Speaking exclusively to washable rug company Ruggable, Bianca, 45, has shared why she themed the property from top to bottom and how it has done wonders for her mental health. From what has been described as a labour of love, Bianca from Leeds has been continually adding nautical-inspired pieces to her home over the course of eight years, creating a space she adores. It all started with a spontaneous trip abroad and she says: “In my twenties, I went on a very random holiday to Ayia Napa with my ex-boyfriend's mates and a friend from my college days.
Whilst clubbing was ok for me for a couple of days, I soon got bored and decided to try scuba diving. I've always been a water baby and had been wanting to try it so this was my chance. As soon as I went underwater, it felt like I found my home” “I didn't actually see much on that dive but the feeling of calm and weightlessness meant I was hooked from the very start.
As soon as I got back to the UK, I enrolled on my first diving course. Today, I'm not only a leadership coach but a dive instructor too and have worked in dive schools in the UK, Thailand and Australia . Convinced I’m part mermaid, my husband had no choice but to learn to dive and he loved it.
” Bianca wanted to reflect her love of the sea in her home and she says: “As a leadership coach, I'm talking to clients all the time about the importance of work/life balance and having a passion to escape to outside of work. For me, scuba diving is that escape, but I just don't get to do it enough. Transforming my home into an underwater paradise meant that I could get some of the calm and beauty of the underwater world, without going on a dive.
” “When I first created a vision board for my coaching business, I found that as well as lots of images and quotes that were clearly linked to my love of developing people, I also felt drawn to a lot of images of the sea. It felt only right that my home should reflect all of the different sides of me, so I have lots of books and inspirational pieces relating to leadership around the house but my passion for diving needed to be expressed too. I wanted my home to not only reflect my passion but also my personality.
” Bianca and her husband bought the house as a “do’er upper” and she says: “As my husband is a joiner, he took the lead in designing the structure of the house and did all the woodwork, tiling, plastering, bricklaying, you name it, whilst I worked alongside him as his labourer. While we did do most of the work ourselves, we did hire an electrician and plumber to take care of the technical aspects when needed.” She adds: “When it came to our home decor, we wanted to make sure we were as resourceful as possible.
I even took a glass fusing course so I could make my own glass wave and a glass underwater scene, both of which are in front of our bathroom window, sparkling where the light passes through them. “We also upcycled some of our furniture, including our daughter's chest of drawers, adding under-the-sea wallpaper to the base and some beautiful shell draw handles, which cost us around £50 in total.” This renovation and underwater theme has proved to be a huge success and a lesson in decorating how you like, rather than following home fashion can bring rich rewards.
Bianca says: “I cannot describe the happiness and calm that diving brings me so this was more than a home project to me. Every time I look at one of my photos on the wall, I'm transported back to that particular dive and it brings me so much joy. One of my loved pieces is the canvas in my bathroom of a see-through crab that I found living on the belly of a large starfish in Samoa.
This dive was during my two years travelling solo around the world so the image brings back so many memories from that special time of my life. "Our home transformation has taken years just because we keep adding pieces when we find them. When I'm on a dive, my favourite thing to do is to spend ages in the same spot, just observing.
The more you look, the more you find. It's the same way with decorating our house/ We think we're done, but often when we visit somewhere new we'll find something spectacular that just has to be added.” Bianca’s advice for those who want to carry out a similar renovation project is “Make sure you plan out your budget and add some extra, as something unexpected will always come up.
It's way better to come in under budget than not have enough to finish it off. Also, have fun with it. Whatever your passion is, use this as a fuel for your creative flair and truly make it your own.
” Pictures courtesy of Bianca Spruit, www.sproutcoaching.co.
uk, and washable rug company www.ruggable.co.
uk Bianca with some of her sealife photographs Photo: Bianca Spruit These images have brought happiness and a boost to mental health Photo: Bianca Spruit Bianca sourced these wallpapers designed to make you smile Photo: Bianca Spruit Bianca's love of scuba diving reflected in an appropriate print Photo: Bianca Spruit.
