A woman who transformed her 'normal' council house says she is inundated with messages on social media.
When Adele Best, 38, set up her Instagram account she didn't think anyone would be interested in her ex-council house in Liverpool, but she's amassed thousands of followers with her love for all things do-it-yourself.
She told the ECHO: "When I started, all the accounts at the time were all really big houses or self builds. The outcome was not what I expected and I suppose a lot more people can relate to me because I have such a normal house."
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Adele has always had a flair for making things, but her love of DIY really came to the fore when she was trying to tighten the purse strings: "Ever since I can remember, I've always been a creative person. I can turn my hand to almost anything.
"Knowing the house I’m in now isn’t my forever home, I've just tried to save money any way I can. I have done everything from making all my own curtains, to installing the panelling and coving.
"I built and upholstered a king-size bed, made a table out of an old sleeper from my garden. Built my own fences, re-upholstered old chairs and furniture - the list goes on."
She added she has "always had a love for interiors" and they're something she hopes will feature more prominently on her page in the future. Adele always tries to make the best of what she can, and with whatever materials she can get her hands on - including a set of ladders that were once destined for the tip.
She said: "Basically, the ladders were left by the previous owners and I used them right through my renovation; they were so old and battered. When I started the home page [on Instagram] the previous owner's granddaughter followed me and noticed them - she couldn’t believe they were still going."
She added: "When they finally broke I sent her a message saying how gutted I was. She got back to me to tell me how her and the family had been trying to work out how old they were and they were roughly 100 years old.
"They were given to her grandad by a neighbour when he was young, so I just couldn’t take them to the tip once I heard that. I gave them a little clean, sanded them down and gave them a coat of paint and they’re now still one of my favourite things in the house."
Adele is on Instagram at @mybest_home
Ladders aside, Adele's proudest moment has been completing her fitted wardrobes, which can cost a few thousand pounds when done professionally.
She said: "It was such a big task for someone who has never done it before. And for someone who is 4ft 11 and weighs eight stone, handling and cutting large sheets of MDF [medium density fibreboard] was tough.
"I said to my sister before I started that I wanted them to look professionally done and not like I had made them myself, so that was my challenge. I still can’t believe I pulled it off."
Adele's best piece of advice for people wanting to try their own projects is to just get stuck in: "Just always have a go, you never know what you're capable of until you try. If you feel like you can’t do it or you're failing, then take a break and go back to it with a fresh mind.
"I get so many messages on Instagram from followers who have never done any DIY before. They watched a few of my videos and it inspired them to have a go around their homes.
"Some had never even picked a screwdriver up before. They send me pictures of all their projects and it’s so sweet."
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