My garden full of plants is completely unrecognizable after I donated for £100, here’s how you can transform your garden too
A WOMEN who has completely transformed her garden with just £100 has shared her top tips on how you can do the same.
Becky Lane, 34, and husband Adam, 33, recently moved to the countryside in Surrey, having previously lived in London.
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Using her experience from previous projects, the mother decided to turn her dull concrete patio area into the perfect place to relax.
The empty space has been replaced with white flooring, floorboards, outdoor furniture, trees and light.
Share pictures of the project with Instagram account @ 21oakhamBecky explains the house is the third renovation project they have undertaken.
She told MyToolShed: “With summer fast approaching, we wanted to create a space to relax and unwind but save money.
“We start by jet washing the entire yard. Then I remove all the dead shrubs and weeds.
“After the paving was washed, we painted it with white paint. It acted as a primer but also allowed us to see all the cracks a lot more easily in the paving.
“My husband has been watching a number of YouTube videos on how to use pre-mixed grout to fill all the cracks.
“We raised the pots we found in the garden that were left behind by the previous owner with white masonry paint to give them a new life.”
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Becky revealed that the garden transformation was thanks to bargains from Ikea and Facebook Marketplace.
She explains: “Ikea is our all-time favorite, we also love the Facebook Marketplace for forklifts – we got a rusty old swing frame from the Facebook Marketplace that we bought spray paint our yard black and add a swing chair which we now have nicknamed the ‘adult water chair’.
“Also, I’ve found if you create a mood board looking at your favorite Instagram or Pinterest account it’s really helpful. Start with a vision and shop with that guide.
“Don’t shop without a clear end goal because you could end up with loads of random pieces.”
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And this isn’t the first time Becky and Adam have gone through a transformation project.
In 2014, the couple bought a two-bedroom flat in South East London for £175,000. A year later, they sold it for £285,000.
And although Becky said she would have struggled to assemble flat Ikea furniture a few years ago, they’ve done most of the refurbishment work themselves.
“We’re always looking for the worst house on the best street – somewhere with the potential to make money for us,” she said. Somewhere with really good schools and really important transport links.
“We both moved into a family home and saved £10,000 each for a deposit on our first apartment. We’re definitely not rich. I’m saving every penny of my earnings.
“When we arrived, we didn’t have children, but we missed out on a lot of our social lives, such as vacations with friends. When we earned that money, it pushed us to say, ‘This is what we’re going to do in the future’.
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“We used the profits from the apartment as a springboard. Without it, we would never have made the deposit for the Bromley house. We did it and made money.
“We added £160,000 to the value of the second home we bought, the one in Bromley, after spending £30,000 and working for 18 months. We tore the whole house apart.
“It has crazy rugs and a butter bath. It hasn’t been touched in decades. When we pulled up the rug, underneath were articles from the 60s.
“We did it room by room. We moved the kitchen from the front of the house to the back because in modern places everyone wants to go straight from the kitchen to the garden. We went into the dining room to make an open plan kitchen, but we didn’t do anything big – we didn’t build an extension or do a loft extension.
“It’s mostly cosmetics, changing the bathroom, bedroom, and decor. Every minute we have free time we remodel. Adam and I both work full-time, so we’ll do the housework in evenings and weekends – even when I’m eight months pregnant.”
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Becky and Adam did not touch the plumbing or electricity themselves. But they do everything else, with the help of their family and YouTube tutorials.
“My brother-in-law is a carpenter, so he helped us install the kitchen,” she explains. That saved us a lot of money. My dad showed us how to stack and we watch YouTube videos all the time. I have a do-it-yourself attitude and would try any project if there was a video about it.
“For each room, I would make a ‘mood board’ using wallpaper templates and create a Pinterest file that I could keep coming back to. If we can do this, anyone can. I refuse to pay for anything I can do myself. With all of this in mind, the time has come. When the kids were asleep, we just did it.
I have a do-it-yourself attitude and will try any project if there is a video about it.
Becky Lane
“There were a lot of nights when we came home from work tired and didn’t want to work. But if you don’t, it’ll never be done – or you’ll pay the price in labor.
“It’s hard for the kids but in the long run the kids will reap the benefits. In fact, they have benefited. We went from a construction site in London to living in the countryside in Surrey with horses riding through our windows.
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“It’s always a relief when you sell a place, knowing that you are finally being rewarded for all the hours and money you put in.”
Despite spending £3,000 on a Howdens kitchen, they bought most of their furniture from low-priced retailers such as Poundland, The Range, B&M, Dunelm and Ikea.
If you have a can of spray paint, you can speed up anything.
Becky Lane
Becky added: “I want to shop at places like made.com but we can’t afford it. You can get really nice pieces on the highway.
“Facebook Marketplace is great for buying everything cheap. Then you can make them look better. My favorite forklift is my Ikea vanity. The unit is £80 and it costs £20 to do it.
“We sprayed the frame with gold paint and covered it with marbled resin. It gives the room a dramatic look and isn’t expensive at all. If you have a can of spray paint, you can upgrade anything.
“I also love my rocking chair. I bought a rope swing from B&M for £30, then got a free frame from a rusty kid’s swing on Facebook Marketplace and spray painted it black to match. It will cost around £100 and is a great alternative to an egg chair.
“Adam did a paneled wall that turns the dining room into something pretty grand. It only cost £62 but we got a professional quote for £500. We didn’t splurge on anything. nothing but houses.”
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They say the four-bedroom Surrey bungalow is “a real project”.
“We have downsized but the money we save will be used to renovate, expand and make it bigger than where we were before,” says Becky.
“We have generated £270,000 worth of equity in six or seven years. There’s no way we can get there by saving. You have to make money from astronomy.
“We hope this will be our ‘forever’ home. I’ve got a vision and it will take a long time to get there – but I know we can do it.”
https://www.thesun.ie/fabulous/8219442/grotty-garden-totally-unrecognisable/ My garden full of plants is completely unrecognizable after I donated for £100, here’s how you can transform your garden too