Latest news with #budgetfriendly
The Sun
2 hours ago
- General
- The Sun
I transformed my dark and gloomy kitchen for just £150 using B&Q bargains with NO experience
A SAVVY woman has revealed that she saved herself thousands of pounds by transforming her kitchen all by herself. Natalie Stainthorpe, a dental nurse from Middlesbrough, estimated that it would cost her £3,000 to rip out her dark and dingy kitchen and start from scratch. 4 4 After moving into her new home, the 34-year-old was desperate to add some light to the dark and gloomy kitchen without it costing a fortune. The kitchen had barely any natural light as an extension had been built and the dark wood furnishings didn't help either. Armed with TikTok tutorials and a dream, she set out to transform the space without breaking the bank – and managed to come in a whole £100 under her original £250 budget. 'I just couldn't stand how dark and gloomy it felt – I wanted a fresh, light space where I'd actually enjoy cooking and spending time with my family,' she told What's The Jam. 'The kitchen before was in good condition, but needed a little bit of TLC and I had a vision for the room. 'We did a rough estimate of how much it would cost to completely replace the kitchen from a family friend and we were looking at quite a lot of money - around £2,000 to £3,000 - which was money we didn't have. 'I decided that I was going to do a budget-friendly makeover instead.' She decided not to get new units and opted for a few tins of paint and rolls of vinyl. Natalie roped in her partner and sister to help freshen up the cupboards, wrap the worktops and breathe new life into the handles. She bagged cupboard paint for under £15 a tin, snapped up bargain vinyl from B&Q and picked up all her decorating bits from B&M to keep costs down. The makeover took around a month, squeezed in between shifts and weekends, but the results speak for themselves – the once gloomy kitchen now bright, airy and looking brand new. Natalie said: 'Our original budget was £250 – I didn't want to spend more than that, so to come so far under budget was amazing. 'It was quite a dark room – dark floors, worktops and cupboards and I really wanted to lighten the space up as because of the extension on the back we don't get that much natural light. 'We found the vinyl easy on the straight parts of the worktops, around the sink was a bit fiddly, we watched a few tutorials on YouTube on how to do it around the sink to try and minimise any mistakes. 'My partner Chris actually did most of the sink area as I ran out of patience with it. We repurposed the handles that were already on the units as to replace 14 handles in matte black was quite expensive. 'We gave them a light sand and then we sprayed them with Rust-Oleum black matte spray paint and then sealed with a matte sealant spray. 'We got all our painting supplies from B&M to keep the costs down and budget-friendly – they sell such an amazing range of painting and decorating tools to help with projects like this. 4 'I spent some time researching how to vinyl worktops watching videos on YouTube and TikTok. 'I also got lots of tips from my friend who has done lots of vinyling to change up her rental home.' Natalie, who documented her journey on TikTok, says the whole project took around three to four weeks to complete as she picked it up on days off and weekends. She said: 'It definitely wasn't a quick transformation but that was fine with us, we loved seeing it slowly come together. 'The hardest part for me was probably the vinyling, simply because it took more brain power than the rest, and a lot of patience - something I'm known to not have a lot of. 'We didn't encounter any mistakes, we just took our time with the project - apart from when I spilt paint on my hob. 'If I was to start this project again, I wouldn't change anything – I love how we took our time and worked together to get our final look in here. Rome wasn't built in a day and sometimes time and money restrict a quick transformation. 'I'm all for realistic budget makeovers and those take time. 'The difference it's made is amazing, it's now light and airy, it's really brightened up the room, I'm still obsessed with it now two months down the line.' 'We've had such an amazing reaction to our makeover, my friends and family said it looks like a brand new kitchen and it's had such a good response both on my Instagram and TikTok. 'My advice would be to take your time, it's okay if you don't get a transformation like this done in a day like you can sometimes see on social media. 'My second piece of advice to make sure the longevity of your makeover is prep, prep, prep. 'Spend time prepping your units and surfaces for painting, you'll thank yourself later. 'It just goes to show, you don't always need a big budget – sometimes a bit of patience and a few clever tricks can completely change your home.'
The Sun
a day ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
I gave my bed an £18 glow-up using an unexpected B&M buy – people say it looks like a whole new bed but £1.6k cheaper
BUYING a new bed is a huge expense that sends shivers down the spines of many. But rather than forking out thousands on a posh faux fur bed frame, a savvy woman from the UK has shared how she gave her old bed, which she has had for the last three years, a quick and easy glow up. 2 2 The DIY enthusiast and mother, who posts online under the username 'Cosy Home Life', used bargain and very unexpected buys from B&M to transform her bed frame, costing her less than £20 in total. Posting on social media, the cleaning fan gave her followers a close-up look at her bed frame before and after its transformation, leaving many gobsmacked. Prior to the DIY project, the woman's bed frame was grey and velvet. But thanks to two super soft throws, which are just £5 each from B&M, and a furry blanket, which costs only £8, this content creator was able to give her bed a fresh, neutral look. Using the blankets and throws, this influencer was able to cover her headboard and the base of her bed, making her very own DIY covers. Thrilled with her money-saving idea, this mother described her hack as ' budget friendly.' Showing off the finished bed, which not only looks incredibly expensive, but seriously luxurious too, the savvy saver beamed: 'Not perfect but a lot better than it was.' While you can buy a range of affordable bed frames from DUSK and Wayfair, a very similar style to this woman's finished project, is currently being sold at Debenhams. The HOB Furniture Luxury Sahara Bed looks strikingly similar to this DIY fan's, but was once priced at £3,300 and has now been reduced to £1,650. But rather than breaking the bank on the faux fur bed frame, this woman saved a jaw-dropping £1,632 thanks to her purse-friendly project. We're a family of 5 living in a one-bed flat - people think our situation is 'satire' but we can't afford anything else To finish off the bed and make sure the covers are secure, the mother later added: 'Got a stapler coming as well!!' The TikTok clip, which was posted under the username @ cosy_homelife, has clearly left many open-mouthed, as it has quickly racked up 64,600 views. It turned out so much better than buying a whole new bed TikTok user It's also amassed 4,730 likes, 25 comments and 736 saves. Social media users were impressed with the 'gorgeous' and 'cute' bed makeover and many eagerly raced to the comments to express this. One person said: 'Wow, looks amazing!' Another added: 'Looks lovely.' A third commented: 'I need to see how you do this.'
The Sun
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Sun
I swear by a £12 buy from Dunelm to make your home look bigger – it's renter-friendly and my hack avoids a DIY disaster
A DIY enthusiast has shared a super simple and affordable trick to make any room in your home look bigger. So if you've got a small pad but are on a mission to give it a glow up, then you've come to the right place. 2 And don't worry if you don't own the property, as this handy hack is renter-friendly, with limited damage to walls. Posting on social media, a DIY guru who posts under the username 'Home Embrace', regularly shares tips and tricks to transform properties without having to break the bank. In one clip, the content creator explained how creating a DIY mirror wall will not only add style to a space, but will make it look bigger too. The DIY fan used a £12 Dunelm buy for this simple project, which was one of her first overhauls after moving into her home. Sharing her renovation idea, which gave her dining room an impressive overhaul whilst on a budget, the savvy woman uploaded her clip with the caption 'This was one of my first DIY projects when I moved in. Not only does it look great but it made the room [look] bigger.' The bargain hunter then acknowledged that her hack cost her just £60 in total, as she reflected: 'Now, my wall was looking really, really bland and it was time for an upgrade, so I got these over the door mirrors from Dunelm and also these command strips because these walls are freshly plastered, but this is also the perfect renter-friendly hack. 'Now, after everything was up, I absolutely loved it.' However, the young woman explained that you must follow her advice to avoid a DIY disaster, as she stressed: 'But, if you wanna know whether the command strips are actually strong enough for the hold - this fell down about a year later.' As a result, she added: 'The main tip here is that you need to leave the command strips up for 24 hours before putting the mirror on.' Showing off the finished result, the woman beamed: 'Once you do that, you'll find that it lasts and since then, I've had no issues.' I found a £150 mirror for £27 in HomeSense - it transformed my room (1) As well as her DIY mirror display, the woman also gave the wall a fresh lick of paint, using the shade Pale Olive in a matte finish from Homebase. What was once a plain white wall has since been totally transformed and we think it looks fabulous. DIY fans beam And it's clear that many others do too, as the TikTok clip, which was posted under the username @ home_embrace, has quickly racked up 56,500 views. Not only this, but it's also amassed 827 likes, 24 comments and 466 saves. DIY fans were impressed with the straightforward and effective hack and many eagerly raced to the comments to share their thoughts. One person said: 'This is stunning.' Another added: 'I'm glad I found this today!'
The Sun
4 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
7 clever tricks Primark does to keep you walking & buying more than you need – & how to avoid overspending
PRIMARK is famous for its budget-friendly fashion and beauty items, but it also employs some clever tactics to encourage you to spend more. Like many retailers, it uses subtle — and often unnoticed — strategies designed to get you to part with a bit more of your money than you intended. 4 Dr Jansson-Boyd, who is an associate professor at Anglia Ruskin University, told The Sun: "As a store, Primark uses a high number of well-known marketing aspects that we know customers respond effectively to." Here are some little-known tricks Primark shoppers should know about… 1. CAFES FOR 'DWELL TIME' Primark serves over a million shoppers every day in more than 400 worldwide stores and racks up over £5billion in annual revenue. And experts claim they try to keep customers in store for as long as possible. Speaking on the Channel 5 documentary Primark: How Do They Do It? Consumer journalist Harry Wallop said: 'It's a phrase used in the retail industry 'dwell time'. 'You don't want people to just come in and buy an item and leave. 'You want someone to come in, look for the item, think 'that looks like a nice cafe. I'll stop there, I'll then buy something else'. 'On the way you spot another bit of homewares, it's only £5. 'If you can increase the dwell time you are onto a winning formula and you have justified the high expense of operating a high street store.' Spanning 160,000 square feet spread over five floors, the Birmingham store - their biggest worldwide - is certainly a destination in itself. It also boasts a hairdresser salon, nail bar, eyebrow grooming and a barber's. 2. NO-BRAINER PRICES While some people head in stores for the haul items, others go just for the store's 'basics'. psychologist Dr Amna Khana added: 'Primark's essential components of their products are generally built on basic, staple products that don't necessarily always change.' Retail consultant Nicole Higgins continued: 'Generally with clothing, 20 per cent of your range will make up 80 per cent of your sales. 'If you go into Primark's lingerie department, they will have hundreds of styles, lots and lots of different colours but probably the items that are making the most amount of money are the five-pack knickers, the basic T-shirt bras. 'They are the core bread-and-butter products.' 3. DELIBERATELY FOLDED ITEMS 4 In any Primark store, you will often see a fair amount of clothing items folded on shelves. While you may think this is done to save space, it's actually just another way to get shoppers to part with more cash. Dr Jansson-Boyd said: "When items are folded, shoppers can't fully see what it is until they go and pick it up and unfold it. "It is well-known that once consumers touch an item, they take on psychological ownership. "This increases the likelihood of purchase as they feel that the item belongs to them." 4. TILL TEMPTATION 4 If you're an avid Primark shopper, you'll know that you can often spend just as long waiting in the queue as you do browsing the store. But Dr Jansson-Boyd said the technique of "funnelling" people to line up along the tills gives shoppers more time to grab a last-minute item, such as socks, face wipes and shopper bags. She explained: "Along the funnel, there are various small bits and pieces that tend to have a broader appeal. "And as people get bored waiting, they often pick up additional items as they are readily there. "Some of those items are sweets – which people buy as an added treat for a job well done." 5. TRENDY DECOR Primark stores are lively, bright and feel quite youthful - and this is all intentional, Dr Jansson-Boyd said. "The stores use cues for their younger target markets. "This includes neon type signs and slogans on signage such as 'find your amazing'. "This suggests that you can be fabulous by buying something from Primark. "This is the type of messaging that Gen-Z responds effectively to." 6. NO CLOCKS OR WINDOWS 4 Ever find yourself losing track of time when you are browsing in Primark? It turns out that the lack of clocks or windows can be strategic in the retail world. Retail expert Burt Flickinger, told CNN: 'Windowless shopping creates an environment of consumption without distractions. 'When people have a sense of timelessness and comfort, families spend more because they can focus just on the stores and the mall experience.' 7. SOCIAL MEDIA GAME You may have been influenced to spend more at Primark before you even set foot in the shop, according to their own team. Finance director John Bason at Associated British Food, which owns Primark, told Drapers: 'One of the main areas where Primark has got stronger is driving our footfall through social media. 'On Instagram we're up to nearly 7 million followers, which allows for targeted marketing. 'A number of our collaborations have worked very well, including with [influencer] Alice Liveing, and we are working on future collections with others for this year.'
Entrepreneur
6 days ago
- Business
- Entrepreneur
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