I quit my job as a midwife to become an interiors influencer after turning my magnolia cottage into a pastel pink paradise
- Sophia Ferrari-Wills, 35, left her job to pursue influencing and decorating
- She and her husband Chris saved thousands of pounds by styling their home
- READ MORE: Woman splashes £10,000 making her home pink
A DIY enthusiast has revealed how she turned her home into a pastel pink palace – painting every room a shade of the colour and saving £10,00 by doing her own decorating.
Sophia Ferrari-Wills, 35, from Cambridge, bought her 1960s cottage with husband Chris, 42, a sales manager, in October 2019.
The mother-of-two set to work painting the magnolia walls pink and creating her fairy-tale vision for a ‘pastel whimsical home’.
In March 2020, she started uploading photos of her pastel home to Instagram and was able to leave her full-time job as a midwife in April 2021 to pursue interior influencing after gaining 310,000 followers.
The home is now a pastel pink paradise – kitted out with a mermaid bathroom, forest playroom, ice cream office and tree house for her daughters, Clemmie, four and Minnie, 20 months, to enjoy.
Meet Sophia Ferrari-Wills (aboove), who turned her home a pastel pink palace – painting every room a shade of the colour and saving £10k by doing her own decorating and DIY
Sophia, a content creator, said: ‘I’m a magpie for pastel and candy-style things. I am a girlie girl and pink always ties in with other colours as a neutral.
‘I use it in every single room and layer with other shades. I’ve always been creative, but lockdown gave me the chance to completely overhaul.
‘I am a midwife health visitor and I used to take inspiration from other people’s homes.
‘I had a complete career change and still do the odd bank shift but at the moment I’m focusing on decorating and content creating.’
Inside Sophia Ferrari-Wills’s kitchen, fitted with lilac cupboards, bright appliances, a dark granite work surface and a reddish brown floor
The mother-of-two’s living room is plastered with artwork and contains two vibrant sofas and a fancy thin rug
This bedroom includes a cream carpet, salmon pink curtains, floral wallpaper, a pink bedroom rug and multiple vases with flowers in them
Inside the living room, with a blushing fire place, pink walls, a mix of flowers and bright blue curtains
The toilet of the pastel paradise is even fitted with a light pink sink, salmon toilet and sea shell wallpaper
Sophia started by overhauling the home with pink paint and her husband, Chris, 42, didn’t take much convincing to let his wife realise her candy floss vision.
She said: ‘When I first met Chris, he was wearing a pink jumper, he loves the happy vibe and encourages me to explore my creativity.
‘Delivery drivers have asked to come in and have a look at the home because they’re intrigued by the colourful shutters and pink front door.
‘People who visit are always very complimentary and amazed. Even some of Chris’ friends can’t believe he’s on board with the lilac kitchen but also that they like it too.’
‘Someone has said to me my home is a mature pink barbie cottage.’
Sophia, a content creator, said she is a magpie for pastel and candy style things, and made the playroom this pink colour
She said she uses pink in every single room including this one, with pink floorboards and chequered wallpaper with kisses on them
Sophia overhauled her home, including this room with a light pink carpet, pink leopard rug, a cot and endearing posters on the wall
Sophia’s back garden contains a pink pergola, a wooden kitchen area. with logs for the fire place stored in a cupboard
The 35-year-old former midwife touched up all her homes with splashes of pink, including this bedroom with a rose coloured duvet and pink teddies
Sophia’s office has seashell wallpaper and an ice cream swirl painted onto the ceiling with sprinkles
The interior enthusiast has an eye for a bargain and bought an ex-display bright pink Ferne Cotton for Very sofa for £250 off eBay – saving hundreds of pounds.
Sophia also bagged two scallop armchairs for just £100 each from HomeSense.
‘I have relics left from grandparents that I’ve upcycled, such as a bureau I’ve painted lilac,’ she said.
The magic continues in the downstairs bathroom with a mystical mermaid theme.
‘I painted the toilet pink, and we have a hammered shell looking light shade and scalloped gold tiles,’ Sophia said.
In the hallway, the walls are green and the shutters and pink and it is accessorised with a wavy mirror and side table.
Sophia said all the appliances are pink, and outdoors afternoon tea set is no different, with violet bowls and a rose coloured table cloth
Before Sophia set to work, the kitchen was orange and oak with terracotta tiles and dark granite tiles. She painted it lilac, added a scallop edge and pink tiles.
She said: ‘All the appliances are pink, and the wallpaper is called wonderland by Borastapeter with bunny rabbits.’
In the hallway, the walls are green and the shutters and pink and it is accessorised with a wavy mirror and side table.
‘The living room is a vast space with a yellow corner sofa and a baby pink one,’
The playroom is forest themed – with tree wallpaper and a turquoise ceiling, while Minnie’s room has a feature wall moral Sophia painted herself
The interior of one of the bathrooms in Sophia’s house, which has a seashell mirror and pink wallpaper adored with
Inside Sophia’s pastel home, decorated with a pink wall, bubblegum fireside and flowers no the mantle piece
‘The wallpaper is strawberry themed, and the walls are painted calamine pink.
‘There is a gallery wall with neon lights, and I always try and have natural flowers where I can.
‘We painted the log burner pink and added a yellow scallop detail around the fireplace.’
The playroom is forest themed – with tree wallpaper and a turquoise ceiling, while Minnie’s room has a feature wall moral Sophia painted herself.
Clemmie, Sophia’s daughter, expects everything to be pink like it is in the kitchen, and if it’s not, she is really disappointed
Next, the family (pictured above) plan on building an extension outdoors and renovating the upstairs bathroom
Sophia believes she has saved between £5k to £10k by painting and decorating the house themselves
Sophia said: ‘It’s really quaint, I painted a mountain range with little hot air balloons. We didn’t know if we were having a girl or a boy, but I liked the idea of drifting away in an air balloon.’
Clemmie’s room is whimsical and floral with a scalloped bed and mint green walls.
She added: ‘I painted a floral mural on her wall, and she has a beaded chandelier and pink pom pom curtains. She was a lovely leafy wallpaper and a scalloped bed from Next.’
Sophia said she had a complete career change and still does the odd bank shift but at the moment she is focusing on decorating and content creating
Sophia’s tips for decorating include gathering inspiration from creating mood boards and using testers on the walls you plan on painting
Outside Sophia and the family have created their dream garden with a tree house painted pink and green
Sophia’s office is ice cream themed, the landing is decorated with butterflies with an ombre pink stairway.
She said: ‘There is seashell wallpaper and an ice cream swirl painted onto the ceiling with sprinkles. ‘
‘Our room has pretty floral wallpaper and floral bedding. The bed is mint green and from Loaf and the side tables are blue.
‘The ceiling is a yellow sun colour, and the walls are calamine pink.’
She also urged people to not be afraid of painting and putting up wallpaper, and said there were many affordable shops to buy both pieces of kit
Another room in Sophia’s house, which is adorned with mountains, hot air balloons and items including a small pink ukulele
Outside the family have created their dream garden with a tree house painted pink and green.
Next, they plan on building an extension outdoors and renovating the upstairs bathroom.
Sophia’s daughter, Clemmie, shares her mum’s passion for all things pink.
She said: ‘Clemmie expects everything to be pink, and if it’s not, she is really disappointed. I think we have saved £5k to £10k by doing everything ourselves.’
Sophia’s tips for decorating include gathering inspiration from creating mood boards and using testers on the walls you plan on painting.
She also urged people to not be afraid of painting and putting up wallpaper, and said there were many affordable shops to buy both pieces of kit.
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