A popular pastime with many householders is DIY, or “do-it-yourself”. This self-taught pastime essentially refers to the art of doing many household jobs yourself rather than employing a professional to do, for the purposes of saving money and learning new skills.
Over recent years, many householders have been unable to do much in the way of home renovation due to a limited budget, no doubt caused in part by low income jobs due to the economic squeeze that has affected virtually all countries around the world towards the end of the last decade.
You might be surprised to learn that it is still possible to give your home a makeover without breaking the bank! Here are some top tips to help you refresh your home on a budget.
Declutter your home
Getting rid of all junk in your home serves three purposes; firstly, there will be fewer things in your home that you have to clean, giving you more time to spend on doing other things.
Secondly, giving your home a minimalistic look helps to make small rooms look bigger, and thirdly, you have the potential to make some extra cash from any unwanted valuables; something you can use to pay for any materials you use during your home renovation project!
Paint your walls and doors white
A great way of improving the interior aesthetics of your home is to paint your walls and doors white. Some people might think that white is a plain, boring colour to paint with, but there are actually many benefits to having white walls:
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It’s cheap – white paint is the cheapest colour you can buy, and even if you buy white paint in bulk it’s still a cheap purchase;
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It makes small rooms look bigger – it’s no secret that if you paint the walls and doors in small rooms with dark colours, it makes them appear even smaller than they really are. The reverse is true with white paint;
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It brightens up a room – when I first moved into my home, the previous owner had put up red and yellow wallpaper which made the rooms look dull. As soon as I removed them and painted the walls and doors white, the rooms immediately became brighter!
Add some metal in your life
Chrome-effect items such as door hinges, handles and staircase handrails can add a touch of class to your home for very little outlay. These items work well in homes with white or light colours on the walls and doors, and give the home a 21st-century look.
You should bear in mind that you will need some simple hand tools and power tools, such as those sold by GotStock Hardware, to install these items correctly.
Make your lighting eco-friendly
As you will have probably noticed, your electricity bills increase on an annual basis. This isn’t necessarily due to you using more electricity in your home but is down to price increases charged by utility companies.
One way to cut down on your electricity usage (and ultimately pay less) is to install eco-friendly CFL (Compact Fluorescent Lamp) lighting in your home. These light bulbs are also known as energy-saving bulbs and will offer you significant savings on your lighting costs.
