Home & handmade

Small-budget rooms, rugs and textiles, and beginner craft projects.

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  A calm, personal bedroom on a small budget

  How to restyle a bedroom for little money: edit first, set a colour plan, layer bedding and textiles, use secondhand furniture and lighting, and add handmade touches, renter-friendly where possible.

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  Buying secondhand furniture: what to check before you carry it home

  How to judge used tables, chairs, chests of drawers, bed frames and sofas: solid wood or veneer, joints and drawers, woodworm, smells, bed bugs, old paint, upholstery fire labels, cribs and tip-over safety.

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  First home on a small budget: a practical guide to buying or setting one up

  How to move into a first home with little money: an honest budget, choosing the neighbourhood, what to inspect before you sign, the safety basics, cheap repairs, secondhand furniture and a spending order that works.

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  Macramé for beginners: cord, four knots and a first plant hanger

  Start macramé with the right cord and four basic knots (lark's head, square knot, half hitch and gathering knot), then make a simple plant hanger step by step.

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  Reviving a secondhand wooden table, chair or dresser: clean first, repair second, refinish last

  What to do with a thrifted wooden piece once it is home: how to find out what the finish is, cleaning and reviving it without sanding, white rings, loose joints and sticking drawers, when a full refinish is worth it, old paint, and the oily-rag fire risk.

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  Southwestern-style rugs and kilims: how to tell what you are buying, and how to care for it

  Flatweave, kilim, Navajo weaving or machine-made 'Southwestern' print? How to read a rug's construction, what the law says about 'Indian-made' claims in the U.S., and how to clean and look after a flatwoven rug.

• The big reveal: planning and photographing a small room makeover

  How to plan a small, low-budget room makeover so it has a real before-and-after: taking stock, one focal change, a short list of moves, and how to take before-and-after photos that show the difference honestly.