We are back with the second of our ‘My House, My Home’ series, we’re sorry it has been so long, but believe us, it's worth the wait! If you haven’t seen our first ‘My House, My Home’ interview then you can find it here, where we chat to our good friend Kirsty Tullet about her home – check it out it is worth the read.

Anyway, our next influencer within this series is the wonderful Andreia Jardim Gomes, who has kindly spoken to us about the love she has for her home that she calls “La Bonne Vie” or to those of you who aren’t fluent in French “The Good Life”. You can find Andreia on Instagram, and the stunning pictures of her home will give you all the inspiration you may need to get your home looking just as fab as hers.

With Andreia being our second ‘My House, My Homer’ it was great to hear the passion she showed for her home – she loves every bit of it. For Andreia, her home is one of her biggest achievements, as she’s taken a rundown 1930’s semi-detached property and turn into an ultra-modern house that she is proud to call her own.

Andreia and her partner Flavio have taken this house which was once in ruins and transformed it all by themselves and they've been kind enough to show us around, so let's go inside and take a look around. Before we forget, it isn’t just Andreia and Flavio who have the pleasure of living in this home, they’re also joined by “Simba, our fur baby, he loves his home.” - we love it too, and I bet Simba feels like a king every time he steps through the door!

"La Bonne Vie"

"I love the natural colour palette, I find it so natural and calming..."

As you step through the front door, you’re greeted with a clean, spacious and monochrome look. Andreia and her partner have lived in their home for the best part of five years, but with all the style and glamour of this property, it certainly hasn’t been easy going. It took over eight months for the first part of the renovation, and during that time the couple slept on a mattress on Andreias mums floor – but I’m sure those nights are looked back on with great fondness, as they now live in a home that’s just perfect.

The colour scheme throughout features grey and white décor, Andreia says “I love the neutral palette, I find it so natural and calming… the clean lines create a modern style which I find easy on the eye." As you pass through the hallway you enter into an open plan kitchen and living space. With stunning views out onto the garden (which we’ll look at later). The roof in the kitchen features both a skylight, which brings in even more natural light and a large neon light for a retro touch!

The kitchen and living space is Andreias favourite part of her home “It’s the perfect space for entertaining and we’ve already created so many amazing memories here.” The couple designed the space themselves, so they could combine everyday working life with their own wants a needs, Andreia tells us “the kitchen is super-practical which is something we ensured when we designed it. There is a space for everything and everyone.” Having a space like this is becoming common with a lot of homeowners, as it brings a more relaxed feel to a home. The key to it all for us here at Lifestyle is creating the perfect balance, which Andreia and Flavio have got just right.

"There’s been a lot of blood, sweat and tears but we still can’t believe what we’ve managed to achieve."

Lighting is also key to an open planned space, and the “La Bonne Vie” has mastered the art of natural lighting. The open plan kitchen diner is situated to the rear of the house and in the new extension “which also took eight months and involved us living with only a half a house”. With the extension, the couple decided on bringing in loads of natural light with concertina doors, that come right the way across the back of the house. This opens up the kitchen diner and connects the outdoors with the inside of the home that makes entertaining in the summer, a must-have.

When we asked Andreia about her home, you can tell she had a real passion for interior design “I love getting inspiration from Instagram and Pinterest, looking out for homes with a similar design theme and getting ideas to experiment with.” With these simple tips from Andreia about keeping your eye on social channels for things you love you can create similar looks within your own home. Social media is a really great way of finding like-minded individuals who love their homes.

Andreia has put her heart and soul in the place she calls home “There’s been a lot of blood, sweat and tears but we still can’t believe what we’ve managed to achieve.” Take a look at some of the pictures below for some crazy before and afters.

The transformation above is simply staggering, you can see the old house has been completely transformed from a dated boxed in kitchen, to a now stunning open plan and ultra-modern kitchen diner. We believe that these types of before and afters will help some of you transform your homes because its hard to visualise what your home may look like, but from the pictures above you can see that literally anything is possible.

It feels like we’ve spent a lot of our time talking about Andreias kitchen diner, so we now move on outside to the piécé de résistance. If you thought the kitchen diner had been transformed then you haven't seen anything yet! The outdoor space is truly jaw-dropping, for an idea of what the transformation of Andreias overgrown and dishevelled garden used to look like take a look at the comparison photo sent in to us below.

"I love it, it feels so indulgent..."

Now its a bright and clean space, with a stunning seated area that features rattan garden furniture and a solid gazebo-like structure that'll allow you to entertain outdoors even when the weather takes a turn for the worst. The outdoor area even features a hot tub - you two really have made everyone at Lifestyle Furniture jealous of your home!

Before we leave we can see a few pictures of the upstairs bathroom, where the monochrome look of the downstairs continues, Andreia tells us she does this because "I love it, it feels so indulgent like I'm staying at a 5-star hotel". Creating a space that gives you a feeling of luxury is something everyone here at LF agrees is a must-have!. The bathroom is again simple and stylish, with a cute vase in the corner that adds a calming and homely touch - Its these personalised touches that make a house a home.

So, having gone through every corner of Andreia and Flavios home, we decided to ask them, what's next? "We still haven't finished renovating our home, we're currently working on a home gym in the garage" when we initially spoke to Andreia, the home gym was the next job on the list, and by the time you're reading this, she has already got the ball rolling. It's fair to say Andreia doesn't mess around when it comes to home renovation.

"We also need to finish the front of the house"

La Bonne Vie home renovation doesn't stop at the home gym either, as there are also plans to renovate the front of the home, "We’re changing all of the windows, painting the exterior and revamping our drive. We hope to do this by the end of the year and hopefully, I’ll be able to share some snaps of what our home looks like from the outside." - We can't wait to see them, and we hope you both get in contact with us when it is done, but if you can't wait, then just follow them on Instagram @Labonneviehome for all of their home updates.

As we leave La Bonne Vie, we'd like to get your thoughts on this stunning property, has it captured your imagination and given you the inspo tips you were so desperately looking for or was it just refreshing to hear a story of a couple who have worked tirelessly to create a home that they now both love? Thanks again to you both (and Simba, of course) for having us, we hope to see you soon.

LF x