New home? Don’t scrimp on these three things

Sure, you might not be able to kit out your entire home straight away. But if you make sure you nail the following three things by going as high quality as you possibly can, you’ll be on your way to creating the kind of home you’ve been imagining.

They’re not the most expensive items you’ll end up buying. But dollar for dollar they will be your best path to lifting your experience of your new home – and they will do so over and over.

Bed Linen

No matter what’s missing from your new home when you first move in, if you can retire to a bed of luxurious comfort at the end of every day, it won’t matter quite so much.

Understanding thread counts is the first step to improving your bed linen game. Simply put, the higher the thread count – which is the number of thread woven into a standard square inch – the better the quality.

Anywhere above 200 will serve you well and last much longer. Move up the scale towards 800 and you’re looking at an expensive set of sheets, but they’ll feel great and last for years.

The other thing to look out for is the origin of the cotton. Most advice recommends buying sheets woven from 100% Egyptian cotton.

You might also want to read about choosing the right mattress for you.

Crockery and Tableware

You eat every day, so make it an enjoyable experience and invest in some decent things to eat from. A cupboard full of mismatched mugs and plates is not a great look. It might even deter you from inviting guests over for dinner.

Buying a quality, complete dinner service means you’ll always have enough to go around for a dinner party – after all, you want to show off your new home, right?

There are plenty of options but porcelain has stood the test of time as the recommended option. It’s fired at extremely high temperatures making it durable, so it lasts much longer.

Go for classic white, or a neutral colour like grey so if you decorate your home, the crockery won’t be out of place.

When choosing, it’s best to buy individual items rather than a pre-boxed dinner set. Or choose a set that also has a companion range you can add individual pieces from. The reason is that, if you’re a big cereal eater, you might want extra bowls, or if tea and coffee are your vices, you don’t want to be constantly running out of mugs or cups.

Tailor your crockery supply to your personal needs, buy the best you can afford, and buy enough to have at least eight guests over for dinner.

Towels

With a brand new home, the bathroom is probably one of the things you’ve been looking forward to upgrading in your life. Don’t let this all down by rouging it with your bath towels.

Like your bed linen, this one’s all about comfort. There’s nothing better than stepping out of the shower and reaching for a super-soft towel. And as well as being softer on your skin, a set of quality towels will last you a whole lot longer.

Towels are measured in GSM – grams per square metre. This refers to the density of the cotton or wool thread. Some people like a heavy towel, others a lighter towel, so buy what’s right for you, but buy high quality.

Read more about transforming your bathroom here.