This weekend, we’re visiting Evelyn in Marden (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
Welcome back to What I Rent – Metro’s tenant diary series exploring what renting is like in the UK and further afield.
When she was a little girl, Evelyn Lindley loved interior design.
Bright colours always called out to her, and she’d often stare at the ceiling of her mother’s home, realising that whoever had laid the wallpaper had mistakenly stuck it on upside down.
After a slew of customer service jobs, in 2020, Evelyn decided to take the reins and study interior design, just as she’d always wanted to.
Now, she’s used her lifelong passion – and qualification – to doll up her one-bedroom flat in a Kent village, for which she pays £700 per month.
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Here’s what Evelyn had to say about her renting journey…
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Tell us about yourself!
I’m an interior designer. I qualified during lockdown, after years of wanting to do it. Hobbies-wise, I’m obsessed with coffee, I like photography, and my partner’s a sneakerhead, so we’re into our trainers.
I also love decorating, and I write a bit of poetry now and then.
Whereabouts is your property? What do you think of the area?
I live in a little village called Malden, which is a really nice place. It’s lovely and quiet, and I feel really lucky to have got my little flat here.
We’ve got a big park just out the back, which is literally a couple of steps away. That’s always nice to go for a walk, and there’s a coffee shop.
There’s another up the road in Staplehurst, plus a nice little homeware shop and some pubs.
The smallest, quirkiest village shop has closed down, which is a shame. It’s literally just one street and then it’s surrounded by countryside.
Evelyn has loved interior design since she was little (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
When did you move in?
September 2023.
What kind of property do you rent?
A one-bedroom flat. It’s a coach house, so I’ve got my own entrance with stairs, and then the whole flat is on the upper level. It’s a tiny space, with one bathroom, one little kitchen, and a living room.
The street is a cul-de-sac.
How did you get into interior design?
I’ve always loved interiors, and in the house I grew up in, somebody did the wallpaper upside down. It used to bug me all the time, because I could see the flowers going the wrong way, so that sparked an obsession with detail.
Then, when I was a teenager, I got to decorate my room for the first time, and when I was 18, my mum went away for a few weeks, so I redid the lounge for her. I was being asked if I would do other people’s houses, but I never had the confidence to do it. I always felt like I needed to be qualified.
She retrained during the pandemic (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
I’ve always struggled with not believing I can do things, so it took me all the way up to the 2020 lockdown. I was going through a really hard time, and my mum came round one day, and said to me: ‘I’m absolutely sick and tired of hearing you say how much you regret not doing interior design.
‘I’ve paid for your course, and you’re going to do it.’
It gave me a lot more confidence, but I’m still working on the financial side. Charging people money is the bit I’ve been stuck on for a few years now, so it’s taken me so long to put down a price that I feel comfortable with.
What did you do for work before interior design?
Mostly retail, but I did office work, accounts, and taxi driving.
When I left school, I did a course to be an embalmer at an undertaker’s. I’ve had a lot of issues health-wise, and I found it all too hard. In 2017, I was diagnosed with autism, which really made sense of a lot of my struggles.
A creative job is what I’ve needed all this time.
Plants are also a big feature of Evelyn’s home (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
How much is your rent?
£700.
Do you feel like you have a good deal?
For the location, I think so. I’m very grateful to live here, and that alone is just worth whatever I’m paying for it.
What do you like to do inside your flat?
Mainly design work, when I’m not doing it for someone else. If it’s not that, then I’m working on colour theory.
Everything is about patterns and textures; that’s where my obsession is. I look after a lot of houseplants, so that takes up a lot of my time.
Has your landlord let you decorate?
They said I could do whatever I liked, as long as I leave it neutral when I move out. I like a lot of bold and dark colours usually, but my entrance hall and the lounge are the two largest spaces here, so I did repaint those.
I painted the lounge in a very pale pink, hoping that was plain enough, and I won’t have to redo it. I also added some panelling to the walls.
The bedroom I’ve painted dark, and in the kitchen, I’ve added vinyl to the cabinets.
I couldn’t find tile stickers that I liked enough, but there was a wallpaper that was ideal, so I did that. I’ve put light strips in, so now it looks colourful.
She’s been living here since September 2023 (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
What inspires your interior design style?
My favourite colour palette is dual tones, like teal, deep blue, and green.
With this place, I’ve had to adjust what I’m into, but it’s still eclectic.
How did you find your property?
Through the council. You have to go on and bid on properties, and then they decide if you get them. I was one of three people, but I was at the top of the list.
It was a mess when I came in, but it was the first place I offered on.
Do you feel like you have enough space?
Definitely not. I used to live in a four-bedroom, double-fronted house. I’m still going through everything now after coming out of a relationship, but I’ve managed to create a lot of space with different storage options. I’ve crammed a lot in.
She previously lived in a four-bedroom house (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
Is there anything you’d like to have but don’t with this flat?
The back windows are frosted, and I can’t see out of them, which bugs me. Other than that, it’s mainly aesthetic stuff.
I’d like to make the garden my own, but with the cost of trees and plants, I don’t want to leave them all behind if I’m not here for that long.
What’s your favourite piece of furniture in the flat?
My nanny’s old 1950s chest of drawers. I painted them, and that’s something I won’t get rid of.
Are there any problems you’ve had to deal with?
I’ve had a lot of trouble with the boiler. It constantly loses pressure, and they’re not very good at coming to sort it. I’ve also had a leak fixed.
Do you have any plans to move in the future?
My partner and I would love to move in together. At the moment, we’re not in a position to do it, as it’s too cramped in here for both of us.
Shall we take a look around?
The bedroom is one of her favourite spaces (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
Evelyn loves the detail that interior design brings (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
She was constantly being asked to redesign people’s homes (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
…and even reworked her family home (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
Plants plants plants (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
Before interior design, she worked in offices (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
…and even completed an embalming course (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
The whole time, a creative job is what she needed (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
She’s taken her own touch to the kitchen (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
And filled it out with some plants (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
…and the bathroom, too (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
We’re manifesting our desires, too (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
Dark colours call to Evelyn (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
Her rent costs her £700 per month (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
She feels she has a good deal for the rent she pays (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
…but in the future, she’d love some more space (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
We’re loving this wall print (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
She’s been allowed to decorate, so long as everything’s neutral once she moves (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
Gardening is good for the soul (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
She’s worked hard to get her business off the ground (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
She’s also fascinated by colour theory (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
Patterns and textures are fundamental to her work (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
Now isn’t this a nice nook? (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
Trainers are another passion of Evelyn’s (Picture: Justin Griffiths-Williams)
Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@metro.co.uk
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