If your home is starting to look dated, you can give it a fresh new look with a few simple tricks.
So your beloved old home is beginning to look and feel dated. But what to do? You can’t afford major renovations and moving house is not an option. There are ways to update your home without undertaking expensive, messy and time consuming renovations. The following tips and tricks are just a few ways in which you can update your home without breaking the bank.
Re-plaster old fashioned walls:
Old homes are typically characterised by patterned, pebble stone, face brick or brush plastered walls. While once fashionable, they are a dead giveaway that your home was built in another era.
Happily, it’s relatively easy to remedy this situation. All you need to do is render the walls (or hire someone knowledgeable in such matters to do it for you) and apply a fresh coat of neutral coloured paint which should give your home an instant facelift. Such a project should fit easily enough into just about any budget and shouldn’t take more than a weekend or two to carry out.
Open things up:
Open plan living is very much in vogue and looks set to remain popular for some time to come. Unfortunately, many old homes tend to follow closed plan lines which can make them feel cramped and unwelcoming. If your house feels confined, you may want to investigate the possibility of breaking down a wall or two. If that isn’t something you can afford to pursue, there are several other affordable options worth considering.
You could give your walls a fresh lick of light coloured paint which will help make a space feel more open and airy. Another space opening option are strategically placed mirrors. When placed opposite windows, mirrors make a room feel more spacious and light.
Of course it may be that all you need to do is declutter and get rid of or redistribute some of your big, bulky, dark furniture. Big furniture can take up a lot of space, particularly in closed plan homes. Try taking a few pieces out of a room. You’ll probably be surprised at how much more space you suddenly have. Best of all, it won’t cost you a cent.
Give your kitchen a modern touch:
Given the nature of kitchens, they tend to be the most expensive rooms to update. There are ways to freshen up a kitchen without undertaking a major, costly overhaul though. For instance, you could give your cupboards a fresh coat of paint and replace the handles with some attractive, modern handles.
Another way to update your kitchen is through the installation of a modern backsplash. Backsplashes can do wonders for jazzing up a kitchen and can be easily installed. Nowadays there are myriad backsplash options to choose from so it should be easy enough to find something that fits into your budget and improves your kitchen virtually overnight.
If you can stretch to it, consider replacing your kitchen counter tops. Budget-friendly laminate counter top options are plentiful. It’s also worth looking at other options such as quartz or synthetic counter tops which look good but don’t necessarily cost the earth. Just be sure to check that your existing cupboards can withstand the weight of any new counter tops you’d like to install before proceeding.
Light it up:
As is the case with walls, old homes tend to feature light fittings which can date it. For example, chunky orange and brown glass light fixtures scream of the 70’s. Dated light fittings can also make a home feel dark and cramped. It’s easy enough to update your home with the right lighting and there are so many beautiful, affordable lighting options on the market that there really is no reason not to.
Start by choosing a room and removing all of the old light fittings. Next, decide what type of lights will suit the room best. Avoid using too many different light fittings as this can make a room look fragmented and odd. Bring dark corners to life with a few tall floor lamps and add ‘layers’ with some side table lamps or downlights.
You’ll be amazed at the difference a few strategically placed lights can make. Just remember to keep the lights the same ‘temperature’ otherwise you could end up with a mish mash of warm and cool colours.
Give your tiles the once over:
If your tiles are bringing your house down but you can’t afford to replace them just yet, consider painting over them. Painting tiles is quick and easy and can be achieved through the use of tile paint. Tile paint is specially formulated to paint over glass, porcelain and ceramic tiles and unlike normal paint, won’t (or shouldn’t) flake off over time. Tile paint can be bought at just about any hardware store and comes in a wide range of colours which should complement just about any setting.
