Ideas for updating the home

While our house is only rented, I still like to look after it. We’re lucky that we have free reign to decorate it as we please, and I don’t mind doing a little DIY and home maintenance. I’ve found that making small changes, or little updates can make a big difference. Even on a small budget, it’s possible to keep your house up to date and looking lush. We spend a lot of time at home, and I love making it my own. From paint to plants, windows to soft furnishings, there are plenty of ways to update your home.

A lick of paint

A fresh coat of paint can transform a room, especially if you have kiddos like me who LOVE to put their hands all over my white walls! I re-painted the kitchen not long ago, getting rid of all the hand prints and sticky finger marks, and it looks as good as when we moved in again. Equally, painting one wall in a bright or strong colour can completely change the feel of a room.

Soft Furnishings

My favourite way to update my home. Cushions, throws and pillows are a quick and inexpensive way to update your living room or bedroom. I have a cupboard full of throws, ready to switch up with the seasons or my mood. Lighter, cooler fabrics for summer and rich-coloured, woollen blankets for the winter.

Windows

My house is mostly double-glazed, but a few old traditional windows still. I’d be sad to see them go, as several are stained glass windows and so beautiful, but in the kitchen, it causes an issue with ventilation. The window is huge, and the top ones that open are really high up and hard to reach. Rather than replace the whole windows, adding in handy window openers could solve the problem.

Kitchen Cabinets

If installing a whole new kitchen isn’t on the cards, how about painting the cabinets? I did this in my old house and was amazed at how much of a difference it made! The outdated kitchen transformed into a much more up-to-date looking space with a lick of white cabinet paint

Change the flooring

While I’d love to have hardwood floors throughout, that is not an option any time soon. Our carpets are alright – but they don’t have the same look to them. Layered rugs hides away the carpet, and makes the rooms feel cosier too. In the bathroom, lino is cheap and easy to replace – they do ones that look just like wooden floors, I used them in the old house to replace the stained and faded lino that was down when we moved in – £20 and the room looked a million times better!