Home is where our family, and therefore our heart, lives. Comfortable and familiar and full of the people, memories and treasured keepsakes that we love the most, surely we’d never change a thing? Well, no, that’s not quite true. If you’ve lived with the same décor and furnishings for a while and some areas are starting to look a bit tired, it could well be time for a refresh. It’s not always easy to do on the average family’s budget, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make some real differences for very little money. Here are four ways to refresh your home without breaking the bank.
Repaint the Walls
A fresh coat of paint on the walls is a simple way to give a room a new lease of life. Choose your colours carefully as shades can alter depending on the light in the room or the surface they are painted onto. Tester pots are essential and don’t be afraid to bring home several options.
You can save money by doing the painting yourself, but it’s worth doing some research into painting techniques so you can get the best shades for your home and a high-quality finish. If you are repainting the whole house, this will take a while to complete by yourself. Professional decorators will be able to complete the job to the best standard and more efficiently, but this will cost more money.
If you do need professional help with painting (or any of the other jobs mentioned here), short term loans can cover the cost with up to 2 years to pay the loan back. You’ll get the work completed quickly and to an excellent standard and pay for it with manageable monthly payments rather than a significant upfront cost. It’s amazing how a lick of paint can refresh your home.
Change Door Handles
Even the oldest door can be brought into the modern day with a new handle or knob. This could be your kitchen cupboards or the doors between rooms, but adding a stylish accent can take it from dull to quirky in just a few twists of a screw. It’s important to ensure the new doorknobs are bigger than the old, so they cover any old screw holes or scratches. You can also repaint the doors in your home to make them stand out or better suit the new handles, but this should be done before you change the handles.
Change Your Lighting
Lighting can help from both a practical and aesthetic point of view. More light in a room will make it appear more spacious and, if you opt for a single large source of light such as a chandelier, it can be a real focal point in a room. Smaller lamps are useful for drawing the eye around the space, again creating the illusion of more space.
Learn to Love Mirrors
Just as lighting, mirrors can lift a home into a brighter way of life. If you can’t afford to install bifold doors or skylights, you should consider bringing more strategically placed mirrors into your home. If you position mirrors for maximum light reflection, you can give the illusion of more space and bring more natural light into the room.
Do you have any top tips on how to refresh your home on a budget? I would love to know in the comments below.
