As we head into yet another week of quarantine, the question on everyone’s lips is pretty much the same – what do I do when I’m stuck at home? Well, now might just be the perfect time to take on that renovation or remodel project you’ve been putting off for months! True, stores and businesses are closed in most places but online shopping and delivery options are aplenty.
Here are a few projects you can tackle around the house with little expense and not much work.
Swap the faucets
We often don’t think about the faucet until it stops working but if yours is really old, swapping out for a new model can get you neat features like a pull-down spray or an automatic sensor. This is a simple, quick, and easy project that won’t take you more than an hour to do.
It’s a good option for when you don’t feel like splurging on a massive remodel project for the bathroom or kitchen. Swapping out the faucets is a great way to freshen up an old vanity or kitchen sink.
Add accessories
Take a look around your bathroom or powder room. Do you have a place for everything like hand towels, soap, or toilet paper? Now is the time to add accessories or replace old ones. An extra towel rod or a new toilet roll holder can work wonders.
Manufacturers offer bathroom accessories in a variety of coordinating finishes, so you should be able to find one that matches your existing decor. The best part? Replacing accessories won’t break the bank but still feel like a substantial upgrade.
Update lighting
Lighting can make or break a room. Unfortunately, it’s also something that many homeowners don’t think about. Most rooms need different kinds of lighting – ambient and task lighting. Ambient or overheard lighting provides general illumination throughout a room. It’s great for when you enter the kitchen or bathroom but not so much when you want to highlight specific elements in the room or when you need to complete a task.
Go through your kitchen and see where and what kind of lighting you need. Do you need under cabinet lights to see better when prepping dinner? Or maybe you just want to replace the massive chandelier that takes up way too much room. New pendant lights or LED cabinet lights can liven up a drab kitchen or bath even if you don’t change anything else.
A new coat of paint
If you’re looking for a more intensive project that will take days to finish, how about painting the walls? It doesn’t have to be the entire house at once either. Just take a look at the most often used rooms like the bath or kitchen. Chances are the walls could use a fresh coat of paint or even a brand new color.
The color trends for 2020 lean more towards darker colors like dark blues and deep greens. So if you have a white kitchen from a couple of decades ago, you might want to give your kitchen a facelift with new paint.
Renovate the kitchen
Updating your kitchen doesn’t always mean you need to spend thousands of dollars and replace all your cabinets and appliances. Smaller projects can also upgrade your rooms. Some examples of things you could replace or add include drawer pulls, cabinet handles, a new backsplash, or even a fresh coat of paint above the range.
You can also add some accessories or artwork on the kitchen walls. Look for small items that you can place around the room like an antique china set or an heirloom vase. Do you have a collection of teas or other food items from your travels? It’s the perfect time to organize and display them in your home.
Rearrange furniture
This might exactly be a remodel project but rearranging the furniture can also freshen up any room. Sometimes moving furniture pieces will give you new ideas on how to decorate the space. It can also free up hidden space from nooks and crannies.
Some people don’t move their furniture at all from the day they move in. You may have noticed that things get in the way as you move around the house or that certain things are not where they need to be. If that’s the case, re-evaluate how you use a room and rearrange things to find a better fit.
Focus on walls
Consider changing the artwork on your living room walls or replacing the small mirror in the bathroom. You can also sort and organize all your pictures and print them out to hang on the walls. These kinds of projects are time-intensive so it’s easy to postpone them when you’re busy. Now that we all have some much-needed time on our hands, it’s a great way to fill out those empty picture frames!
