Whether you’re moving into a new home, renovating, or just want to update your decor, putting your own stamp on your home is important to most people. At the same time, you’ll likely be working on a specific budget, so it’s important to prioritize where the best places to spend your money will be. Your home can be the perfect canvas to express your personal style. This can be especially important if you’re just moving into a property and want to make your space feel like home quickly.
Before you consider doing something drastic to a space, like removing walls or tearing anything out, you should consider what simple changes you can make. Making small changes one at a time can be a great way to upgrade a space if you’re short on time and cheap. By taking time to plan ahead of time what you want to achieve and the steps you’ll take to get there, you’ll avoid making last-minute decisions that could cost you more in the long run. Sometimes if you’ve just moved into a property or if your house is a bit older, simply giving the place a deep clean can make it feel more like home and can often help you notice things that might need repair or replacement that you had not had. noticed before. You need to make sure you use the features your property already has and build on them, especially if you have a period property where masking features could be costly and unnecessary; It’s usually a much easier task to build on a building’s existing features and improve them, than to remove them.
Sometimes even simply rearranging furniture can be an effective way to alter a space to make it appear smaller or larger. You may even want to experiment with different layouts to find the one that works best for you. Also, replacing fixtures and fittings in rooms like bathrooms or kitchens is often a much cheaper way to make things newer. Things like faucets, plugs, cabinet doors or tiles can often be replaced much more cheaply than replacing entire units.
Another really great way to make a cheap change to a room is to simply add a coat of paint to surfaces that look worn, like doors, baseboards, or even furniture. A fresh coat of paint can quickly give you a much fresher look. You can even paint over the wallpaper if it looks dirty or outdated. Freshly painted surfaces can make a significant difference in how a space feels. Small rooms can be made to appear larger with a light, bright tone on the walls, and you can avoid a cold feeling by choosing a bright shade in a warm tone like terracotta or yellow. If you’re artistic or feeling brave, you can take painting to the next level by incorporating geometric shapes or murals into a surface, and there are a variety of paint effects you can try that will allow you to create a space. your own. Also, consider a feature wall to give a room a different dynamic, a pale room with one wall that is a bright or deep color can be effective, and for something more dramatic, a simply painted room with one wall that has wallpaper. decorative tapestry can be effective. add a distinctive charm.
If your property has hardwood floors, you may want to consider exposing them to reduce costs. Adding tile or carpet can be expensive, but natural wood floors can usually be sanded by hand or with a belt sander, then painted or stained to your liking. To maintain a comfortable feel underfoot, you may choose to strategically place rugs and rugs on exposed boards rather than fully carpeting the area.
If you’re working with a slightly bigger budget and want to make a simple but dramatic change to your home, there are many options available to you, depending on your priorities. One option is to change the gates on your property, and this can have both practical and visual benefits. Internal doors are often white or have a natural wood look with a stained or lacquered finish, but it’s not always necessary to follow tradition. The doors can be painted in the color of your choice and can be used to highlight other features in your room or can even become a focal point for a room. If you want more light in your property, choosing interior glass doors may be more expensive than a paneled alternative, but it can make your rooms appear brighter and larger for many years to come. You also have options for wider doors with a wide range of room divider door options, including sliding and bi-fold doors, as well as doors with sidelight panels. Room dividers are the perfect way to make the most of open plan living, still giving you the option of having individual rooms whenever you want them, as they can easily open up or close off a space. Also, external doors, especially the front door, can have a massive effect on curb appeal, as well as being an important feature in a home in terms of insulation. Style, materials, and features such as glazing are all considerations to consider when shopping for a new front door. First appearances are important, especially if you plan to sell the property in the near future. Regardless of how you choose to change your doors, we always recommend that you make sure to measure each opening, as the doors in your home may not all be the same size and hire an expert to fit them. Poorly hung doors can fail quickly and can even damage an existing frame or opening. You may also risk voiding any warranty if your doors do not fit correctly, but you should expect good quality doors that fit correctly to give you many years of service.
For an even more impressive change, you may want to consider upgrading or replacing your staircase. Stairs are often overlooked, but they are also often a focal point of a property. You can purchase individual stair pieces that allow you to modify or upgrade your stairs, without making any structural changes. The range of different styles of stair parts is probably wider than might be expected. You have options for simple, accent pieces in various natural woods, for a more traditional look, or you can opt for elegant metal or glass pieces that are great for a modern or contemporary home. If you want to replace an entire staircase, design aids are available online so you can design your own stairs and have them manufactured to order in your choice of styles and materials, or discuss your ideas with a design team and create something truly unique. such as a curved or spiral staircase.
Whatever design ideas you have, 2017 could be the year you achieve them.