A first time buyer transformed a ‘beige’ 100 year old terraced house into the dream Instagram home in less than three years.
Alicia Murphy, who works in marketing, bought the Edwardian terrace in West Derby in 2018.
28-year-old Alicia and her husband put down a 5% deposit on the £130,000 house after falling in love with the property.
READ MORE: Liverpool area named as England's top buyer market outside London
The couple saw the potential in the home thanks to its period features but knew that it needed more ‘colour and quirk’ to truly feel like their home.
After making a start on the transformation, Alicia decided to start a blog to document her renovation and it quickly took off.
Her Instagram account @EmeraldTerrace has racked up more than 34,000 followers and hundreds of thousands of views.
Followers of Emerald Terrace have branded the transformation as ‘glorious’ , ‘amazing’ , ‘divine’ , after Alicia posted before and after pictures to the account.
Now known as an interior design influencer, after gaining a loyal following, Alicia has also created online and social media content for brands including Amazon, Tesco, Very Group, Purplebricks, Sofology, Russell Hobbs and more.
However becoming an influencer was never Alicia’s intention when she first started her renovation project.
Since the previous owner rented the property out before deciding to sell, it was also fairly untouched and undecorated.
This meant the couple had a ‘clean slate’ to add their own homely touches.
Alicia told the ECHO: “I loved that it had character in the form of period features, I loved the location and it was pretty much a clean slate decor wise, which meant we could put our own spin on it.
“I think it had been a rental property before the owner decided to sell it on, so it was very much beige walls, light floors.”
It wasn’t until Alicia moved into the property that she fully realised her vision.
Once she started ‘experimenting’ with decor she realised that she loved minimalist styling.
She added: “Originally we’d only planned to paint the walls green and have a green sofa, and it wasn’t until we moved in and I started experimenting with decorating, colour schemes and interior styles that I realised I totally loved everything ‘maximalist’ and quirky.”
Much like the evolution of her interior style, Alicia’s blog also grew organically.
Before getting stuck into her own project she admits she didn’t care much about interior design, she said: “I’d wanted to start a blog for years and just wasn’t sure what my niche could be.
“To tell you the truth, I was never too interested in interiors before moving into this house.
“I set up the account about six months after moving in - a few people said I should try it because my home was that little bit different, and it just grew from there really.”
Alicia added: “Social media has been amazing for providing inspiration and ideas.
“Instagram is one of the main platforms I use - not only can you see other people’s amazing homes and styling, but you can also follow along with tutorials and DIYs and actually try them out for yourself. I also use Pinterest a lot.”
Thanks to the success of her interior design and DIY blog, Alicia is now frequently asked for tips.
She is also used as a styling expert by Purplebricks to help them come up with ways to best stage your house to appeal to buyers.
Some of her top tips include ‘adding warmth’ with throws and cushions, hiding personal items and using ambient lighting.
Over the years, Alicia has had many offers from people who’d like to buy her home.
She added: “I think we’ll definitely move on in the future as it’d be great to have some more space, but that won’t be for a few years now.
“I’ve already had people jokingly tell me they’ll be the first to buy it if I ever come to sell it.”
To get more inspiration and tips from Alicia, visit her website Emerald Terrace here, or visit her Instagram account here.
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