If you’re thinking of renovating your home to freshen it up and modernise, or you’ve bought a renovation project, there are so many things to consider. If you’re looking for some inspiration, we’ve come up with a guide to help you think up some ideas perfect for your own home. Keep reading if you want to know more.
Picking Your Style And Colour Schemes
Knowing your style is key before starting out on your renovation journey. If you’re not sure what your style is, think about what kinds of environments make you feel comfortable and happy. Do you prefer bright and vibrant colours? Or do neutral, clean spaces make you feel calmer and more at home? The theme you choose to go with should reflect the lifestyle you have. Light blues, lavenders, whites, and cool tones can help create a calm, relaxing space. If you want something more dramatic and elegant, you could go for dark greens, blacks and gold accents. Your style could also vary depending on the type of house you own. For example, a new build would require different styling to that of a Georgian farmhouse.
Adding Storage Space
When you’re renovating your house and changing round rooms, you could consider adding storage space to help keep your living spaces organised. Reducing clutter makes your home look well put together, and is easier to keep clean. They can also double up as a feature of the room. For example, if you have alcoves on either side of a fireplace, building in cupboards and shelves can be an elegant feature that complements the room. Good places to add storage space also include:
- Kitchens
- Basements
- Loft spaces
- Spare bedrooms
Styling Your Windows
There are many different options when it comes to how to style your windows. Each has its own benefits and will depend on what you want from your window dressing. Curtains can help insulate a room and add decoration to a window. You also have the benefit of versatility with curtains, being able to choose from different colours, patterns and thicknesses. You could even change them depending on the season. Have a thicker curtain in the winter and a lighter voil for in the summer to help keep air flowing through the windows. If you want the ability to open up windows and have the dressing neatly folded away, you could go for roller blinds or patterned vertical blinds. The benefit of these is that they work well in a home office or working space, and you can repair them with vertical blind replacements. Blinds are easier to keep clean and dust-free than curtains, so they’re great for cutting down on domestic work and those that suffer with asthma from dust particles.
Find Inspiration Online
There is plenty of inspiration to be found on social media platforms when it comes to home decorating and renovation. You can benefit from people who have already been through the experience of renovating a house, and their tips and advice. You’ll also be able to find inspiration for aesthetic ideas you hadn’t thought of, or styles that could suit the build of your house. You can get links and information about where to buy things for your home, as well as services and tradesmen to help with the renovation.
How To Refresh The Exterior Of Your Home
Refreshing a few different things on the exterior of your home can make it look completely different. A new front door can make a big difference to the look of the building and is instantly noticeable to passersby. If you choose to get new windows too, make sure they match the door and are sympathetic to the age of the house. If the brickwork looks worse for wear, consider having it rendered and painted to really liven up the outside of your home. Wall lights are not only practical in the dark, but also look great as the sun goes down to make a feature of your front door.
When To Call In The Professionals
Most renovation work can be done yourself with enough training and practise, but there are certain things that need to be left to the professionals. Unless you’re qualified to do so, you should never try and take on electrics and plumbing yourself. It can be dangerous to you, and end up causing damage that will cost you more to get repaired in the long run than if you’d just paid for a professional in the first place. Similarly, if you find rising damp, subsidence, or structural issues, you will need to call in professionals to get it sorted out.
Adding Value To Your Home
If you’re renovating your home to add value, there are some specific things that can achieve this. Kitchen and bathroom renovations are good ways to add value. So too is adding an extra bedroom or moving up into a loft space to create an extra room. New windows and doors add value as they not only improve the look of the house but also reduce heat escaping. Landscaping your garden and neatening it up will help to add value as well as create a better first impression when you have viewers looking around your house.
Do You Want Open-Plan Or Cosy Spaces?
If you’re planning a big renovation project, you could factor in whether you want to knock down walls and create an open-plan space. Or you could keep individual rooms to create a cosier feel. This could depend both on what you prefer, and what would suit your home better. A modern house may suit an open-plan space, whereas a cottage suits smaller rooms and spaces.
Focus On One Room At A Time
The trick if you’re renovating a whole house is to focus on one room at a time rather than taking them all on at the same time- it will help so that you don’t get as overwhelmed with the workload. You’ll also find it easier to live in a house whilst renovating if it is not every room in the house that is a building site. You’re more likely to finish each room to a higher quality if you’re focusing your attention on one space.
Don’t Rush Renovation Projects
Whilst it can be tempting to not carry out jobs thoroughly to see them completed sooner- it’s not the best idea. When you’re spending money and you’ve been working on DIY all evening, it’s easy to half finish a job or cut corners but you can come to regret it in the future. It’s worth taking more time to complete jobs to a higher quality as you can see the difference visibly. It could also jeopardise the safety of your home if DIY tasks aren’t carried out to the best standard.
Take Time To Enjoy The Process
Renovating a house can be stressful at times, but it’s important to try and enjoy the process along the way. Creating the perfect home is a wonderful process to go through and an opportunity to make some great memories with your family and friends. Step back every now and then and appreciate how far you’ve come in your renovation journey.
