“Revive a room, refresh an unloved space and bring your décor into the next decade with new and trendy colours. 2020’s interior paint trends bring harmony to our walls with colours inspired by nature including the Dulux Colour of the year, tranquil dawn.”2020 Paint trends
Wickes
over time
Every year keeps its colour across every chart.│ ChatGPT, 30 Nov 2022
135 of Wickes's own blog posts, press releases and announcements, 2020 to 2022, measured sentence by sentence. How the writing has moved over the years, how it compares with 8 other DIY and home brands, and what it sounds like in its own words.
- Pages measured
- 135
- Years covered
- 2020–22
- Archived before ChatGPT
- 0
- Blog · press
- 129 · 6
01 · Homepage
One capture a year
Wickes's homepage from 2004 to 2026, closest to 1 July, from the Internet Archive. Pick a year or press play. Each headline is quoted from its capture and links to the archived copy.
Screenshot of Wickes’s homepage (wickes.co.uk) as archived by the Internet Archive on 12 Jul 2026. © Wickes or its licensors. Shown for comparison and review; not endorsed by Wickes.
Homepage
2026
“Kitchens & Bathrooms”
Page title
Wickes DIY & Trade Home Improvement Products and Inspiration
- 2013Wickes - Home Improvement Products for Trade and DIY
- 2014Top 5 Offers
- 2015Wickes Kitchen Sale
- 2026Kitchens & Bathrooms
17 captures. Screenshots are rendered from the archive and can pull in images archived later than the page itself; dates come from the capture. Years without a capture are greyed out in the strip.
02 · Measures by year
How the writing moved
Every year’s pages, averaged. Pick a measure. Hatched bars rest on fewer than 10 pages: context, not a finding. The page count sits under each year.
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | Sentence length | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 11.8 | 1 |
| 2022 | 11.5 | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | Sentence rhythm | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 0.69 | 1 |
| 2022 | 0.79 | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | Contractions | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 3.7 | 1 |
| 2022 | 14.9 | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | "You" | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 82% | 1 |
| 2022 | 91% | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | "We" | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 15% | 1 |
| 2022 | 5% | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | Questions | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 0.0 | 1 |
| 2022 | 3.3 | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | Exclamations | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 0.00 | 1 |
| 2022 | 0.00 | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | Long words | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 20% | 1 |
| 2022 | 22% | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | Em dashes | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 0.00 | 1 |
| 2022 | 0.00 | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | AI-associated words | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2.49 | 1 |
| 2022 | 3.32 | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | AI-era marketing words | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 2.49 | 1 |
| 2022 | 3.32 | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | Quieter LLM-favoured words | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 0.00 | 1 |
| 2022 | 0.00 | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | AI-associated sentence shapes | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 0.00 | 1 |
| 2022 | 0.00 | 1 |
10 or more pagesFewer than 10 pages: context, not a findingSector averageChatGPT released
Show as a table
| Year | Page length | Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 804 | 1 |
| 2022 | 602 | 1 |
Years with pages: 2020 (1), 2022 (1). Dates come from page metadata, structured data, the URL, or the month a page was first archived (a latest possible date).
03 · Against its sector
Wickes among DIY and home brands
Each dot is one brand’s mean across all its measured pages; the tick is the sector average. Only brands with 10 or more measured pages are shown or counted. Select a dot to open that brand.
Em dashes
85% less than its sector
0.18 against a sector average of 1.28; lowest of 8.
"We"
79% less than its sector
7% against a sector average of 34%; lowest of 8.
"You"
43% more than its sector
88% against a sector average of 62%; highest of 8.
Pages measured: Wickes 135 · Screwfix 8 · Homebase 121 · Dunelm 45 · Habitat 35 · Oak Furnitureland 18 · Magnet 88 · Farrow & Ball 16 · Dulux 134. Measures and method: SGR-010; this sector and its brands were added by Brands over time, measured exactly as the studies measured theirs. Sector averages and ranks cover every brand in the sector on this site.
04 · Vocabulary
Words Wickes uses more than its peers
The words this brand reaches for more often than the rest of its sector. This is subject matter more than voice.
bathroom52.0 vs 9.7
timber48.8 vs 8.9
tiles30.9 vs 4.9
fence24.9 vs 3.2
decking21.8 vs 2.1
garden63.4 vs 21.4
plants29.8 vs 7.3
panel23.6 vs 5.1
tools20.3 vs 3.8
saw13.5 vs 1.0
build14.8 vs 2.3
WickesSector peers
Uses per 10,000 words, ranked by weighted log-odds (Monroe et al. 2008) across 135 pages. Checked for product names and page furniture.
05 · In its own words
What it sounded like
Openings of real pages, quoted word for word, oldest first. Each links to the page, or to the Internet Archive’s copy when it has gone.
“What better way to give your garden a fresh look than to kit it out with the latest garden trends of the year? There are loads of ways to style up your outdoor spaces and make them as attractive as they are practical. Discover our trends and find fun ways to bring your garden to life.”2022 Garden Trends
“While decking is a great way to upgrade the look of your outdoor spaces, it needs some love and care to keep it looking its best. Being exposed to the elements all year round is bound to leave it in need of a good clean, especially during the Autumn and Winter months- thankfully it can be maintained without any major hassle.”Caring for your Decking
06 · Every page
All 138 pages, by year
The full list behind every number above, with links to the live page or the archived copy. 135 count towards the measures; the rest were not measured (3 mostly short lines (lists, tables, link pages) rather than prose). Pages with no reliable date count in the overall numbers but in no year.
20221 page
- 2022 Garden Trends2022 · blog · 602 words
20201 page
- 2020 Paint trends2020 · blog · 804 words
In the overall numbers, no year133 pages
- Caring for your Decking11 Sep 2020 · blog · 480 wordsDate only from the page text, not metadata, URL or archive capture: in the overall numbers, not placed in a year
- Picture shelvesundated · press · 635 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Painting a curvy muralundated · press · 591 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Reclaiming old furnitureundated · press · 629 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Pressure Treated Fence Panelsundated · press · 1,009 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Air Source Heat Pump Maintenance & Cleaningundated · blog · 720 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Home Maintenance Ideas and Adviceundated · blog · 344 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Upcycling old recordsundated · press · 652 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to Pressure Wash Deckingundated · press · 1,411 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Decluttering – How to restore order at homeundated · blog · 834 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to Wall Mount a TVundated · blog · 1,066 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Door styles and trendsundated · blog · 467 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to Build a Shedundated · blog · 2,600 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Refreshing your staircaseundated · blog · 633 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Art Deco gold accentingundated · blog · 333 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Blue Bathroom Ideasundated · blog · 927 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- 5 upcycling ideasundated · blog · 450 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Choosing The Right Flooringundated · blog · 580 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- 3 Stylish Bathroom Tile Ideasundated · blog · 1,298 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Late winter plantingundated · blog · 620 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to build a radiator benchundated · blog · 4,168 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to start and maintain a compost heapundated · blog · 609 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- 5 smart home gadgetsundated · blog · 581 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Bedroom Lighting Ideasundated · blog · 1,712 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Painting a room with dark coloursundated · blog · 648 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to maintain your garden tools - Ideas & Adviceundated · blog · 557 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- The Best Paint for Skirting Boardsundated · blog · 1,367 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Make your own homemade candy canesundated · blog · 482 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Kids garden parties - Ideas & Adviceundated · blog · 906 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Build your own birdhouseundated · blog · 334 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Fence Painting Ideasundated · blog · 1,694 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Shelving 101undated · blog · 471 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Impactful Painting Techniquesundated · blog · 407 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- The best bathroom tilesundated · blog · 2,956 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Energy Saving Adviceundated · blog · 1,230 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Brightening A Room With Paintundated · blog · 430 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Good reasons to use a greenhouseundated · blog · 666 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Custom outdoor storageundated · blog · 1,300 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Build your own garden tool storage rack - Ideas & Adviceundated · blog · 3,327 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Last-minute lawn careundated · blog · 664 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Kitchen Organisation Tips with The Style Sistersundated · blog · 861 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Giving perennials a second lifeundated · blog · 652 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to Replace a Toilet Seatundated · blog · 1,084 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Five ways to use peg board storageundated · blog · 790 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Showing love to forgotten house plantsundated · blog · 640 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Garage Storage Ideasundated · blog · 1,184 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Ceiling Painting Tipsundated · blog · 1,341 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Concrete candle holdersundated · blog · 615 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Creative Wall Panelling Ideas for Every Roomundated · blog · 744 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Cleaning your bathroom: a complete guideundated · blog · 2,494 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Air source heat pumps myth-busting factsundated · blog · 1,058 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Scandi Alcove Shelving Ideasundated · blog · 1,363 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Current Bathroom Trendsundated · blog · 916 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Doors & Windows Ideas and Adviceundated · blog · 486 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- September scarifyingundated · blog · 647 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Small Garden Ideasundated · blog · 2,809 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Picking your remaining cropsundated · blog · 629 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Stair Panelling Ideas & Tipsundated · blog · 1,245 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- One place. Endless possibilities. For all the inspiration, trends and advice that you'll need for your latest DIY project, you'll find it all at our NEW hub.undated · blog · 580 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Minimalist artworkundated · blog · 608 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Leftover Tiles & Flooringundated · blog · 402 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Versa-tile: Clever Uses for Tilesundated · blog · 381 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Trimming time: Looking after your hedgesundated · blog · 629 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Early summer crop harvestundated · blog · 600 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Rooftop plantingundated · blog · 334 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Bathroom Storage Ideasundated · blog · 1,048 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to make putting up a shelf easyundated · blog · 810 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Pink Bathroom Ideasundated · blog · 1,071 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- 3 fun DIY paint projects - Ideas & Adviceundated · blog · 751 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Organising your kitchenundated · blog · 1,359 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Tips On Container Planting for Winterundated · blog · 1,400 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- The first cut of the yearundated · blog · 836 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to build a firepitundated · blog · 782 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Choosing the right soil - Ideas & Adviceundated · blog · 665 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Upcycling tips for beginnersundated · blog · 504 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Gardens & Landscaping Ideas and Adviceundated · blog · 601 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Choosing The Right Wood Panelling Designundated · blog · 532 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- DIY Bed Canopyundated · blog · 746 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Comparing Different Wood Panelling Stylesundated · blog · 475 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Fence facelift - Ideas & Adviceundated · blog · 273 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Container care: looking after container plantsundated · blog · 648 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to fit a safeundated · blog · 552 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Fun bedroom wall stencils for kids' bedroomsundated · blog · 865 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Making An Impact With Tilesundated · blog · 440 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Avoiding aphidsundated · blog · 612 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Bubblewrap container insulationundated · blog · 619 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- The power of pruning: keeping plants at their bestundated · blog · 637 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Different types of door materialsundated · blog · 618 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- DIY Ladder Shelfundated · blog · 2,932 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Measure up your kitchen spaceundated · blog · 464 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to Fit Roller Blindsundated · blog · 1,065 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- The Best Bathroom Flooringundated · blog · 1,301 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Trusted installationundated · blog · 161 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Green Bathroom Ideasundated · blog · 849 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Bristan tap installation serviceundated · blog · 478 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Choosing the right BBQ for your gardenundated · blog · 562 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Hanging plantsundated · blog · 661 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Keeping your loft clear of pestsundated · blog · 624 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- page_scandi-plaster-art.htmlundated · blog · 372 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Creating your own eco-candlesundated · blog · 707 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Decking inspirationundated · blog · 399 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Make an impact - hallway makeoversundated · blog · 663 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- What your front door colour says about youundated · blog · 833 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- En-Suite Bathroom Ideasundated · blog · 1,615 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Build your own peg board storage - Ideas & Adviceundated · blog · 2,416 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- DIY and wellbeingundated · blog · 477 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How To Change & Wire A Plugundated · blog · 662 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Prune deciduous shrubsundated · blog · 665 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Small Kitchen Ideasundated · blog · 1,115 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Egg Fried Rice Recipeundated · blog · 699 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Composite Deckingundated · blog · 349 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to Fit a Water Buttundated · blog · 1,593 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Marbling effectundated · blog · 621 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Caring for deckingundated · blog · 312 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Motivating children to eat vegetablesundated · blog · 493 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Tips for storing leftover paint - Ideas & Adviceundated · blog · 487 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to Build a Raised Sleeper Bedundated · blog · 1,665 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Wet Room Ideasundated · blog · 1,471 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Getting ready for new grassundated · blog · 626 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Practical, bitesize DIY tips & tricksundated · blog · 2,117 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Decking Accessories Buying Guideundated · blog · 708 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Maximising bathroom spaceundated · blog · 758 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to Unclog a Drainundated · blog · 1,571 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to Create a Scandinavian Kitchenundated · blog · 700 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to Make Your Boiler More Efficientundated · blog · 1,719 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Creating a Painted Headboardundated · blog · 447 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- BBQ Chickpea Dhal Recipeundated · blog · 265 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to Repair Walls & Ceilingsundated · blog · 982 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to Repair Renderundated · blog · 585 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Encouraging biodiversity in your gardenundated · blog · 615 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- Atrract garden wildlife - Ideas & Adviceundated · blog · 640 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- How to make use of your loft for storageundated · blog · 514 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
- The Kitchen Triangleundated · blog · 947 wordsNo date found: in the overall numbers, not in any year
Not measured3 pages
- Bins, Bikes and Bootsundated · blog · 269 wordsMostly short lines (lists, tables, link pages) rather than prose
- Bedroom Makeover Ideasundated · blog · 267 wordsMostly short lines (lists, tables, link pages) rather than prose
- Working with sleepers - Ideas & Adviceundated · blog · 267 wordsMostly short lines (lists, tables, link pages) rather than prose
07 · Method
How this was measured
The pages
Wickes's own blog posts, press releases and announcements, fetched from the live site in 2026 and from the Internet Archive for 2015 to November 2022. Homepages are shown as captures; product and help pages are not measured.
The measures
Code counts from ScriptGrain’s writing instruments: sentence length and rhythm, contractions, pronouns, punctuation, long words, and three published lists of AI-associated words. No AI model reads or judges any page.
What it cannot say
These measures describe style. They cannot tell who or what wrote a page, and nothing here says or implies that any brand used AI to write.
Sample sizes
Every number carries its page count. Years under 10 pages, and before-and-after comparisons with under 10 pages on a side, are shown as context only.
- Sentence length
- Average words per sentence.
- Sentence rhythm
- How much sentence length varies (standard deviation over mean). Higher reads less even.
- Contractions
- Contractions (we're, you'll, it's) per 1,000 words. A rough gauge of how conversational the writing is.
- "You"
- Share of I/we/you pronouns that are "you": how much the writing addresses the reader.
- "We"
- Share of I/we/you pronouns that are "we": how much the writing talks about the organisation.
- Questions
- Question marks per 1,000 words.
- Exclamations
- Exclamation marks per 1,000 words.
- Long words
- Share of words with seven or more letters.
- Em dashes
- Em dashes per 1,000 words.
- AI-associated words
- Words from SGR-007's three AI-associated lists, per 1,000 words. These are style markers that people used long before ChatGPT; a higher rate says nothing about who or what wrote the page.
- AI-era marketing words
- Marketing words that became more common in AI-era copy (seamless, elevate, unlock...), per 1,000 words. A style measure only.
- Quieter LLM-favoured words
- Everyday words language models are known to over-use, per 1,000 words. A style measure only.
- AI-associated sentence shapes
- Sentence patterns such as "not just X, but Y", found by ScriptGrain's cliche checker, per 1,000 words. A style measure only.
- Page length
- Average words per page.
Studies: SGR-009: Do brands in the same sector sound the same? · SGR-010: How UK brands write · SGR-011: Did brand writing change after ChatGPT?.