The nights are drawing in and the clocks are about to go back, so now’s the time to think about low-level lighting to create a cosy atmosphere in your home.

Here’s five contemporary lamps that caught my eye, all found using the 4Homes Product Search. read more

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This Friday, rather than a property porn post I thought I’d utilise the 4Homes Product Search to pick out five very different bits of furniture I’d happily have in my home. Deciding to search for coffee tables was a direct result of me clutching a mug of the dark stuff at the time. We’re a spontaneous bunch in the 4Homes office. read more

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If your kids have recently picked up their A-level results and are gearing up for three or more years at university, don’t miss our top 5 bargain buys for new students.

Feel free to add comments below, including other products you think are essential for new students leaving home for the first time.

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My local high street (well, local-ish) has just seen its empty Woolies store replaced by a 99p shop. The reaction, and the reaction to the reaction, has been vaguely amusing. Admittedly, it’s a fairly (alright, very) middle-class area, surrounded, as most are in London, by other less genteel areas, so its opening was bound to cause the classic middle-class reaction (an indistinguishable raising of the eyebrows and a barely audible tut, followed by stiff letters to the local MP).

But despite some shopkeepers and local residents calling it ‘the thin end of the wedge’, many people are quite happy that you can buy extra virgin oil and sets of white china for under a pound, while the chief exec of the store says it’s simply offering those who don’t earn a packet a cheaper choice within the high street.

It’s clearly better to have a functioning business in what was otherwise an empty, boarded up store. And those who have enough money to pay more than 99p for a set of china can always vote with their feet. However, the lure of a bargain is too strong for some of us, and local shops may of course suffer from the competition.

As you’d expect, the excitement of the opening caused a punch up in the store on opening day and shoppers were locked in by security guards while it was sorted out. Far more publicity generated by that than if a minor local celeb (and there are loads of them) turned up to open it. So, will it harm the high street? And should you welcome one to your high street? I’ll be off down there later to see what’s on offer – I might even blow the budget and spend £1.98.

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At 4Homes we do our best to highlight the finest design events and talent from right across the UK (see recent post on the Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair).

The latest event to catch our eye on the 2009 design calendar is the Cardiff Design Festival, which you can go along to at the start of October. read more

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I recently received an email from the organisers of the Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair, a Manchester event set up a year ago to showcase cutting edge craftmakers in the north of England, many of whom struggle with the costs and logistics of exhibiting down south. read more

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Last weekend I got myself down to the Homebuilding & Renovating Show at Birmingham’s NEC. As ever, the cavernous hangar of a venue was packed full of self builders and developers, as well as people looking to improve their own homes. The seminars were informative and expertly-chaired, while the range of exhibitors was absolutely vast.

Amongst the usual conservatory, bi-fold door and insulation companies, I picked out my five favourite products from the show. Here they are, in no particular order… read more

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When I moved into my little Edwardian end of terrace two years ago I didn’t have much money to spend on furniture, pictures or ornaments. Depressingly, the home clobber in most shops I could afford was naff or boring, and the stuff that caught my eye was always out of my price range.

But I soon found out, (mainly through desperation) that with a little patience, I could create a look as good as in any glossy magazine while spending next to nothing.

Sure, there has been the odd failure along the way, I once bought a wall clock thinking it was an authentic antique, only to find it had a battery powered chime in it that sounded like it was coming from a Casio keyboard, but as my confidence grows, I’m building myself a beautiful, cosy and interesting home.

Through this blog, I hope to share with you some of the tips I’ve picked up, and inspire the magpie in you to get out there and hunt for treasure.

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