Welcome to another edition of #MyHouseLikeThis

Today we’re having a browse around the wonderful home of Colette and Gazz and their furry friend Bruce. If you’re familiar with the @homeofthebears Instagram you’ll have come to recognise a calming mid-century, monochrome and print inspired home from an interior obsessive who loves nothing more than inviting change into her house.

We had a chat with Colette to get to know her style, her renovation projects and what she has learnt at the “Home of the Bears”...

AHLT : Well hello! Firstly, please tell us a little bit about you and your house...

Hi, I’m Colette and I live in a rented 2-bed house with my boyfriend, Gazz and our dog Bruce. I work in a local secondary school as a behavioural assistant, where I work with kids with behaviour issues and work closely with them in and out of lessons as well as working as a maths mentor.

However, my true passion is interiors, hence why I started up an Instagram account to share my passion.

Our house is a standard 2 up 2 down terrace house and is the house that helped me find my passion for interiors. I have loved creating a home for us in this house and developing my style throughout the 3 years we have lived here.

AHLT : Pleasure to meet you! You have a very distinctive style about your home! If we had never seen your home before how would you describe its style in 3 words?

I would say...mid-century, modern and industrial

AHLT : What is your favourite thing in your home and why? - and you’re not allowed to say your PYRIGE candle from A House Like This otherwise everyone will think we bribed you!

My current favourite purchase in our home is our dining set, which I partly made. I spent so long hating our previous dining set and not being able to afford what I wanted, that now we have this gorgeous set I am so happy and love sitting at it. It might not be perfectly made but I love it more because I made it. Plus it’s the perfect size for every day but also when we have our friends around.

AHLT : We love the sound of that, very creative and it’s always brilliant to showcase your own creations in your home. Given that you are a creative soul, how do you plan before you apply your creativity to your decorating and designing in your home?

I don’t always have a plan of what I’m going to do. With this house, it has taken 3 years for me to be completely happy with every room in the house. But that’s mainly because I like changing things around the house.

I mainly get inspiration from Instagram and Pinterest. I usually plan things in my head first and sit on that idea for a little while before planning it out and costing everything up before going ahead.

AHLT : Cost is always the final bit that can make or break a dream! Have you had any DIY or design mishaps? What did you learn?

When we first moved into this house we did a lot of things design-wise that looking back I find so embarrassing to think we lived like that but I was so proud of it. Over the years we have developed a style we both love and as a learning, I would always say never rush into anything! We definitely rushed into decorating our house but picked things that were convenient instead of things that we loved.

AHLT: It’s interesting isn’t it, some interiors advice expects you to throw stuff away if it doesn’t have a purpose whereas nowadays maximalist styles are more and more popular and the more modern styles seem to have been inspired by Scandinavian and Nordic interiors which often consist of statement pieces. You might say that many readers may see some of the latter in your style.

Now that you’ve got your home to a point where you’re happy with it what would you say is your favourite space in your home?

My current favourite space in our house is the guest bedroom. I have always wanted a guest bedroom that is always ready for if we have guests to stay.

AHLT: It’s great having the space to entertain and interesting that it’s not actually your usual room! What else do you think makes your guest bedroom stand out as “the one” in the Home of Bears?

I also love this room because it has some of my most successful DIYs, including the pallet bed, which turned out better than I had imagined and has helped make the small second bedroom feel a lot bigger.

AHLT: That’s pretty thrifty and the result looks fantastic, definitely one for our readers to take a look at on Colette’s Instagram or blog - see links above and below!

So…what is your next home project and what considerations do you have before you start?

Our next project is a big one; we’re currently looking at buying our first house. There’s so much we have to take into consideration before we buy a house and choosing the right house to buy is definitely going to be difficult.

AHLT : We hear you, our story was a bit rushed and we were lucky to find something that ticked many of the boxes but there are always surprises you cannot expect!

When you finally find your dream home to buy you’ll likely begin planning and creating again - who would you say inspires you when it comes to interiors and why?

There is an abundance of inspiration on Instagram, I spend far too long scrolling through Instagram and finding new ideas. A few of my favourite accounts are, @overatkates, @heymamablog and @hoppshouse.

They all have such beautiful houses and fabulous features.

AHLT : Excellent choices, there really is a lot out there it can be overwhelming! Looking at your current home, if you could wave a magic wand and change one thing what would it be?

I am constantly dreaming about having a roll top bath, it’s my dream to have one.

The bathroom in our house is nice but it’s not something I would have chosen and I would love to have a bathroom I was proud of.

AHLT : Great choice! Ours is probably our favourite purchase and they don’t have to be unrealistic budget wise if you shop around!

So we’re drawing to the end so for one final question, what advice would you give to those looking to start their next decor or renovation project?

I would say don’t rush into anything and take your time to work out what you need and want then plan before you do anything. Whether that's making a mood board, or marking it out with tape, or even make a 3D plan.

AHLT : Ok, one more question...what do you make of your candle from A House Like This?

I’m always worried about ordering new candles online but I have not been disappointed. I have the AHLT PYRIGE candle and it smells amazing and quickly fills the room of the scent. I would definitely recommend this candle.

AHLT : We’re glad you like it! Thanks so much for your time Colette, we can’t wait to see how your story unfolds as you enter the next chapter. Best of luck finding your next project - your dream home!

To follow Colette’s story you can find her gorgeous home on Instagram and featured on her blog below :