Living in a brand new home doesn’t mean you can’t have the features of a period home. Read on for 5 helpful tips to bring character and charm to a new build home.

5 Helpful Tips to Add Character and Charm to a New Build

  1. Panelling the walls
  2. Tiling your kitchen
  3. Adding a faux fireplace
  4. Incorporating vintage furniture
  5. Mixing old and new decor pieces

1) Wall Panelling For a Custom Look

Wall panelling has been used for hundreds of years, in the last 4 years it has made a huge come back and is now a popular trend. I love how panelling looks, but I also love how easy it is to DIY!

Panelling is an effective and inexpensive way to makeover a space. It adds the charm and character that you might lack in a brand new home. It can give the illusion of custom joinery which can elevate any space from cookie cutter new build, to thought out and expensive space.

I added ship-lap to the walls in our living room space. I only panelled 2 walls and it made such a difference, it’s painted in Farrow and Ball Drop Cloth.

You can add character and charm to a new build with different types of panelling:

  • Ship-lap
  • Tongue and groove (bead board)
  • Traditional Wainscoting (board and batten)
  • Moulding
  • Tambour
Head over to my Pinterest to check out some more examples of wall panelling in different forms!

The different wall panelling techniques are suited to different home styles. Intricate wall mouldings, with a dado and picture rail, would be used in an elegant Victorian or Edwardian home. But if you wanted a more rustic and cottagey look, then ship-lap would work best.

2) Tiling a Kitchen Backsplash

I don’t know if this is typical for new builds, but when we moved in, we had no kitchen backsplash at all. I soon rectified this by installing my own subway tiles and I absolutely love them! They weren’t hard to do, I watched a couple of YouTube videos for research purposes, and then I just did it. The whole process didn’t take longer than a weekend, but it’s made all the difference.

Tiling your own kitchen means complete freedom to define the tone of the room. You can go for a generic subway tile if you want a more modern farmhouse look, or ‘handmade’ tiles which are unique, uneven and rustic. These can give you a vintage kitchen vibe which instantly gives the space character. You can tile as much or as little as you like, so you can keep the project really affordable and complete it as a weekend DIY project.

The tiles I used were from Wickes, I love the way they turned out and they look fabulous. All in all it was a very easy project, quite cathartic and it only took me a day. I had never tiled before, and with only 2 YouTube videos of experience I think it’s a pretty entry-level DIY project. Full list of featured products at the end of the post.

3) Adding a Faux Fireplace to Add Character to a Living Room or Bedroom

After Christmas on Instagram and after seeing everyone’s gorgeous fireplace garlands, I knew I needed to DIY ourselves a fireplace for our living room.

I grabbed my phone and started scouring Facebook Marketplace for a small fire surround. I found one with perfect dimensions for only £15 and I repainted it with Farrow and Ball ‘Ammonite’. The tiles behind it are linked in the featured product section at the bottom of this post. They are stick on marble herringbone tiles from Amazon and they look so realistic!

It adds character to that wall and looks like it has always been there. There are many other, more complicated ways of adding faux fireplaces, ones which include building out an entire chimney breast. But we didn’t have the space for that so this DIY was ideal. Perfect for adding more decor pieces and decorating for Christmas with a Garland and stockings.

4) Incorporating Vintage and Antique Furniture

Vintage and antique furniture carries an air of it’s own. Just one antique chair or dresser or stool can bring instant character to your space. Especially so if the main bulk of your furniture is new (sofas, beds, etc.)

You can pick up these pieces second hand from, eBay, antique centres, family members and some times by the side of the road! See my last blog post for how to pick out vintage decor and antiques.

Our vintage half-poster bed makes a huge statement in an otherwise boring space. I haven’t ever painted or wallpapered the walls so the bed really sets the tone in this room.

Older pieces of furniture are so well made that they bring such beauty to a space. Adding vintage furniture into vignettes in your home can instantly look thought out and designed, something you don’t always get with brand new pieces.

5) Mixing Older Pieces with New Home Decor to Create Cohesive Space

A brand new home can’t take solely vintage/antique/thrifted decor and furniture. The best way to have a cohesive space, is to mix old and new interior items and trends.

Old trinkets, books, candle holders and ceramics can be mixed with new coffee table books and a new vase full of faux florals. Layering the old and the new is the best way to bring character and charm to a new build, this results in harmony between the new walls and the old pieces.

I hope these were useful tips for you so that you can add some character and charm to a new build! Stay tuned for 2 upcoming blog posts where I show you the best farmhouse/cottage style home decor finds from IKEA and ebay!

Products I’ve Featured in this Post:

Home Decor Items:

  • White armchair sofa – https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/faerloev-armchair-flodafors-white-s89191708/
  • Lighting (bases IKEA, shades The Range/Dunelm) – https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/arstid-table-lamp-brass-white-60321376/
  • Rug – https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/lohals-rug-flatwoven-natural-00277395/
  • Side Table – https://www.willowbay.co.uk/collections/tables/products/pacific-lifestyle-taupe-pine-wood-round-pedestal-table-k-d
  • Gold pan rail – https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/hultarp-rail-polished-brass-colour-30448777/
  • Cream Kitchen Scales (Aff Link) – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004RBP3R8?ref=fioa_ctp_dp_sh_ss_dk&tag=onamztillywoo-21&linkCode=ic7&creativeASIN=B004RBP3R8&asc_item-id=amzn1.spark.v2.spark.748dc86d-571d-4682-b755-d9007d319c44
  • Scaffold Board Shelf Brackets (Aff Link) – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07GC1PM1G?ref=fioa_ctp_dp_sh_ss_dk&tag=onamztillywoo-21&linkCode=ic7&creativeASIN=B07GC1PM1G&asc_item-id=amzn1.spark.v2.spark.527483ca-780d-48c0-be58-7f7e26827731

DIY Supplies:

  • MDF Bead Board – https://www.wickes.co.uk/Wickes-Beaded-Medium-Density-Fibreboard-MDF-Panel—6-x-607-x-1220mm/p/190140
  • Moulding for top of Bead Board – https://www.wickes.co.uk/Wickes-Picture-Rail-Primed-MDF—18mm-x-44mm-x-2-4m/p/145472
  • Farrow and Ball ‘Drop Cloth’ (mixed by Valspar) – https://www.farrow-ball.com/en-gb/paint-colours/drop-cloth?sku=5029496758375&region=GB&campaign=UK%20%7C%20Shopping&adgroup=Ad%20group%20%231&msclkid=fcaf50d3d17612e3531f3001814c7973&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=UK%20%7C%20Shopping&utm_term=4584482467101302&utm_content=Ad%20group%20%231
  • Wickes Tiles – https://www.wickes.co.uk/Wickes-Farmhouse-Blanco-Ceramic-Wall-Tile—150-x-75mm/p/151908
  • Faux Marble Herringbone Tile Stickers (Aff Link) – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B074JMWWL5?ref=fioa_ctp_dp_sh_ss_dk&tag=onamztillywoo-21&linkCode=ic7&creativeASIN=B074JMWWL5&asc_item-id=amzn1.spark.v2.spark.ebfb1be3-04b8-486d-adbd-62fd139f46cd
  • Farrow and Ball ‘Ammonite’ (mixed by Valspar) – https://www.farrow-ball.com/en-gb/paint-colours/ammonite?sku=5029496757477&region=GB&campaign=UK%20%7C%20Shopping&adgroup=Ad%20group%20%231&msclkid=9ba97d36f66b1a7813711de4a748ee9c&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=UK%20%7C%20Shopping&utm_term=4584482467101302&utm_content=Ad%20group%20%231