Hi and welcome to your May/June edition of Selfbuilder + Homemaker!
We have the usual array of useful features offering advice to self-builders on product choices – and this month it includes how to choose mortar and cement to avoid extra cost from wastage. Then there’s a look at the benefits of smaller radiators that use less water, the importance of hinges for fire safety, and even how the garden foe of Japanese Knotweed can be defeated.
When it comes to interiors, we feature kitchen blogger Kat Jacklin on key kitchen design trends, and how low-VOC paints can now give you not only a healthier household but also the standard of performance you want. This month’s Interior Inspiration selects some inspiring flooring products to underpin your house’s look and feel, and Home Styling looks at how the Swedish trend of ‘lagom’ – i.e. everything in balance – is catching on among UK homeowners looking to get their interiors ‘just so’.
When it comes to self-build projects, we welcome back Sarah Ball who updates us (in Secrets of Success) on progress on her self-build, which stalled a few months ago but is now back on site with a vengeance. The diggers are onsite and the groundworks are going in, and she’s loving it! We also have a great case study starting on page 12 where Roseanne Field reports on how an agricultural planning constraint can be turned into a design virtue.
We hope you enjoy reading the issue as much as we enjoyed putting it together.
James Parker