Humour me while I self-promote

Let's talk about me (and my house)!

If you’re new here you will learn that my posts are sporadic and varied in nature, a bit like me. I prefer not to stick to a strict schedule, valuing (what I hope is) quality content over frequency. Writing is one of many things I do, and while it may be one of my favourites, it is also one upon which I place too much pressure for it to be good and worthy of your time. Hence, the ‘only post if you have something worthwhile to say’ logic.

My most worn outfit of 2024/25

Outfit of the day (year)

I’m still here, working away on too many projects as usual. If you read this post, ‘Waiting For My Movie Montage’, written just over a year ago in what we’ll call my sad era, you might be interested to know that I’m finally in a place where I could actually make my ‘she’s back!' movie montage. And it feels fantastic! I actually think it would be really fun and funny to make the montage of this year, if I can find the time - I love making videos right now. It’s one of the rare activities where I can get in the zone these days.

And if you read this piece, My Fallow Year, it does feel like the seeds I wrote about are continuing to sprout.

The bungalow

A year ago - newly single and to put it mildly, newly financially challenged - I didn’t know how I was going to finish the house, either to sell it or rent it out if it came to that. I slogged away, DIY’ing my way out of depression, and it is finally paying off, in recognition if not yet financially.

Last weekend it got a fabulous double page spread in The Sunday Times with a lovely piece by Katrina Burroughs. If that’s not a seed sprouting then I don’t know what is. The photos in the article were from a couple of shoots my friend photographer Jules Rogers did as a favour for me last summer, which I then used to pitch the story to The Times.

Since then the house has changed even more, with DIY hard graft leading to more jobs getting done. If I could choose a better photo of myself I would, but that’s just me being vain. I was still in my sad era where I would just rake back my hair into a ponytail and wear whatever would cover my body completely. But hey! It is what it is.

I’ve never revealed costs of interiors projects in the past, but I felt it would be useful to readers this time, so when Katrina asked, I opened up. This is a conservative estimate and doesn’t include things like appliances and I probably forgot to add a few costs to my spreadsheet as I went along. Depending on your lifestyle and where in the world you live, these figures will mean something different to you.

I have a friend who had to spend more than my entire renovation re-doing her swimming pool, and I have another friend who spent about one fifth of my budget on her whole renovation.

Things to remember:

I didn’t use an architect.

My builder (the 3rd one we found after having to fire two) was great and very reasonably priced and did almost the whole job on his own.

My floors were cheap and by pouring them ourselves saved me a lot, but they are very cold and most sane people wouldn’t want to live like this.

And there is still a lot that needs doing and paying for (windows, doors, garage roof, garden…)

I love the connection made to LA, where I bought and renovated my first bungalow 20 years ago. This is my little slice of LA in Margate, complete with a pile of old bikes for guests to take to the beach.

The shoot location

Another plan I had last year that I didn’t manage to complete was to get my house listed with some photo shoot agencies. Well I did that as well! And my house is now listed with Fresh Locations and will soon be on another as well. It’s niche and it likely won’t get booked often since it isn’t in London and it also doesn’t fit into the marble kitchen worktop/Crittal doors, herringbone floors cookie cutter look so popular these days, but I could definitely see a BBC crime drama being shot there. The home of a sweet old granny who moonlights as a serial killer? I’ll happily move out for weeks/months of filming if the price is right, just watch me!

The landscaping

If you follow me on Instagram you may have seen me struggling on my own with my landscaping, much to my frustration. Frustrating because a crew of two men/women with the proper tools and muscle power could get done in a day or two what will probably take me weeks/months. I did hire a crew a few years back to cut back these very hedges, which were even deeper and more overgrown when we first moved in. Money well spent. But for now, my budget just won’t allow it.

My Sunday afternoon in a one minute clip.

The countdown is on to get these hedges cut back a bit before the birds start nesting and then I won’t be able to touch them again until September. This happens to me every year, so this time I’m determined (Disclaimer: my frustration and need to work on at least 25 other business and personal projects simultaneously, may prevent me from following through, AGAIN).

Trying to make a process video but the rage got in the way

I love the greenery and the wildlife in the hedges but they are of all different heights and consist mainly of decades of dead growth mixed with invasive ivy. They offer me some privacy in my very public corner plot garden, but if I’m honest I’ll probably put a big fence up one day when I can afford it. But for now I hack away.

If my hedges were a haircut

The wallpaper

In more seed sprouting news, and perhaps the most significant for the future of my business, my wallpaper collection For the Love of Flowers, has officially launched! It took me just over a year to get this project off the ground and it actually would’ve gone to market a lot sooner if not for my mum’s passing last year, which postponed pretty much everything. I’m incredibly proud and excited to see samples going out into the world and I can’t wait to see them going up on the walls of homes and businesses.

Lots more details to follow, as well as workshops and events to celebrate the launch. You can buy samples and rolls exclusively through emilyhensonstudio.com if you fancy a look.

I’ll leave you with this, my way of introducing the collection to the world. DIY gone wrong clip added because it was all feeling a bit too “look at how great I am” cringey, which long time readers/viewers will know I don’t do.

lifeunstyled

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You’re all the best and I appreciate you very much.

Emily x