It’s always great when you stumble upon that thing that turns out to be your thing, isn’t it? A year ago, Becca moved into an unfurnished cottage with her husband and faced the enormous task of furnishing every room on a very tight budget. She decided to frequent the many second hand shops in the area and see what she could find. She wasn’t daunted by the prospect. She felt confident that she would be able to do what was required to renovate anything that she found. She’d always been good at decorating and thought painting furniture couldn’t be that different to painting walls. She believed that if she didn’t know how to do something, she would be able to google it and learn.
What she didn’t know at that point was how much she was going to fall in love with the whole process.
I love taking something wrecked and turning it into something that can have a life again. I simply can’t bear the thought of these pieces ending up at the tip. I naturally have a lot of patience, which you need, but I actually lose track of time. I forget to eat. I’m never bored. It makes me so happy. This is my thing. I love doing it and I’m good at it
Becca has learnt a lot along the way. She has picked up inspiration from Pinterest. She’s learnt that sanding is an awful lot easier and quicker with an electric sander. She’s discovered chalk paint and learnt by experience how to get the best results. ‘The Upholstery Bible’ has become her Bible. And now she is also attending upholstery classes at Warwick College.
Becca is still young. She’s only 23. Not many people her age get it.
When friends come here, they like the vintage feel that we’ve created, but we don’t see people our age buying what we’re buying. They still all shop in IKEA. I think you get more for your money buying second hand from shops or Gumtree or Ebay though. Better quality, that’s for sure.
Becca has reached a point now where she cannot keep every piece that she has upcycled. Her house simply isn’t big enough to house it all. She’s taken the bold move of leaving her full-time job in a nursery to have more time for her upcycling. She’s taken on commissions. She’s created a Facebook page – Becca’s Upcycling. She’s beginning to see interest grow in what she is doing and is looking to sell some of her projects. She wants to find a way to be able to do this for the rest of her life.
This is what gets me up in the morning. Even when I’m doing something else, I’m thinking the whole time about what project I can do next. It engages my creativity. I look for ideas everywhere I go. Upcycling makes me happy. Really happy.
Her garage is upcycling heaven.
