Kind Words
"Dear Bettina, I came across your book “Downsize with Style” in the local library and I wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed it. I ended up buying it as it was the sort of book that I found I kept revisiting. I love how your personal values in relation to health and wellbeing also came through the pages of the book. Well done I will definitely be recommending the book and website to my friends."
"Bettina was an absolute pleasure to work with. She was able to weave her writing magic on the blog posts I had drafted ready for my website under a tight deadline. I look forward to the opportunity of working with her again."
"Bettina wrote the content for a landing page promoting my new online course, Women in Leadership. The copy was brilliant!
It said all the things I wanted to say and didn't know I wanted to say. Bettina managed to produce compelling copy that addresses my target market in a way that sounds like I said it! Thank you so much. I would not hesitate to recommend her to any business seeking a content or copywriter."
"We also have Bettina Deda writing on design and, while I didn’t realise its personal value at the time of publishing her work in our Autumn edition, her article on Downsizing in Style proved to be a real benefit to me. On a whim and fancy, my family and I recently sold our sprawling Queenslander with its established tropical garden and moved into a brand-new modern house with a small yard and open-plan living…Following Bettina’s article, not only made it easy, but thoroughly inspiring."
"Your course 'Downsize with Style' has been so helpful. I thought I had things under control but the information provided was so thought-provoking, looking at the task from a different perspective. It's an understatement to say the course has improved my life. Thank you!"
"We partnered with Bettina Deda for our downsizing campaign 'Living with Less' after she had contacted us to introduce her book Downsize with Style. As part of the campaign, we asked her to find a couple, who had downsized to an apartment on the Northern Beaches and was willing to participate in a Howard's Storage World makeover in their home including a video recording and a feature in our print catalogue. We also asked Bettina to interview them and write up a downsizing case study to publish on our website.
The couple she had found for us was an excellent downsizing case study, which Bettina translated beautifully in a convincing story explaining the challenges they faced, how our products helped solve their storage problems and eventually improve their apartment lifestyle.
It was a terrific campaign in every respect. Bettina is a professional writer, and we enjoyed working with her. We would not hesitate to recommend her to anyone seeking copywriting services."
"After reading a bit in Bettina's book, I had the wish to get some more specific and individual advice. We did want a dialogue, where you can ask further questions, go deeper into some issues. As I live in Norway, there`s no possibility to actually meet “face to face”. We decided then to have a consultation over Skype. To make sure that we both were prepared and able to use the consultation time efficiently, I had sent my points of interests per email before the consultation. We agreed upon secure payment in advance, appointment time (which is important when you are living in different time zones). It worked out very well! I can recommend this kind of consultation as an easy, fresh & inspiring way to communicate and to help making decisions. Possible from everywhere. Done professionally."
"I’ve just had a chance to read through your story on the Rozelle house. I really enjoyed it and am impressed by the comprehensive information you’ve provided on details and the work that was done. Thank you so much for the great job you’ve done on it."
"My attendance at one of Bettina’s workshops was an act of desperation. As a messy, disorganised person, I was already feeling overwhelmed with my house and its out-of-control clutter. Added to this, was the increasing need to prepare our home for sale, for when we eventually downsize. The need to organise and better utilise the space has become more urgent, as we are expecting a family of 4 to live with us for a few months. I enjoyed Bettina’s workshop greatly; particularly the way in which she encourages you to work with your own personality and think about creative, functional ways to utilise the things that you treasure, rather than just letting them sit on shelves to gather dust. Some friends of ours have started looking at apartments and been turned off, because they “are all too small” and I gave them a bit of a lecture, that they still have a “house” mentality, instead of an “apartment” mentality. I realised that I have adopted an “apartment” mentality, considering which furniture and other possessions will be versatile enough to use in a smaller home and which I can live without. Basically, I have been getting rid of anything, that is non-functional and/or doesn’t give me pleasure (my husband is quite relieved that I have let him stay!) The house is looking so much better, that I wish I had done this years ago and I highly recommend Bettina’s workshop to anyone who wants to create a peaceful, uncluttered home."
"I won this book in a Goodreads Giveaway and was thrilled to receive it in the mail complete with a lovely bookmark. Everyone can use a little guidance now and then and this book by Bettina Deda is a wonderful step-by-step guide to how to downsize belongings without sacrificing style and beauty. The author states at the very beginning of her book that beauty and gratitude are two of the most important things to embrace in life and she has presented ways to achieve both of those in her lovely book about creating a beautiful home in the midst of downsizing. The principles that she sets forth are simple: 1. De-clutter and tidy up, 2. Find your personal space, 3. Visualize your ideas, 4. Layout your space and 5. Start decorating. When she lays it all out it seems incredibly easy, straight forward and with lists and a bit of planning I think this is a very feasible way to go about a downsizing project with ease. The author is Australian so many of the references to websites, stores and removalists are not particularly helpful for those of us who live in the US but she captures the entire process in such a well laid out manner that that really does not matter. Similar things can be located locally to complete the transformation that she helps her readers to visualize. While I am not in the need of downsizing quite at the present I can really understand how this book would be a great tool for those who are in the marker. Well written and illustrated this is a little gem of a book that I would recommend."
"I enjoyed attending Bettina’s Downsizing 101 workshop as it helped me to focus on the essentials of downsizing. Her methodical presentation was most helpful and gave me ideas on how not to make costly mistakes and I now have an achievable plan of action. I was especially grateful that Bettina was willing to hold the workshop in the Castle Hill area making it more accessible. I would recommend this workshop to anyone who is considering downsizing as I believe it is a good investment."
"I commissioned Bettina Deda to create an artwork (150x76cm) for my dining and living area. The briefing was to tie in personal preferences as well as wall and furnishing colours of this space. Bettina not only listened very carefully to the brief, she also delivered a great original painting in the agreed time frame matching my requirements and linking the entire space without being too dominant. Bettina also helped us with the hanging of the work on the day of the delivery. It was an effortless project from start to finish, and I can recommend Bettina to anyone interested in decorating their home with a unique original piece of art."
"Bettina helped me to select interior colours for our farm in country NSW. This was a challenge as she did not have the chance to go onsite, but only worked with pictures. She was very quickly able to select colours that worked within the given environment, and kindly arranged for A4 colour swatches. Once onsite myself I was able to choose one combination and am very pleased with the result. I am very happy to recommend her to anyone seeking advice in colour design and interior styling."
"As part of a team of Designers, I have had the privilege of working with Bettina on a number of occasions. Bettina is efficient, knowledgeable and practical in her suggestions. She leaves no stone unturned in her quest to deliver exactly what the client requires and the end result is always gorgeous. Bettina’s knowledge about downsizing success is second to none and I highly recommend her services to those moving from a large home to a smaller apartment or retirement facility."
"Bettina was referred to me for a copywriting project. After having been through a not so great experience with another copywriter, I was a wee bit gun shy. But Bettina was such a pleasure to work with. She really listened with a desire to capture what I wanted and in a tone that was me. Her style is very collaborative, keeping the lines of communication open rather than writing something and throwing it over the fence. The outcome exceeded my expectations. I highly recommend working with Bettina. I am sure I will contact her again in the future. "
"We engaged Bettina to write a few articles for our ‘Strata News’ weekly newsletter. With her excellent copywriting skills, she transforms input provided by us into informative blog posts with relevant call-to-actions.
Bettina is a professional copywriter with a keen eye for detail and the ability to meet deadlines. We found it an advantage that Bettina has a sound knowledge of the property industry. She is also easy to collaborate with. We would be happy to recommend Bettina for content writing."
"I must say that this Downsize with Style 5-module course took me back to design school. It is packed with strategies, design concepts and abundant knowledge. The best thing about doing this course is that I now know exactly where to start with my de-cluttering, before I start designing new spaces again. Even if you think you know all this stuff, Bettina sets it out in very clear modules which enables you to come back and revisit for a refresher and keep you on track saving you time and money. I would recommend this course to anyone, who is downsizing to a smaller space, who wishes to redesign a room or space, who needs to de-clutter, or who is interested in finding their design style. Great course, thanks Bettina!"
"Bettina Deda is a regular contributor to the lifestyle section of The Retiree Magazine and is highly commended for providing quality and informative copy which is relevant to our readership. Bettina’s feature articles are always submitted prior to deadline and presented in The Retiree magazine’s style format, making her a valued member of the freelance team."
"I am writing to recommend the services of the Bettina Deda Colour Design. I engaged Bettina’s services to provide her expertise and assistance for an upcoming expo, from which a template for future expos would be developed. Mitey Fresh provides both a comprehensive allergen management service and merchandise solutions. Mitey Fresh’ branding had evolved since we first commenced exhibiting at various expos and wanted to elevate our current efforts from good to great. The brief, Mitey Fresh aspired to portray branding through expos, both professionally and effectively. It was crucial to be an eye catching display for our target market, mums and their families. It needed to encompass visitor interaction to learn more about how to create a healthy environment at home, and at the same time, to deliver the company’s solutions to these problems. Bettina did exactly what we asked for and more. The stand came alive, the story about who Mitey Fresh is, colour, texture, interaction, minimal and straight forward messages. I could not have asked for a better partner to achieve this with out the help of Bettina’s experience. Even on opening day, Bettina went beyond and checked everything was in place. Visitors to the stand, those new to Mitey Fresh as well as familiar faces, commented they were captured by the outstanding and eye catching display. They remained at the stand for a considerable time longer, I noticed, admiring, enjoying and engaging with the visual pallet. Thank you Bettina, I really appreciated your assistance, thoughtfulness and expertise."
"Bettina helped me selecting a colour scheme for my kids’ bedroom. My son (10) and daughter (12) share this room and we want to create some privacy for both of them by dividing the space with a curtain. The challenge was to use the colours that each of them like but at the same time to design a nice overall colour scheme. Bettina came up with a warm blue/grey that links a very light cool blue on my son’s side with the bright pink my daughter chose. The blue/grey is painted along a beam in the middle of the room where the curtain will eventually be installed. As the curtain is the feature of the room the third colour highlights this area and provides a nice contrast to the other colours on both sides. Bettina also helped me to choose the paint finishes and came up with recommendations for furniture placement and storage solution to optimize the space. I am happy to recommend her to anyone seeking advice in colour and interior styling. Bettina, thank you for your time, energy and advice. You have been extremely professional and the bedroom looks fantastic!"
"Thank you for coming to see me on the 27th August to assist me with styling for the house I am moving to in November. There are some challenges for me as I am moving from a Federation style house with several small rooms to a more modern open plan property. I really appreciated your advice on colour and interior styling. Based on my floor plan, we discussed which of my furniture could go in which room and how to finish and decorate my new place, and the useful tips on how to create different functional areas in the open plan kitchen/dining/living room with adjacent library was really helpful. We talked about how to introduce a colour scheme in the main lounge room, discussed furniture placement, window coverings, rugs and cushions to bring in colour and texture and how I can link the different open plan areas by using the same accent colour. I found this advice particularly exciting as it opened up some decorating ideas I simply hadn’t thought of. For a huge rumpus room which I would like to convert in a guest room, we discussed different options for dividing the room into a sleeping and sitting area, and I was very satisfied with your advice on different design options and budgets, and also assistance in sourcing the right product. I absolutely loved the links and photos you sent me as samples of possible screens. I especially liked your tips on how to finding my own style and followed up on your recommendations on decorating and styling books to read in preparation to the upcoming move. I have ordered the books from the web links you sent me. So easy, thanks! I am happy to highly recommend you to anyone seeking colour and styling advice."
"We called Bettina for advice regarding the presentation of our property for sale. She came at a very short notice and gave us tips and recommendations how to maximise the use of our own furniture and how to add colour and texture in each room to make them more attractive for potential buyers. We had to work in a very tight schedule. Bettina selected several pieces of rental furniture including accessories and artwork and organised the delivery. She styled the property and introduced colour schemes in the different rooms. She finally provided us with a checklist to get the house ready for each inspection. We very much appreciated her advice and her commitment in styling our house. We are happy to recommend her to anyone who seeks colour and styling advice for preparing their property for the first inspection."
"After my renovations in the store, Bettina helped me to create an attractive window display. She divided the window in three clearly defined sections and set up each section with a different theme. My new spring collection is framed by colorful paper props that pick up the outside colour of the store and attract the customer’s attention when walking by. The middle section of the window which is backed by a wall is decorated with an eye-catching feather headdress and forms an attractive background for my tribal printed dresses and shirts. I had lots of positive comments. Bettina also gave me some recommendations how to merchandise the rest of the store. I love her window display and would recommend her to anyone who needs advice in setting up window or product displays."
"As the store manager of Berkelouw Books Balgowlah I had the pleasure of working with Bettina. She merchandised one of our presentation tables at the entrance of the store. Bettina chose a product story theme and incorporated our stock beautifully around this theme on our display table. She kept the colours consistent and made sure that there was enough stock of the displayed products underneath the table on an additional shelf. She complemented the display with a book relating to the theme. The table has been merchandised on a Friday and we instantly sold products from the display over the weekend. Customers stopped at the table and had a closer look at the attractive display Bettina had set up. I am happy for Bettina to come back and do more merchandising for us and I would recommend Bettina to anyone who requires merchandising advice."
"As the owner of a northern beaches beauty salon I had the pleasure of working with Bettina. She was able to covert my stock shelves into a space that is now much more attractive. Bettina fully incorporated my stock along with all my posters and brochures that I require to run my business. I was impressed as she was very understanding towards my needs as a business owner. She incorporated all my products and marketing material very effectively. The feedback I have received from my clients has been great. They are stopping to touch the display and at the same time they are looking at my products. With the space being so much more appealing hopefully my product sales will also increase. I would recommend Bettina to anyone who requires any style or colour advice!"