Superior Interior Stylist: Styled By S and J
If you haven’t yet discovered the magical world of home builder accounts on Instagram, let us be the first to tell you, you are missing out! There is an abundance of Aussie home builders jumping on ‘The Gram’ to document their behind-the-scenes home building journey.
This is a new era of the modern home builder whereby you can seek advice among other like-minded home builders and be educated by those further along in the building process.
But what about once your build is complete? Don’t worry! There are accounts to follow for that too!
Today we are joined by the very talented Adelaide interior decorator and property stylist, Steph, who manages the Instagram account @styledbysandj. What started as an outlet to showcase Steph and her partner Jon’s building experience with Burbank Homes has now evolved into the ultimate interior design guide for all Aussie homeowners.
After a year and a half of living in your newly built home here in SA. is there anything you would change about your house or do differently during the building process?
Absolutely! Being first time builders there is no way you’re going to get everything ‘right’ the first time around. We overlooked a few things, one of them being our laundry design. We have quite a small laundry, and during the design process, we completely overlooked it and did not add any bench space or overhead cabinetry – big mistake on our behalf!
Now that we’ve been in our home for over a year, we both agree our next build will feature extra storage and bench space – a definite must-have! At least we know for next time, it’s a part of the process!
What were the biggest challenges you both found during your build and what was the most enjoyable and exciting stage of the process?
I have a few exciting stages of the build that I really loved! The first that comes to mind was all the selections! Picking and choosing all your colors, flooring, paint and so on, was such a fun experience! Then from there, watching it all come to life during the build phase was incredible. Building a home can be quite stressful, sometimes it doesn’t go as smoothly as you’d like it and though we didn’t face many challenges during the build itself, we did find the pre-construction phase to be a little stressful.
Do you have any advice, tips or strategies for those currently building that you found really worked well in your building experience?
For sure! Do your research and look around at different builders! Make sure you ask lots of questions. Save as much as you can during the build phase to budget for landscaping, furniture, window furnishings etc (if they’re not already included in your build). I also recommend to everyone building to get a private building inspector – they can detect things you would not be able to see.
Not only do you love interior design but you are a professional property stylist at @upstylehome. Share with us how you became a property stylist and what you enjoy most about your job.
Honestly, I was really lucky when it came to getting a property styling job! I have an interior design account @3nine.designstudio, separate from @styledbysandj, where I showcase all my work and my client’s mood boards. I was noticed through that account and found a job through Instagram!
I absolutely love seeing houses transform through styling, no matter whether it’s a brand-new or older home, styling completely changes it. What I enjoy most is that I can be as creative as I want and every day is different which keeps me continuously learning and keeps it exciting.
Decorating your home once your build was complete must have come naturally with your experience and expertise. Share with us some insight on why interior decorating is such an important aspect of a home.
Interior decorating can be such an important aspect of a home as it tells us a lot about a person’s personality! It is a way for us to express ourselves while also creating a space that thrives in functionality and colour. It also allows us to make a space which looks aesthetically pleasing to others that are welcomed into our home.
It can be overwhelming at the start of an interior styling project whether it’s one space that needs to be decorated or an entire home! Where should people even begin in selecting the furniture and styling elements of their home?
It can be! I always begin my interior styling projects by getting as much inspiration as I can. This inspiration comes a lot from other Instagram pages but as well from Pinterest. If you’re wanting to style a room, I really recommend looking at both these sources and getting as much picture inspiration as possible, and even create mood boards with your ideas that way it all comes together.
What would you say are your ultimate top tips when it comes to interior decorating that will make the biggest difference to a home?
Play around with different textures, colours and patterns with cushions! When styling a dining table or coffee table, add some height with a vase, some greenery and even decorative books for height too. You will be surprised by how much a simple change in décor/styling can make to a home.
Your DIY sunken fire pit has without a doubt been a crowd favourite among your content on your Instagram page, and we can see why! What was the process of this DIY project and would you recommend this project as a DIY for others who may be considering a fire pit for their entertaining area?
It definitely has – we are obsessed with it too! The process for us took a lot longer than expected. We started out by hiring someone of expertise to come out and dig up all the dirt, from there it was a lot of tedious jobs such as building the retaining posts and building the base frame for the timber itself. From there we had to build the steps, the seating and the bench seats! We also had an LED strip light installed (personal choice!) under the seating which we are so happy with. It took us about 9 months to finish it in between work but we finally got there! I would recommend it for anyone wanting a firepit area, just be mindful of the cost and time that goes into it.
Do you already have the next project for your beautiful home planned? if so can you share a little sneak peek of the inspiration?
Thank you! We are currently in the middle of doing a home office revamp, which you can see on our Instagram. But we are also working on something else really exciting which I cannot wait to start… our DIY BBQ area! I’ve shared a mood board below with some inspiration, stay tuned to see!
