December, 2020 | Etsy Home

Architect David Chipperfield has been given one of the highest awards available to a British citizen while designers including Yinka Ilori, Ilse Crawford and 6a Architects have received honours in the 2021 New Year Honours list.

Chipperfield was added to the elite Order of the Companions of Honour in the annual list of awards given for achievements by British citizens.

Interior designer Crawford has been awarded a CBE, 6a Architects co-founders Thomas Emerson and Stephanie Macdonald OBEs and London designer Ilori an MBE.

Neues Museum in Berlin — David Chipperfield has designed numerous cultural buildings including the renovation of the Neues Museum. photo is by Joerg von Buchhausen

British architect Chipperfield joins Richard Rogers in the order Order of the Companions of Honour, which is limited to 65 members and is awarded “for having a major contribution to the arts, science, medicine, or government lasting over a long period of time”.

RIBA Gold … Read more

Bathroom Bedroom Interior Kitchen Living Room Property Room

Upcycled Welsh dresser idea – budget makeover to inspire new year DIY projects

December 31, 2020

Looking for an upcycled Welsh dresser idea? One creative homeowner, Andrea Smeaton, leads the way with her impressive DIY project. Using decorative wallpaper swatches and a lick of paint she has turned her ‘sad’ dresser into a spectacular one.

Andrea shared her wallpapered dresser transformation with our Ideal Home Room Clinic group. Writing, ‘Who didn’t have a yellowing pine Welsh dresser in the 70s and 80s? Fantastic for storage but tired looking and more dated than retro. I decided to revamp! So happy with the finished results.’

And happy she should be…

Before & After: Upcycled Welsh dresser

Image credit: Andrea Smeaton

Andrea tells Ideal Home, ‘My sad old dresser needed life breathing into it. Perfect for storage and size but did not fit into a clean line, bright and non-fussy theme of my new house.’

How to: budget DIY project

Andrea began by removing the top section. Followed by … Read more

Architecture Bedroom Etsy item of the day Exterior Home Contractor Property Real Estate Room

3 questions to help make 2021 your best year yet

December 31, 2020

Happy New Year – it promises to be a fantastic year.

2020 delivered more than the usual number of challenges but looking back over the year I am happy, grateful and have developed the “useful belief” that 2020 was one of the best years of my life.

Finding a “useful belief” is a concept I learned from Chris Helder, – when things are tough rather than complaining find a “useful belief.”

My health was good, my family was happy and well, and we’re blessed with 10 grandchildren and another on the way.

My business has been great, the Michael Yardney Podcast grew from strength to strength and is fast approaching 2 million downloads and my daily Property Update newsletter has had over 2.5 million unique readers this year – that’s a huge percentage of the Australian adult population.

And Pam and I are at the beginning of a 4-week … Read more

Accessories Bathroom Bedroom Design Etsy item of the day Home Interior Kitchen Living Room Property Remodeling

The biggest architecture and design stories of 2020

December 30, 2020

Next up in our review of 2020, editor Tom Ravenscroft takes a look back at this year’s most-read stories, including several responses to the coronavirus pandemic, a pair of inflatable latex trousers and Bjarke Ingels’ plan to redesign Earth.

January – China building 1,000-bed hospital in 10 days to treat coronavirus

The most-read story in January was a sign of things to come as the reports that a 1,000-bed hospital was being built at breakneck speed in China became news around the world.

Named Wuhan Huoshenshan Hospital, the prefabricated, temporary facility was built to treat the growing number of people infected in Wuhan. It was completed in just over a week.

Find out more about the temporary hospital ›

February – Harikrishnan’s inflatable latex trousers create “anatomically impossible” proportions

In February, before coronavirus came to dominate architecture and design news, our most-read story was about inflatable latex trousers… Read more

Bathroom Bedroom Interior Kitchen Living Room Property Room

How to clean a dishwasher – plus how to add dishwasher salt and rinse aid

December 30, 2020

No doubt your dishwasher has seen a lot of action in the last few days, and is possibly in need of a good clean. Yes, because although some assume this hard-working appliance looks after itself, it will collect food debris and soap residue over time. Did you know, for example, that each month, 1kg of greasy residue passes through a dishwasher. That’s why our guide to how to clean a dishwasher is essential.

Related: How to clean a kettle with lemon, vinegar and other easy-to-implement methods

Clean your dishwasher regularly and this will prevent mucky stuff building up and causing problems. Our guide touches on the importance of dishwasher salt and rinse aid, and we’ve thrown in some extra tips on how to keep your washer pristine between MOTs.

How to clean a dishwasher

Each area of your dishwasher will need to be cleaned meticulously to ensure that your dishwasher … Read more

Month: December 2020

David Chipperfield, Yinka Ilori and Ilse Crawford recognised in Queen's New Year Honours list