A conversation with Louisa Sugden, content creator and owner of Starre Corner.

3 Min Read

Anyone that has renovated a house knows that it’s not all beautiful panelling and brass fireplaces like platforms such as Instagram would have you believe. Behind the images it’s sacrifice, hard work and a whole lot of budget.

Social media and content creator Louisa Sugden knows firsthand the challenges of renovating an old house. After selling all of their furniture and most of their belongs they moved to Norfolk cottage Starre Corner. Friends called her and her husband crazy, but with a background in project management and operations, Louisa knew she had the skills required to take on the project. On her Instagram profile @elegantlyknackeredstyle Louisa shares the fun side of living in a renovation project including things she has discovered and interior decisions she has made.

“Instagram is full of lots of highly polished homes and to think that people want to see this rustic hovel is just great”
Louisa Sugden

After years of working in a corporate environment and feeling like she wanted to do something more creative, Louisa made the decision to move to Norfolk. “When I jumped off the career ladder, I can’t say that I had a major plan. A friend suggested I use Instagram to showcase what was going on at my house. That’s where I picked up my love of photography again and I started creating really beautiful natural light photographs and imagery and people liked it. I love this aesthetic and to think that other people really like it too, makes it all worthwhile”.

As with most first-time renovators, Louisa has learnt new design and building skills with the help of Google and YouTube. “It’s been a massive learning curve. My husband and I didn’t really know what we were doing so with the help of Google and YouTube and talking to lots of people we are progressing with it quite nicely”.

“They read my blog and decided that as a family they wanted us to live here”
Louisa Sugden

With hopes of finding a property that they could really put their own stamp on, Louisa and her family searched and searched until they fell in love with Starre Corner and after reading Louisa’s blog the previous owner knew it had to be them that owned it. “We wanted something that hadn’t been spoiled by someone else. It hadn’t been touched for about 75 years so moving here it felt like a great responsibility”.

Read Louisa's blog Elegantly Knackered Style here: elegantlyknackeredstyle.co.uk