empress interior design
Your home should tell the story of who you are, and be a collection of what you love - Nate Berkus
For as long as I could remember I’ve always enjoyed home improvements and interior design. Although my passion lies very much in midwifery and writing; I love that you can create your own private world around you in your own space. Now interior design doesn’t have to cost a lot to give the look you are after - yes you can do luxury on a budget! Many of the stores i go to are ikea, supermarkets (sainsbury’s and asda) as well as stores like b&m and wilkos.
Further images can be found in the interior gallery, links where possible are also added.
The rule of 2/3, yeah I’ve literally just made that up,m but I tend to find that whenever I purchase some ornaments, photo frame etc I always tend to go for 2 or 3 of these for balance. No science of logic behind it - I just like it that way.
I’m in love with the simple line and how they smoothly blend together. #MALMforthewin
BedRoom
The main vision I had for my bedroom was simplicity. At first I was focused on clean lines and minimalism. The excitement of just having my own place met with the reality of having to purchase my belongings also - IKEA soon became my best friend. I’m sure by now I should have automatic shares there! I wanted smooth lines, monochrome (as much as possible) and a wardrobe that was big enough to store all my clothes and extra belongings too.
trysil - ikea
“Clean lines for a calm bedroom”. Initially what drew my attention to this collection was the cost. As a was a newly qualified midwife I didn’t have money rolling in that I could buy whatever I wanted, so I needed a bed and wardrobe that created the look I wanted and also met with my budget. As we are aware things look different in real life to what they are online so I took a trip to IKEA one February afternoon and had a look at the ranges they had there. Later on needed a chest of drawers also so purchased they 3 drawer option.
Malm - Ikea
I never realised how much things I’ve accumulated over the years - or what I need storage for. Malm indeed was the simple solution for a stylish bedroom. As I’m always looking to the future of when I buy my own house - In Jesus name - I already know I’ll be creating a room that will be all white furniture.
Dressing table top ideas
Due to how my bedroom is set up, the light always comes in at an angle which makes it difficult when doing my makeup. I looked online for a Hollywood light mirror that would be under £50 ideally and ready for me to pick up. I’d admit once I have an design idea in my head I want it done ASAP. After looking online and seeing that the ones that I wanted were too expensive - I took to Pinterest and see if there were any hack ideas I could use to create my own. And voila! NISSEDAL and MUSIK perfectly combined for a hollywood mirror feel. - (Actual finished look coming soon.)
Living room
Friheten - ikea
Sofa bed which is sometimes more comfortable then my own bed - though that what 12 hour shift work can tell you! Still running with the theme of monochrome & grey-scale and simplicity, this sofa perfectly embedded what I was looking for in my first sofa. There is also a cute footstool that matches with the sofa.
Blaupunkt Glass TV Stand - B&M
When moving out of the shared accommodation, one of the women I lived with didn’t want to take it with her. Now as I don’t have a TV - mainly due to the aerial not working properly so I use this stand for photo frames and candles.
billy bookcase - ikea
Bibliophile (lover of books) I so needed a good quality bookcase. Billy never fails to disappoint me here. Organisation for me in key - when I’m not organised it’s usually because my head is all over the place. “Clean home, clear mind”. All the books I've read live here, and the ones I keep purchasing. As it was available in my favourite interior colour - white, it fit in perfectly with the rest of my home. (I also used this for my shoes, as I borrowed the idea from a work colleague’s dressing room.
lack - ikea
Side table that has been with me from the beginning of private renting in my university days up until now. Only costing £5 [YES A FIVER!!] all I had to do was pick between matt white or matt black finish. Now I used to want everything I owned to be black - weird phase in my life let’s not talk about it - so most of the things I bought were all black or monochrome… yeah not much as changed there.
Zebra Canvas - IKEA
I’m sure this is where my love for monochrome actually came from. I love zebras and zebra print, so this is the core of the design inspiration within my home.
** This is not my image - I used this image from Pinterest - I’ll upload my actual images soon!
Kallax - although this is not in my living room per se - this is part of my storage in my mini walk-in closet. I find this has given it a fresh cleaner look for the storage of my art utensils, flat shoes, bags and DIY toolkits. IKEA also sell boxes that fix perfectly into each space, allowing you to customise with colour and how to organise your belongings. Also check out ‘Kallax Hacks’ on pinterest for other ideas.
As also seen in my bedroom, I use the Wilkos glass shelving for all my toiletries - to which I have too many for all my bath essentials and extras!
Mobile beauty station - Nails, Hair and Makeup on the move. Dependant on if I have guests staying over so I can’t freely move from room to room as I get ready or if I just feel like staying in one spot, I find this has been a great help.
Bathroom
On average we spend around 1 year 7 months and 15 days in the bathroom - apparently. I’m sure I spend a much more time in the bathroom than this. The shower is my thinking space and also my personal recording booth for my album (shoutout to all my bathroom singers and rappers). This room has the best lighting for makeup (prior to my Hollywood mirror hack above), & where we make our daily deposits. Before I did not put that much energy into this room as I felt less is more - plus you want as much space as you can create as possible.
Keeping it simple with glass shelving - it actually gives the illusion of more space and an airier bathroom too.
kitchen
Growing up the kitchen was always the hub of the home. From family gatherings at my grandma’s over Christmas eve on my dad’s side to birthday celebrations on my mum’s side, where there was the most laughter, passionate opinions and of course food - we gravitated towards the kitchen. This is also where I’d have some of the deepest conversations about life with my parents while their teach me her culinary skills in the kitchen, dance battles with my nephew and chilling with my sister Gee. I wouldn’t say that I love being in the kitchen all the time, but when it hits me to bake a cake or a Sunday roast on a Tuesday evening I’ll be found in the kitchen.
In my home currently - it was all installed already - only had to purchase a fridge and the small appliances like kettle, toaster etc. So there’s not much to say on this probably until I buy my own home…yeah nothing more to say :-)!
