Why go for a single splash of colour when you can turn your entire home into a pink-tinted haven?
Gemma Markland, 30, is a fan of pink.
She really, really likes it. So much so that she has spent more than £50,000 giving her four-bedroom family home in Wigan, Greater Manchester, an entirely pink makeover.
The mum spent months trawling shops for pink and rose gold furnishings before she had even bought her first home, which ended up being a £330,000 four-bedroom detached propery she bought in September 2019.
Within two hours of moving in, Gemma had painted the white walls pink.
She’s now overjoyed at the super-pink end result of months of hard work, loving life in a pink paradise with her husband, Kyle, 28, and daughter Grace, 10.
And the pink theme has paid off by bringing Gemma’s Instagram account nearly 100,000 followers.
Gemma said: ‘I must have spent about £50,000 on accessories and furnishings to make my house 100% pink.
‘I do try to save where I can, though, so everything has been DIY. For the past 11 months, we have dedicated spare moments, like evenings and weekends, to redecorating.
“’yle laughs at me, as I will happily spend £1,000 on a table to make sure it’s the perfect shade of pink, but I won’t pay for someone to do our wallpapering.”
Gemma, who owns her own company making bespoke bridal gowns, decided to go all out on the pink after years spent renting, where she had to put up with plain grey interiors she couldn’t decorate.
When, in 2019, Gemma bought her first home, she knew she wanted it to be pink throughout – but her husband wasn’t too enthusiastic at first.
Once she eased him in with a pink bedroom for Grace and a pink office, though, Kyle was on board.
‘I’ve always loved pink – but the blush and rose gold tones, rather than the Barbie bubblegum pink,’ says Gemma.
‘Kyle and I even had a blush and rose gold colour scheme at our wedding so, of course, there was only one colour I wanted to decorate our first home.
‘At first, he wasn’t on board with living in a pink house, so I told him it’d just be Grace’s bedroom and my office.
‘As soon as I started buying accessories, though, he changed his mind. Everybody always asks me how I got my husband to agree to live in this pink paradise, but he likes it and thinks it looks great.’
The makeover took months of careful pink-hunting and DIY jobs, with Gemma building up her collection bit by bit.
When she found pieces of furniture she loved, but that didn’t fit the colour theme, she just spray painted it. Smart.
As progress began to rack up, Gemma set up an Instagram account to inspire others to embrace their interiors dreams.
The mum said: ‘I still can’t quite believe I’m at nearly 100,000 followers. I never thought I’d even get 1,000.
‘I wanted to show people what the reality of buying and decorating a new build was like, but I think the fact my house is completely pink is really unique and catches people’s eyes when they’re scrolling.
‘People tell me my pictures are very aesthetically pleasing, which makes me happy, as the showroom look is exactly what I was going for.
‘Grace absolutely loves it, too, and is always telling people to follow me.’
Gemma is delighted with her furniture, which mostly comes from Ikea and her soft furnishings, which are from a wide range of stores, but her favourite spot in the house is her dressing room.
As well as a pink carpet, rug, plush chair and several stylish decorations, it also houses a huge wardrobe, with all her perfectly presented blush-toned clothes on display.
She also loves the pink marble-effect wallpaper in her bedroom, bought online from Wallpaper Sales, and her blush-toned sofa.
‘Because I display my pink clothes and pack everything else away in drawers, it looks like I have a 100% pink wardrobe,’ she said.
‘Actually, I don’t wear as much pink as you’d think. I’m not quite at that level yet – I’ve got blue jeans and dark T-shirts like everybody else.
‘Similarly, I posted a picture of my car not long ago, which is blue and I got so many comments saying how surprised people were that I didn’t have a pink car.’
Gemma still has some bits and bobs to do to make the house complete, including replacing her silver range cooker and making the dining area more open plan.
But in the meantime, she’s living a pink-toned dream.
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source https://metro.co.uk/2020/08/08/mum-spends-50000-turning-family-home-pink-paradise-13102342/
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