I’ve spent thousands decorating my council home 30 times – I’m sent hate mail by people saying ‘I’m above my station’

WALKING through her living room Melanie Llewellyn plumped a sofa cushion and wiped away a speck of dust from what looks like a high-end designer side table.

She carefully rearranged a bouquet of fresh flowers before she headed to her spotless kitchen with its Moroccan-style flooring and ‘marble’ worktops to prepare dinner.

Melanie Llewellyn, 41, from Dunstable, Bedfordshire, has lived in the same two-bed council home for two decades. Pictured, the living room before the makeoverMelanie Llewellyn

Melanie has spent thousands decorating the council house an astonishing 30 times. Pictured, the living room after the transformation

You could be forgiven for thinking the rooms belonged to a celebrity.

But online marketer Melanie, 41, mum to criminology graduate Riannon, 21, and married to NHS worker Lee, 48, lives in a two-bed council home in Dunstable, Beds. 

She’s been there for two decades and over the years has spent thousands decorating it an astonishing 30 times. 

Houseproud Melanie has been trolled for her carefully-decorated council home which she shows off on her Instagram page, with people saying she’s wasting the taxpayers’ money, but she doesn’t care.

Shockingly, she’s even received hate mail for spending so much on her home with one letter declaring her ‘living above her station’ and another saying she was a ‘snob.’

But she just brushed off the criticism.  

“When people see pictures of my two bedroom maisonette they think it costs tens of thousands for me to decorate it,” she said.

“When I tell them it’s a council flat which I pay £450 a month to rent they’re dumbfounded.

“People are either gobsmacked, shocked, convinced I’m lying or jealous.

“I’ve also been accused of ‘ripping off the taxpayer’, called a ‘benefits s***’ – but I’m not even on benefits.”

But Melanie doesn’t care and has a message for the trolls.

“‘Bring it on’,” she said. “The trolling makes me laugh. It’s my design skills and money-saving genius that have turned my council  flat into a palace.”

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“I love my home and consider myself the Mrs Hinch of council house makeovers and cleaning.

“Mrs Hinch and Stacey Solomon live in mansions now but my little home costs under £500 a month in rent and I’ve made it just as good as their homes. 

“I’m addicted to doing up my council house on a budget. 

“I won’t pay full price for anything and free is better. I’ll haggle over prices and barter with staff to save money.”

Melanie has given her home at least 30 different makeovers, spending as little as £100 when she first moved in to £1.2k for the latest transformation just six months ago.

“People don’t understand why I’d take the time to decorate a council house or spend money, even a tenner, to make it look nice,” she said.

“But I want my home to look nice. I’m proud to be in a council home. I reckon many people would love to be paying just £450 a month for a home with a huge garden.”

Melanie applied for council housing when she was a pregnant teen mum-to-be in 2000.

“My daughter was born in March 2001,” she explained. “I was 19 and was given a temporary one-bedroom council flat for a single mum.

“Because I was 19 and had a newborn I needed two bedrooms, and within seven months I moved up the council housing list and was offered a maisonette with a huge garden in November 2001 – which is where I still am. 

“It was a total dump when I moved in. There was psychedelic wallpaper everywhere, one room had been painted black and the floor was covered in rubbish.

“But I didn’t care – I could see past it and knew I could make it something beautiful.

“Riannon would sit in her cot and watch me paint and scrape the walls.

“That first makeover, I got white paint for free from friends for all the walls. I scoured charity shops and boot sales and found new curtains for the room including a pair for a fiver.

“I managed to get white wooden laminate at a car boot sale for a tenner and friends helped me lay it in the hallway and living room.”

Melanie found a sofa with blue coverings at a charity shop for £12.

“I removed the covers and dyed them cream in the washing machine and added brown and cream cushions which I made myself,” she said.

“My double bed came from a charity shop for £10 and I only replaced it four years ago. 

“My mum and dad gave me a cot and I found a table and chairs which someone was going to take to the dump, sanded them down and painted them.

“I scrubbed the kitchen with bleach and did the same in the kitchen.” 

By Christmas 2001 the house was transformed and she was already planning her next revamp.

She continued: “I was on benefits at the time and money was tight. I remember some days sitting at the table counting out pound coins to see what groceries I could afford.

“It made me even more determined to turn my council house into a beautiful place to live on a budget.”

When her daughter was three she used her self-taught DIY skills to get a job as an interior designer. 

And at home she continued to carry out makeovers.

“I became addicted to updating my home on the tightest of budgets, always saving money before I started,” she said.

“I had a rule that if I wasn’t using an item I’d sell it, first at car boots and then on Facebook, and put the money towards my house makeover fund.”

“When I got something new even if it  was a vase or cushion I’d have to get rid of something.

“I also discovered investing in high quality faux plants I bought in the sales could bring any room alive.

“I refused to believe just because I lived in a council house meant living in a messy home. 

I wanted to be proud of where I lived.”

But not everyone was happy for her. 

“People told me I was stupid to throw money at a council place,” she said.

But she loves it. Melanie’s latest transformation was completed for £1.2k. 

“I found the soft grey corner sofa on Facebook Marketplace for £50 and after washing the covers and thoroughly steam cleaning it it looks new,” she explained.  “The coffee table was free on Facebook.  I got scatter cushions at TK Maxx in the post-Christmas sales.

“I got accessories from a charity shop.

She found paint on sale at 80 percent off and her wallpaper was a bargain on eBay.

Melanie’s huge garden hasn’t been forgotten either – it includes a six-seater grey rattan furniture set.

“I love it and have solar lamps so it looks like a spa,” she said. 

“I’m so proud of my house. Now we’re hoping to buy it from the council and having been here for 20 years will get a significant discount. We think around £90k rather than £185k.

“The cost of living is spiralling so I know my investment in keeping my council rental looking beautiful will pay off.

“I don’t care if people have a go at me.

“They should follow my tips and they could have a stunning home and save money.”

See more at https://www.instagram.com/melanies_diary_/

Melanie is happy with how she has transformed her home

Melanie has received hate mail for spending so much on her home. Pictured, the bedroom before the transformationMelanie Llewellyn

The savvy mum is proud of her house. Pictured, the bedroom after the makeoverMelanie Llewellyn