Nadine talks kitchen renos post-rona
The pandemic left many of us tired of staying indoors & ready for things to go back to normal. Others, like Nadine @rona_renovation, were left with a home turned upside down.Handed the keys of their Victorian South London home during the pandemic, Nadine (aka. Nads) & Julius embarked on a long, socially isolated reno' journey. The pair wanted to start from scratch, gutting rooms to create the perfect blank canvas. We just had to know more about Nadine's rona reno' journey, including her vision, inspiration & the lessons she learned along the way. Rona Renovations
"After months of viewing houses, this was the only house we were both excited about. It ticked all the boxes and though it sat near the top of our budget, we knew it would be worth it. We got the keys the first week of lockdown 1.0 which was just crazy timing. I was immediately furloughed, and Juls was working from home so we threw ourselves at gutting the house. It dawned on me that we were renovating at a very unique time in history, and I wanted to document it, mainly for myself. @rona_renovation (Corona… get it?) became this fly-on the-wall account and our audience grew quickly as there were so many people in the same situation as us. DIY renovations during a global pandemic tends to bond people I’ve found!"Keeping it natural & neutral
"My decorating style is definitely neutral and natural. The walls are white but warm, and the furniture tends to be wood with a side of wood! Developing my style has been easy as I’ve let the mood guide me. If it feels serene, I’m into it. That would be my advice for anyone trying to figure out their decorating style. What tone are you trying to set within your home? What emotions do you want to feel when you sit in a space? I think it makes it a lot easier to make some of the big decorating decisions when you start from an emotional rather aesthetic place."Top tip: Think practically
"Gutting a house and starting again is a bit like going on an archaeological hunt! It was scary ripping things out, then realising just how much work needs to be done to get something up to safe and modern standards. You’re naturally quite naïve in the beginning, so getting to grips with how much time, money and effort this all takes is a challenge within itself.For all those starting their rocky renovations, my biggest tip is think logically about what you can and should do yourself, versus bringing in a tradesperson. Yes there are lots of things you CAN do yourself, but for your sanity and quality of life, should you?"Modern & understated finishes ✨
"I wanted our kitchen to feel on the stylish side of modern, so I knew straight away injecting character into a white fitted kitchen would be my biggest challenge. I didn’t want to ‘overplay’ any of the fittings or fixtures, and I didn’t want to follow the current trend of matchy-matchy brass everything.I picked up this old design book at a second-hand bookstore, and started getting inspired by kitchen design in the early 00s. I know we all tend to look back at that Changing Rooms era like ‘ewww’, BUT there were some very cool interiors going on! ROEBUCK in Satin Nickel is understated but so beautiful. It felt like the bolder choice in a sense, because it’s the under-dog. It’s not what everyone is going for, but they are classic, charming and will never go out of style."Adding character 🛠
"New furniture (unless super high end) tends to lack character, and a lot of times quality! Bespoke is always better, unique to you, and gives you that ‘I did that’ feeling."A Patty BREAK
"We lived off patties from the local Jamaican takeaway spot during our renovation so I genuinely can’t eat one now without remembering Juls and I sitting on our dusty floor wolfing them down. Makes me smile thinking about the good old days!"Go-to inspo
"My go-to IG accounts for inspo are: @tat.london, @hoodmidcenturymodern and @molde.shop."Disco meets deep groove 🎧
“My top late night reno’ tunes are:"A huge thank you to Nadine for joining us for a TEA BREAK. Why not follow her renovation journey at @rona.renovation? Want more victorian-style design inspiration? See our post on Ashia & Jason's 1885 victorian home renovation journey
Blog
