The Mini Makeover

Quite often our New Year Resolutions involve home improvements of some kind whether it is to get that new kitchen or bathroom or even prepare the house for sale. Whether we want to improve our homes for a more comfortable living space or for resale, there are a few steps that need to be taken before jumping into any project.

The first and most practical is to set yourself a budget, and that needs to be a realistic budget. Keep in mind that budgets do tend to blow out a bit if the planning stage hasn’t been carefully executed. Don’t put unnecessary strain on your finances as this will make the whole process stressful when it should be an exciting time.

Once the budget has been decided, write your “wish list”, and this may include the kitchen or bathroom renovation, repainting the inside of the home or just new curtains or flooring. Concentrate on the room-by-room scenario or you will end up completely renovating the home and the budget has already blown out. The process of elimination comes into play here so if you are wanting to “tart” the home up for resale the best thing is to not overcapitalise with a kitchen or bathroom as quite often new owners will change it anyway. A thorough clean of these areas are sufficient to give the prospective new buyers an idea of what these rooms look like clean and tidy and they will see the potential of their future home. Replace any missing door or drawer handles in the kitchen and bathroom and patch any holes in the gyprock walls from door handles. Repair that power point that is crooked or the tiles that have fallen off. A fresh coat of paint is always the best way to spruce up a room. Get the upholstery cleaned and the floor rug stain cleaned. Put your family photos in new frames. Take the old curtains down and give them a good spring clean. You’ll be surprised at what colour they really are. By painting a feature wall in a room gives a modern feel to the home and won’t break the budget.

For those of you wanting to create a more comfortable living space the sky is the limit depending on that budget. In future articles I will go into depth of renovating the home room by room, but for now I wish to give you an overview. Consider changing your window furnishings to create a new look or different style in the home. New flooring might be on your wish list and there are many new products that you may not have considered such as bamboo flooring. A fantastic sustainable product that has a higher hardness rating than some hardwoods. Replacing old lights or lampshades create another mood in the room. Consider some new art for the room whether it is a print or original work. There are many local artists on the coast that can be commissioned by you for that personal artwork. To go that bit further you may want to knock a wall down to open a room up. Always check with a licensed builder or carpenter for this type of work to be done. Using a qualified and insured trades person is essential when doing work in your home.

Good luck and have fun with it. Remember, we are here to enjoy our environment that we live in and not be a slave to it.

Jenny Darbin Jendar Designs