Single mum transformed kitchen and living room of her rented home - with just £218

A single mum-of-two has revealed how she managed to transform her kitchen and living room with just £218.

Charli Jones, 29, from Berkshire, moved into her new home, which she rents for £630 a month from a housing association, in March 2021.

Most of the decor was "plain and boring" with grey flooring in the kitchen, along with chequered tiling and wooden cupboards.

She painted the cupboards, installed a marble effect splashback, which cost just £5 per panel, and used adhesive vinyl to cover her worktops in a bright white tone, which set her back just £18.

She shared her kitchen transformation on Instagram, which received over 36,000 views and gave her the motivation to tackle the rest of the house.

Charli, who is mum to Amelia-Grace, eight, and Rosie, four, said: “Some areas were rather plain and the living room had woodchip wallpaper which was horrendous.

“I started with the kitchen and used marble effect PVC panels to replace the council house tiles, which cost me just five pounds per tile.

“I moved on to paint the cupboards and used adhesive foils to wrap around the worktops. I believe the total cost was just £78.

"Next, I ripped down the woodchip wallpaper in the living room and documented the entire process on social media.

"I relined all of the walls with a thick super fresco wallpaper to cover the woodchip. I applied a dado rail around the whole room, and painted the top half with a Valspar paint colour matched to Farrow and Ball, because it was cheaper.

"I spent a total of £140 on the living room for all the materials.

“I think the living room by far was the most challenging room, but definitely the most rewarding."

So far, she’s spent just £218 in total on those rooms and hopes that by sharing her renovations online, that she’ll be able to inspire others to transform their home on a budget.