Resourceful Living by Lisa Dawson

Something a bit different today. As someone who moved into her home with little money to furnish it, I am always looking for ideas to make the most of it for as little money as possible. So I am delighted to be taking part in the blog tour for Resourceful Living by Lisa Dawson, a fabulous book all about buying pre loved items as well as looking to make the most of what we already have. Many thanks to Anne Cater at Random Things Tours for inviting me and to the publisher for my gorgeous review copy.

The Blurb

It's often thought that restyling your space comes with a hefty price tag and unavoidable waste. But in Resourceful Living, award-winning interiors blogger Lisa Dawson shows how, with a little creativity, you can revamp your home with existing pieces, vintage finds and key purchases.

The clever ideas in this beautiful book cover:

- The most important ways we use our homes, from eating to sleeping, living and working.

- The Basics of steering clear of interiors 'fast fashion', multi-purposing furniture and making the most of what you have.

- Styling Your Home with simple solutions for re-imagining each room, from gallery walls to home bars, repainted storage to retro accessories.

Including her top ten key vintage buys and tips for in-store and online thrifting, Lisa's inspiring advice shares the fun of creative sourcing as a more sustainable way to keep your home feeling fresh.

'Resourceful Living feels like reading a recipe book, not only because of the delicious interiors images, but because of the simple ingredients and easy methods that are shared to achieve beautiful living spaces for yourself.' Melanie Sykes

'I've been a long-time fan and follower of Lisa's interiors tips. This book really is super practical as well as beautiful - perfect for anyone looking to be more interiors savvy.' Rachel Khoo

Resourceful Living was published by Kyle Books on 15th April 2021.

My Review

As mentioned above, after buying my house I had very few funds left with which to decorate and furnish it, and almost everything in it is second hand, but not vintage. Four years on, I still haven't really put my stamp on it. Four years on, I still don't have curtains up! Panic not, dear reader, my neighbours are saved from blushes - I do have blinds.

So I was thrilled to look through Lisa's beautiful book, packed with gorgeous photographs, of her own home and those of other influencers, and great ideas for making your own home look fabulous.

She covers how to make the most of your space and mixing old with new. How great vintage furniture is and how a few key pieces can make all the difference. I loved the section on getting a gallery wall right - I will definitely be going back to that section and following some of the advice. And I particularly loved the idea of 'shopping your home' - looking at furniture you already own and thinking whether it might work elsewhere in your home, perhaps serving a different purpose. Dawson is an advocate for multitasking or repurposing pieces, and she gives plenty of examples throughout - a chair as a bedside table, a repurposed filing cabinet as a sideboard, and a vintage tea trolley for pretty much anything! 

There is inspiration everywhere you look in this book. Discussions about flooring, textures, greenery and lighting. I smiled at the arguments she has with her husband when he likes it bright and she likes subtle lighting. No husband now but been there, done that! Except it was me for the bright lights. There are photographs of beautiful rooms and features throughout the book. Some are Dawson's own, some belong to other lifestyle writers and bloggers, a couple of whom she interviews about their style. But they are all beautiful. Not necessarily my style but I can appreciate and be inspired by them. And I loved the mood boards she did for her main rooms - loads of ideas there. 

I wholeheartedly support the idea of thrift shopping and repurposing - we need to significantly reduce our waste - and this book is a great starting point. The author suggests some online shopping and auction sites, really helpful for anyone looking for vintage pieces for their home. She also included her top ten vintage but which I was heartened to see included crochet blankets and books. I own a couple of blankets made by my grandmother and am busy making several blankets of my own which I hope will become vintage one day. Books was the only thing I really disagreed with Lisa Dawson about. She seems to view them purely for design purposes - to place artfully on a coffee table topped with a vintage glass vase, or collected by colour on a shelf. I have a house full of books, but they are here to be read and talked about. I love to own beautiful books, but only ones I want to read. I suppose I just can't view books they she does. Having said all that, this is a perfect coffee table book - but one that is meant to be picked up and read.

Resourceful Living was a delight to read. Filled with gorgeous photographs and fabulous ideas and suggestions, you can't help but be inspired! if you have want a beautiful home but don't have loads of money to spend, or even if you do, then this is a book for you. Right, if you'll excuse me, I'm away to make a gallery wall...

The Author

Lisa Dawson is a multi-award-winning interiors blogger, writer, workshop presenter and social media influencer. She writes a popular weekly blog, is a regular contributor to Frank magazine and creates professional social media content for brands such as John Lewis and Loaf Home. She is co-founder of the popular Instagram hashtag #myhomevibe

which has over 1.5 million posts and was the first UK-based interiors community hashtag when it was launched in 2016. She lives in York with her husband, three children and a

badly behaved Lhasa Apso called Buddy. Lisa shares her home inspiration on her Instagram @_lisa_dawson_. You can find out more at www.lisadawsonstyling.com

Be sure to check out the rest of the bloggers on the tour!