When people talk about home renovations, we often think of flashy and expensive renovation projects that cost a fortune to complete. However, some home renovation projects are easy to pull off and won’t cost you too much. Some cost-effective renovations can cause more impact on your home than costlier ones if you know which areas of your home you need to work on.
Aside from improving how your house looks, cost-effective renovations can also make your home more functional. Some renovation projects can even help you save money in the long run.
Here are some cost-effective renovations that can transform your house and make it more livable:
Refresh and repaint your interiors
Painting your house is one of the. most cost-effective renovations you can make. It is a reasonably easy task, and you can even turn it into a fun family project with your kids. Painting the exteriors of your home might be too complicated if you’re a newbie painter so let’s start by repainting your home’s interiors.
Paint chips and peels over time and repainting can help you eliminate peeling or cracked paint on your walls. You can also use paint to cover stubborn stains that won’t go off no matter how hard you scrub them.
Giving your interiors a fresh coat of paint can change the atmosphere inside your home. If you feel like your home looks gloomy, repainting it using bright colours can make it look bright and cheery. You can add accents of dark or bold colours if you want a chic or trendier interior.
Repainting the interiors of your home can also be a great chance to allow your kids to customise their bedrooms. Give your kids the chance to select the colour of their choice so they can personalise their bedroom design.
Brighter and better light fixtures
Replacing old fixtures is a simple yet productive renovation project you can embark on. Light fixtures give character to your home and can dictate the atmosphere in a particular area. Are you going for something dramatic? Install a grand chandelier in your living room. Want something chic? Use a string of bare industrial bulbs or pendant lights.
Aside from aesthetics, replacing your light fixtures can save you money if you go for energy-saving alternatives. You can also sell your old light fixtures to save on the cost of buying your new ones.
Level up your kitchen benchtop surfaces
Start with your benchtops if you want to give your kitchen a fresh look while working on a tight budget. Using concrete countertops is an excellent alternative to cheap vinyl because concrete is durable and will last longer.
What’s amazing about concrete countertops is that you have a wide variety of options for designs, shapes, and colours to make a unique kitchen countertop. Concrete countertops can last a lifetime because they are easy to repair if a section gets damaged, making them an excellent investment.
Update your cabinetry and doorknobs
New cabinets can be expensive and may not be a cost-effective renovation idea, but run-down cabinets may cost you if they suddenly break down and destroy your precious china. Keeping your cabinets in excellent condition may be worth every penny you spend on them. If your cabinets are still sturdy, you can give them a new look by repainting them.
Replacing the knobs and handles on your cabinets and doors is also a great renovation idea. If you have plain handles for your drawers and cabinets, you can replace them with ornate vintage handles, giving them a fresh look. The same goes for your doors; replace your door knobs with classic brass door knobs or retro bronze door knobs.
Maximise space with open shelves
Cabinets can take up too much space if you have a small kitchen, so replacing them with open shelves can make your small kitchen look roomier. Since you’ll be freeing up space, you will have more storage options if you go for open shelves.
Open shelves can also make your kitchen classier, and you can use them to showcase stylish dishware. In addition, open shelves are easier to organise because you can immediately see what’s in them. With open shelves, you can see your kitchen tools and dishware in a glance, so there’s no need to spend time opening one cabinet after another looking for things you need.
Spruce up your windows
Your windows are one of the first things that visitors will notice, and it is crucial to make them stand out to make a lasting impression. You can still update the way your windows look without replacing them. Repaint your window frames and use colours that stand out against your wall to give your windows some character.
Curtains also do wonders for your windows. Long and wide curtains can make your windows look larger. Aside from being decorative, thick curtains can also help you conserve energy by keeping your home warm during the winter. If you have a small living room with little natural light, sheer curtains can let in more natural light making your living room brighter and roomier.
Put up some mouldings
Mouldings are cheap but can produce astonishing results if you want to update how your doors and windows look. What’s great about mouldings is you can buy them at your local hardware store or at online stores, and you have a ton of options you can choose from. You can install them yourself to save on professional carpenter fees.
Mouldings can make plain doors and window trims look elegant. If your doors and windows have pre-built mouldings, they are most likely thin and flimsy ones and replacing them with thicker mouldings can give your doors and windows a premium look. Aside from doors and window trims, you can also install mouldings on baseboards and even the headboard of your bed.
Protect your furniture with slipcovers
Furniture gets scratched and dented over time, making them look less attractive. Buying replacement furniture is too expensive, and the next best thing to do is buy slipcovers. With slipcovers, your old yet functional furniture can look great again while hiding its dings and dents.
The good thing about slipcovers is you can get them customised if you can’t find one that fits your furniture. You can also buy slipcovers for upholstered furniture to protect them from dirt and stains. You can just wash the slipcovers from time to time to preserve your furniture and protect them from more scratches or dents.
What home improvement projects add value?
Although the main reason for home improvement projects is to make our home look more pleasing and livable, these projects can also add value to our homes. Some cost-effective renovations can make your house attractive to some buyers should you decide to sell your house.
Here are some cost-effective renovations projects that can add value to your home:
Kitchen renovation
Buyers love modern and updated kitchens, so updating the look of your kitchen can make it more attractive to buyers. However, don’t go crazy with renovation ideas. Ensure that your kitchen looks great but is not too much compared to the rest of your house because buyers won’t buy a house just for how the kitchen looks. As mentioned earlier, if you don’t have the budget, start with small improvements like replacing faucets, drawer handles or renovating countertops.
To make your life easier, read our comprehensible guide on kitchen renovation.
Remodel your bathroom
Renovating your bathroom and ensuring that it looks amazing is an excellent idea, especially if you frequently entertain guests at your home. You can update the way your bathroom looks by adding hanging shelves for additional storage options or replacing old lighting fixtures with new ones. You can also add a larger vanity mirror which can make your bathroom look brighter and roomier.
Make use of your attic or basement
Attics and basements often end up as storage areas, but they can be more than that.
You can convert your basement to a workout area or a home office. Your basement is also an excellent choice if you want to have a media room or a game room for your family because of its sound-dampening properties.
You can convert your attic into an extra bedroom or a home library or study area. These are great ideas that can add value to your home because they increase the square footage of your home, and you can use these new rooms as selling points if you want to sell your house.
Add a deck to your home
One of the common home additions is adding a deck. Adding a deck to your house is another excellent option if you want to increase the footage of your home. A deck is also a great addition to your house because of how versatile it is. You can use your deck as an outdoor dining area where you can have dinner with your family or host dinner parties. You can place lounge chairs so you can relax on your deck after a long day at work.
Make your home energy efficient
Replacing your old appliances with energy-saving ones can make your house more appealing while saving you money on utilities. You can replace bulbs with new ones that are brighter but consume less energy. If you have single-pane windows, replacing them with double-pane ones can help you save on heating costs while providing sound insulation.
Use Dreamspace for your home renovation projects
Renovating your home is a continuous project that can help make your house more attractive while making it functional and livable. Working on a tight budget doesn’t mean that your renovations won’t cause an impact on your home. Renovating key areas of the house can help you save money on renovation costs while producing recognisable results.
The cost-effective renovations above are excellent starter projects if you are new to renovation projects. They are easy to pull off and won’t take up too much time. Once you’ve completed the simple renovation projects above, you can challenge yourself by moving on to more complex projects, and in no time at all, your home will be the envy of the neighbourhood.
For any projects, make sure you use a project coordination platform like Dreamspace. Using a single dashboard, Dreamspace makes it super easy for you to:
- Plan your overall home improvement project
- Get free quotes for your project
- Get inspiration and ideas from thousands of designs in our Inspiration Gallery
- Keep track of the progress of your home reno project
- Stay connected with professionals who specialise in almost all kinds of renovations
- Manage your project from designing to building
Sign up to Dreamspace now and start your project in no time!
