Is it time to liven up your living room? Perhaps you’re tired of your fatigued-looking bedroom, or is your kitchen’s lack of color giving you the blues? Looks like it’s time to consider redecorating.
Before the thought of spending thousands on interior improvements gives you a cardiac arrest, take a deep breath – giving your living space a new lease of life doesn’t need to break the bank. Some improvements can be extremely cost-effective, whilst other things may cost more. The sort of improvements you can do will depend on your budget. If you’d like to do more dramatic improvements, you would need a strong budget to cover these costs. Some homeowners could always take out a loan to help them fund these improvements too. Recently, a lot of people have been using secured loans in the uk to fund home improvements and renovations. By getting a loan against their home, these people can achieve the funds to cover their house improvements. Once the loan is paid off, the house will return to the individual’s ownership. That might be one way of funding a larger home renovation project. However, if it’s smaller renovations that are wanted, here are some cost-effective DIY furnishings that work wonders in any room of the house.
Ladder shelving units
Ladder shelving units look great in virtually any environment – from hip cafés to suburban living rooms.
While adding one of these units to your living room, bedroom, or even kitchen may not be wholly original, you can customize it to be more “you.” After all, the beauty of shelves is that you can put anything you want on them.
Though ladder shelving unit prices can escalate at the high-end boutique stores, there are DIY versions that cost next to nothing.
Re-paint
Never underestimate the power of a new paint job. Adding a lick of color can transform even the drabbest room into a stylish space with a new look and feel.
Even if you don’t own your property, many landlords are amenable to re-painting (it saves them a job and some money, after all), so there’s no excuse for living with chipped, peeled, or worn walls.
Make sure that you choose neutral colors for the main color scheme – navy is a “fashion neutral” color that’s very popular at the moment, though be aware that it will make a room without much natural light even darker. If you opt for a colorful feature wall, make sure that the tone you choose complements the furniture in that room.
DIY tier-on-tier shutters
Ever since one of my friends got herself some custom shades a few weeks ago, I have been tempted to refresh the windows in our home. Adding tier-on-tier shutters to your windows will help give any room in your home a fresh new look. Check out a website like https://www.shuttercraft-devon.co.uk/ to see what options you may have for shutter installation in your home.
There’s also no need to splash your cash on professional shutter installation – the DIY versions of tier-on-tier shutters are reasonably priced and take only minutes to assemble and install.
Once up on your windows, these plantation-style window adornments will give your room an exotic feel – perfect for keeping the summer sun at bay.
Add plants
Greenery never goes out of style, and adding plants can change your mental perception of a room; white lilies will brighten up your bathroom, while large-leaf plants can give your dining room an al fresco feel. A rack of potted herbs on your kitchen window ledge looks great and doubles as a handy supply of fresh ingredients.
Putting more plants in your house is also proven to have mental and physical health benefits. Not only do plants clear your home’s air by absorbing airborne chemicals, but they’re also proven to reduce blood pressure, help us feel more relaxed, and can even help improve cognition and memory.
Money doesn’t grow on trees, so it’s a good thing that plants grow in abundance – there are plenty of cheap options. Your nearest garden center will have a range of low-cost, low-maintenance houseplants that will bring some life to your home.
Photos
What better way to enliven a room than by bringing your memories to life on its walls? How about printing out photos of your friends, family, places you’ve visited, and even places you haven’t? A well-placed photograph can really tie a room together and serves as a reminder that your house is also a home. They can also distract the eye from parts of the room that are still in need of some TLC – such as worn skirting boards.
Many big box stores offer photo printing facilities, and your local copy shop will certainly be able to help if you want to put up a larger print. A standard-sized print can cost you just a few cents – especially in black and white, which looks amazing on any color wall and can create a timeless look for your room.
Vintage photo frames can be picked up cheaply at yard sales and on online auction sites – even though the same thing might cost a fortune at a high-end store.
Lighting
Stylish lighting can transform the look and feel of even the dullest room, so consider adding a floor uplighter or bistro bulb fairy lights, especially if your room doesn’t get much natural light – both can be picked up relatively cheaply from hardware stores. They’re both flexible in terms of where they can be placed and don’t require the assistance of a qualified electrician. If you were feeling particular techie, you could look into getting some electrical components at websites similar to Octopart.com to make some of your own custom lights for your home.
As you can see, there are a number of stylish ways to improve your home – what will you do first?