Back in 2021, we bought this sofa secondhand on eBay. I knew that the secret to getting an expensive, stylish, quality sofa on a budget was to go secondhand, so I set up alerts for a Conran sofa and bagged this one for £150; the buyers were selling their property so wanted a quick sale, and organised a pick-up via Shiply (this cost a further £90).

And then the sofa sat in our living room for 3 years. We haven’t really used it as our living room has been a makeshift warehouse for the last few years with matches and office storage. It was in an okay condition, some marks and a few tears in the fabric, but I knew I wanted to do something with it that felt more ‘us’. I’d been eyeing up striped sofas for years, I always loved Lucinda Chambers’s striped sofa and Sophie from Cote de Folk is often styling dreamy multi striped cushions and sofas.

We had to wait until we had enough money saved, but also time to research if we wanted to do it more affordably. I was quoted roughly £1,000 for the stripping and upholstery, but then fabric would still be on top of that. I still think this is decent value for a ‘bespoke’ sofa that no one else will have and the point of reupholstery is making something last – it’s still more economical (and environmentally friendly) than buying a new sofa, however, we needed to shop around.

I decided to look further afield (mainly outside of London) and came across Collins Upholstery based in Haywards Heath. I remembered Jess Hurrell used them a few years ago and they came back with a quote of £550. The quote was without fabric and there would be an extra collection and delivery cost (I would add here that this was a standard quote – we contacted them anonymously, not as an Influencer and didn’t negotiate price through offering coverage). The great thing about contacting an upholsterer first is that they can give you a rough estimate of how much fabric you’d need; we were told roughly 12-14 metres, which helped us budget the next step.

I started to research fabric. I adore brands like Colours of Arley and Designers Guild but at £75 – £125 per metre I had to keep looking. I decided that the sofa is a great shape, and the stripe will be a statement in itself, so I needed to trust that it would still look good if it didn’t cost the earth. And realistically: I’ve never not liked anything striped in my home or wardrobe! I went classic and found St Agnes wide stripe from Just Fabrics – it was £19.51 per metre. I then bought 14 metres to be really sure we had enough.

Disclaimer: I did not check if it was suitable for sofas and to be honest the site just says suitable for curtains and cushions – I waited to see if the upholsterer mentioned anything but all I heard was how good it looked when it was finished! We didn’t get it restuffed or anything, I think from just putting it all back together it looks plumper, but they did fix one of the wooden feet which had come loose.

And all I can say is how much I LOVE IT! It makes the room feel pulled together and brighter (I find velvets suck light out of any area!). I know it’s not super practical with kids but I try not to get myself too worked up about it. The fact I look at it every day and love it outweighs my worry for it to get dirty –  I’d rather use and stain something I truly love, tbh.

I never do things by halves, do I?! This area of our hall is lovely, but I felt it could be more lovely. It was originally an under stairs cupboard, but had such lovely tiles underneath we decided to show them off. I don’t regret this decision but it did mean we had a) less storage in a hall that already lacked storage (!) and b) it is quite dark under here. 

I added this Dunelm light last year but it still needed something, and I love the idea of wallpaper in small spaces (see our downstairs loo here) to add texture to a space. Realistically, to buy the quality of paper I wanted to, I would need to do the hanging of the wallpaper myself. And actually, it would be nice to learn a new life skill at the same time!

I browsed quite a few brand options and loved CommonRoom wallpaper, but it was just out of my budget; I’d only need two rolls but it adds up quickly. I looked at Dunelm for more affordable options but didn’t find anything I loved, so ended up buying Sophie Robinson’s range with Harlequin. The site had a discount so it worked out as £63.20 a roll. This is the ‘wiggle’ wallpaper in Lapis/Sky colour. 

I had recently painted the latticework in our hall a bright blue so wanted to introduce brighter/lighter blues to the hall and thought this would go perfectly without introducing too many new colours.

I cleared my schedule for a few days and watched this tutorial (I was quite impressed they showed a woman doing it!), bought all the tools like a complete novice and got to it. In reality, it would’ve taken me around 6 hours altogether but I decided to film and work around kids pick ups, so it took me a few days working in 4 hour chunks. I must admit, once you finish your first wall it feels so satisfying and you can move on (as opposed to paint – waiting for it to dry and you just never really feel like you’re done!). I do believe that good quality paper is key to being able to do this efficiently, as I could easily peel back the paper and start again if I needed to, without it ripping.

WHAT I LEARNT

No matter what area you are doing, it will be tricky! Granted, I picked a tight corner with sloping walls, wonky Edwardian surfaces with dado rails and skirting boards (also uneven) but there will always be something. The plug socket was surprisingly easy (as long as you turn the electrics off, of course!). 

My entire body ached – all those stretching, reaching and brushing motions!

Patterned wallpaper is very hard to match up. As well as considering angles, I would spend hours trying to replicate the pattern of a swirl, only to lose my place and have to start over again. These walls all go in different directions, too! But the great thing about a particularly busy pattern is that it’s quite hard to follow and see where you’ve made mistakes!

There is also quite a bit of waste if you are focused on matching the pattern at every angle – I’d find a missing piece in the middle of the roll and have to cut into it to use.

There’s a lot of guesswork and cutting random bits to stuff in gaps, but it all worked out okay! My love for Jigsaw puzzles really came in handy here, I (almost) relished the challenge.

Honestly, it wasn’t as time consuming as I thought it would be, once you’re on a roll (pun intended) it’s quite quick! And as I went straight over dark paint in some areas, it was quicker than painting it white (as I did with the rest of the hallway) – one layer and it was covered.

Did I enjoy the process – yes! Would I do it again? Maybe…but it’d have to be a square, neat room all prepped with no windows, sloped walls or plug sockets.

I travelled to Amsterdam for work, I paid to stay an extra night to capture more footage and have more time to research this article.

Amsterdam: we did a city guide back in 2016, so it was about time I revisited. Weirdly, I visited the same time of year and I can highly recommend November to visit (it’s so twinkly!), but obviously spring is the city’s true time to shine (one word: tulips).

HOW TO GET THERE

This is the first time I’d caught the train to Amsterdam. I went via Eurostar and it was delightful! I live near King’s Cross so for me, the journey was super smooth and I love that you get to work on the train (limited wifi but it’s possible!) and arrive in the heart of the city. It’s not necessarily cheaper than flying but I loved it being more environmentally friendly without long airport queues and you walk out onto a canal in the city centre instead of a luggage carousel. Would highly recommend!

HOW TO GET AROUND

The obvious answer is bicycle here, although I explored the city a lot on foot. It’s quite an easy city to navigate but the bicycle lanes can be daunting. I didn’t use the metro system this time and walked everywhere I needed to go, it’s fairly flat and there are beautiful views along the canals.

WHERE TO STAY

I stayed at Ruby Emma, which was great value (for a wonderfully comfy room), but it was a bit far out of town (nearish a metro station, which takes you into the centre in around 20 mins) and staff generally just shrugged when I asked for local recommendations (mainly because there weren’t any!). I’m not sure I’d book again, but I rented a bike into town and had a wonderful stay regardless.

WHAT TO DO

Explore the De Piijp area: for shopping (where I discovered Merry Xmas Shop!), great food  (Ami, Pho 91, Little Collins) and people watching. So many places had outside seating with heaters to watch the world go by (and the Albert Cuyp Market has lots of affordable food stalls for on the go lunches).

Fab Dutch brands to shop: Anna + Nina, Scotch & Soda, Tony’s Chocolonely (the shop is chocolate heaven!), Hema (of course!) and Miffy (which you can shop with their collab with Hema!). There is a lot of gorgeous vintage shopping too.

Stroll along the 9 streets: so many great boutiques, art shops and antiques for window shopping; I grabbed my morning coffee from Wolf and just wandered aimlessly, which is so rare to do!

Rent a bike if you fancy (most hotels and local stores offer), but be prepared in case it rains! I got poured on and regretted not having a hood or an anorak.

I didn’t get time to get to the Rijksmuseum this time but it is one of my favourites for their unparalleled Dutch Masters collection. And next time I’d like to visit the Moco Museum for modern art.

Previously I had visited the Anne Frank House, which is a must visit (but book online before you go as it gets booked). I also love the Rembrandt Huis Museum and if you do get time, try visiting Den Haag, which I loved on a previous trip. It’s a beautiful town and the Mauritshuis is one of the best galleries I have ever visited – hopefully Vermeer’s ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’ is not out on loan if you do!

WHERE TO EAT

If you head to De Piijp there are so many gems, I had a brasserie style steak frites at Ami and then bought some food on the go from Albert Cuyp Markt during the day. Pho 91 is great for no fuss food but gets busy so be prepared to queue a little.

I walked passed LouLou pizza bar which looked great and this road was a great bet for chic yet affordable restaurants – I made a note to come back here! Obviously, places like the bar at The Hoxton Hotel are great for food, too – we stayed at the Hoxton last visit which was near so many great shops and cafes and they have just opened a new hotel – ‘The Lloyd‘ – which I didn’t get round to visiting but I’m sure would be just as chic.

I’ve been doing these city guides for a long time, read some of our other city guides here.

Obviously there are lots of different ways to give back: Lidl have their instore toy-bank service, local Food Banks are doing collections (check their Instagrams for items they need), you can save your stamps for local charities (a list of charities that collect them are here) as well as monetary donations. Here at The Frugality HQ we ask our team to nominate 3 charities of their choosing for us to donate to at this time of year.

1. ‘Dance Beneath The Stars’ A3 print: £20, The Big Issue Shop

2. Water mister: £8, RNLI

3. Miles Davis vinyl: £29.99, Oxfam

4. 98% organic soap: £5, Arthouse Unlimited

5. ‘Designed By Refugees’ lemongrass soy wax candle: £25, British Red Cross

6. This is a symbolic gift of care for refugee women: £25, Choose Love

7. Heist chocolate bar: £6.50, Crisis

8. Paper hanging decoration: £3.99, Shelter

9. ‘From Beder’s Kitchen’ cook book: £22, Beder

10. Short handled ‘Turtle Bags’ jute bag: £27.99, Oxfam

11. Heather Evelyn paper chain decoration: £12, Save The Children

Party season has once again come around and another year brings even more choice for the Christmas calendar.

Whether you’re a full-on sparkle lover or a low-key dresser we’ve got your covered. But an easy sustainable step you can make this season is to step away from sequins. Quite a few brands are making a move away from using them this season due to the fact they’re not biodegradable. Still love them? Try secondhand to give items a new lease of life, or look for post-consumer recycled options.

Boden is one brand that is driving this initiative – their team tells us, “The festive season has always been synonymous with standing out and shining bright – but not at the expense of the environment. Since 2021 we have permanently removed sequins and glitter as part of our commitment to driving sustainable change within the business. We know that sequins and glitter do drive sales, but we were creative and thought of other ways for us to excite and delight our customers this Christmas.” (And I have included such delights in the round-up below!)

Whistles have also made a sustainability step forward in promoting “Recycled Sequins” this year – “This season we are launching our first pieces with sequins made from post-consumer recycled materials.” 

Personally, I will be smartening up a casual jeans and blazer combo with a sparkly accessory and have put some of my favourites below…

1.

Velvet shouts Christmas and this cropped jacket could be dressed up with black trousers and metallic heels for a party, or dressed down with jeans and your slippers for Christmas day.

2.

Sometimes Christmas calls for all-over sparkle to lift our spirits, and Whistles has given us the perfect party piece (with recycled materials!) Wear double sequins for that wow factor or pair down with a chunky knit.

3.

This elevated top is a great addition to your wardrobe for events all year round. Wear it with a full skirt and ankle boots for a winter party or take it on your summer holiday with you next year!

4.

Quite steep in price for a pair of jeans I hear you say… but these diamante covered (another brand that has stepped away from sequins!) wide leg jeans are not only super cool, but in my opinion, a great investment for us more casual party goers to pull out time and time again!

5.

A classic Christmas combination – red and satin (and a great price!) Wear with a t-shirt and blazer or a chunky knit and boots.

6.

Firmly on my Christmas list are these crackle metallic silver trousers. Can be styled up with a heel or I’ll be wearing them with trainers and a cashmere knit.

7.

You can’t go wrong with a velvet blazer. I love how it is worn here, undone and oversized with some statement jewellery. Wear it with the matching trousers if you’re feeling brave (nice and warm too!).

One of my favourites to compile! You might recognise a few of these items from my own collections (edit what you know, right?). My son has the Cissy Wears purse for his coins, I bought Afropop socks for Chris (don’t worry, he helped me pick the styles so I’m not ruining a surprise), my dad loves Nina Parker’s sauces (ended up repurchasing himself!) and I bought the patch for a flamingo loving niece! Hope you find something for your loved ones from this list of amazing small businesses (and everything is under £35).

1. Kaleidoscope: £3.95, Smallkind

2. Socks: £11.99, Afropop Socks

3. 2024 diary: £25, The Stationer (this is my diary for next year!)

4. Kids crown: £12, Molly Meg

5. Leather purse: £10, Cissy Wears

6. Suya spice blend: £7.90, The Cornrow

7. Zodiac candles: £15 each, Stories Behind Things

8. The Christmas Songbook: £20, Magic Cat Publishing (use code CHRISTMAS for 20% discount until midnight 14/12/2024).

9. Splatter enamel mug: £12, Harbour & Tide

10. Art print: £35, Quinn Says

11. Peanut salsa (set of 2): £17.90, Nina Food

12. Flamingo iron on patch: £4.50, Petra Boase via Etsy

13. Tenugui: £28, Foundland

1. Cushion: £9.80, Dunelm

2. Hair clips: £6.50, Rockahula

3. Glitter socks: £6.40, Hush at John Lewis

4. Colander: £10, Dunelm

5. Tin of coffee: £6.75, Grind

6. Hand cream: £10, Cissy Wears

7. Enamel baking tray: £10, Dunelm

8. Glass: £3, Dunelm

9. Set of 3 mini matches: £10, The Frugality Shop

10. Cable storage case: £2.95, Muji

11. Stoneware mug: £6.99, H&M Home

12. Polaroid photo box: £8, Urban Outfitters

13. Bike/scooter streamers, £3, Halfords

14. Set of 2 mini candles: £7.20, H&M Home

The under £20 guide! See more of our edit on the Christmas Hub here.

1. Beanie hat: £14.90, Uniqlo x Anya Hindmarch (available from Thursday 23rd November)

2. Frill cushion: £14, Dunelm

3. Kids ear muffs: £14, Rockahula Kids

4. Candle: £14, Anthropologie

5. Art print: from £15, fy!

6. Guest towel: £20, Dyke & Dean

7. Chargeable lamp: £20, Dunelm

8. The Beatles music card: £11.99, Yoto

9. Candlestick holder: £12.50, Oliver Bonas

10. Cashmere blend gloves: £19.99, H&M

11. Kids pyjamas: £14, Marks & Spencer

The Christmas hub is live! Everything is under £60 and as usual, we will be updating it consistently – and for now, please enjoy our frist ‘official’ gift guide! I will focus on themes later on but for now I just compiled things I love….

1. Candlestick holders: £9, Ikea

2. Candlesticks (2-pack): £7.99, H&M

3. Wool balaclava: £35, Damson Madder

4. Moisturiser: £10.19, Byoma via Boots

5. Yoto Mini: £59.99, Yoto (use code AFF-ALEX10 for 10% discount – not in conjunction with other offers)

6. Glitter socks: £7, Cos

7. Handheld steamer: £29.99, Amazon

8. Tree decoration: £8, John Lewis

9. Hobby alicorn: £12, Tiger

10. Flannel pyjamas (with pockets): £42, Next

I love a good pair of pyjamas. Lately, I’ve been partial to a nightie but in the winter, I’m a pyjama wearer through and through and slip into them at the earliest opportunity. I made a vow a few years ago to invest in a decent drawer of pyjamas and it has made a difference to how I feel at home. I’ve rounded up my edit of the best ones around, to suit a variety of budgets. And where I can I have picked ones with pockets (because we always talk about dresses with pockets, but pyjamas with pockets are the golden ticket)!

First up, this Uniqlo pair I was so close to buying! They have pockets, cotton-mix and I love the colourways – the pale blue is classic but I am also drawn towards the mustard.

Kate Barnét pyjamas are ethically made (often from deadstock fabric), with inclusive sizing AND pockets. This pair (from the brand’s collaboration with Charlotte Jacklin) are currently in the sale:

One of the surprises of this research have been Mango! Gorgeous sets and I love that they sell separately in case you’d rather wear with a t-shirt, the fabrics are natural and the styles not obvious – love!

95% cotton 3% elastane gingahm pyjamas: £59.99, Mango. Stripe cotton pyjama bottoms: £35.99, Mango.

You can always rely on Hush for good pyjamas, year after year. These are cotton flannel and I just love this colourway (reviews tend to say they come up loose so size down):

Wondering what Topshop is up to these days? Making nice cotton poplin pyjamas, it seems! I was pleasantly surprised to see these crop up whilst researching:

100% cotton rust stripe pyjamas: £48, Topshop. Pink and black stripe 100% cotton pyjamas: £42, Topshop via Asos

These are the pyjamas on my Xmas wishlist (Damson Madder have sold out on their site but I have spotted them on Asos!). I love the modern twist on classic pyjamas: the bows, the frills, the colour combinations – perfection (with the exception of pockets, sadly).

I love these chic flannel gingham pyjamas from Next, cotton mix WITH pockets. Tick, tick, tick.

Okay so no side pockets, but I have a soft spot for Muji pyjamas (pun not intended here!), they don’t have raised seams so are super comfortable and the double faced cotton gauze is so soft.

I’m still gutted Gap are mainly online now, as I used to love walking around in store (I know there is still one on Oxford Street but its collections are limited). These pyjamas are 100% cotton flannel in a gorgeous sage colour. The downside? From owning Gap pyjamas previously, I sense these are pocketless.

These Boden pyjamas are more on the pricier end of the budget but they often have discount codes, I was drawn to the colourway (and candycane stripes, obvs) and the fact that you can buy the top and bottoms separately for mix and match sizing. No sighting of pockets in these though…

I’ve never bought anything from Chelsea Peers, they do good value pyjamas but tend to be in a lot of shiny fabrics. These, however, are organic cotton (they are stocked at John Lewis too, but have better stock levels buying direct):

This pair of pyjamas have patch pockets, side pockets – you name it! They go up to size 26 and the print feels very Arts & Crafts movement to me!

Elizabeth Scarlett, known for their lifestyle accessories, has launched pyjamas for the first time. 100% cotton, hand-painted designs and every purchase of this set goes towards protecting tigers in Rajasthan – they’ve raised £350,000 for charities conserving animals so far! FYI: no pockets.

And then these to finish off with an affordable classic cotton pair from John Lewis. Unsure of pockets, but I suspect if the photograph on the site isn’t shouting about them, the answer is no. I do like that they have bottoms with an array of different tops – short sleeved, long sleeved, strappy, as understand not all of us want to be buttoned up to the top as I do!