert Tash Bradley, he polka dot trend has boomed recently, due to its ability to create a stylish statement in any room.
Speaking to Tyla, she said: “Using either one, or a variety of different sized paint brushes, you can easily create an irregular, soft pattern effect, which looks particularly amazing in hallways and bathrooms.
“Alternatively, a circle sponge is ideal for kids bedrooms, and I would recommend experimenting with three colours.”
Judy Smith, Crown Paints’s colour consultant, added: “Feature walls are a fantastic way to add visual interest and character to a room.
“Freehand paint effects give a confident touch to the space and can feel more personal than geometric designs, as they are just pure creativity. The best thing about them is that there are no rules to follow – the result is a ‘perfectly imperfect’ look.
“Start off by painting the base colour on your wall – this could be a crisp white or a neutral grey or beige. Then, mask around the wall or area to be ‘dotted’. With a large, soft brush paint dots freehand. Make sure you don’t forget the corners – the final effect should be fairly uniform, with the dots looking evenly spread across the feature wall.”
In other DIY news, this single mum spent five years overhauling her family home on a budget.
And we also shared how another mum saved £1.8k this year doing up her house on the cheap – picking up items from a skip and the TIP.
Plus a family totally revamp their worn out garden during lockdown complete with seating areas, a fireplace and a playground.
