Everybody would love to be able to splash millions on improving their home and turning it into a dream. Unfortunately, however, not everybody is afforded such a budget to play with. But, fear not as there is still a chance you could create your dream home even with a budget in place. Below you can find a few steps on how to do so.
Find inspiration When you’re improving your home on a budget the golden rule is to not buy designer. You shouldn’t buy designer paint colours. You shouldn’t buy furniture with designer price tags. And you shouldn’t buy decor that comes with a designer name. But that doesn’t mean you can’t find inspiration in designer. You should take a look at some designer homeware and find a style that you like, then recreate it for half the price. Just don’t be tempted to buy the designer style that catches your eye!
Work around your budget But if you work around your budget you will in fact be able to sprinkle some form of designer magic on your home if you are hell-bent on doing so. You just have to be smart with the way you work around your budget. And one way to be smart in this sense is to wallpaper just one wall in your living room with designer wallpaper. This will make a statement as that one wall will act as the focal point of all the walls in the room. And when the eyes of those who visit your home are naturally drawn to this focal wall, then all they will see is designer. This then means that you are able to create an illusion that the whole room is in fact adorned in designer. And the fact that you are just wallpapering one wall, or just one small area such as a chimney breast, means that you will only have to buy one expensive wallpaper roll. Therefore, your budget will have been well and truly worked around in as smart a way as possible.
But this isn’t the only way you can work around your budget. No, you can do so in a number of other ways, and one way you can do so is to take yourself down to a car boot sale or charity shop. In these types of settings you have the potential to unearth a goldmine of hidden gems in the form of decor that would improve your home no end. Better still, you will likely get them for half the price you would have to pay if they were new. You will also be able to find a lot of retro and vintage pieces — and they never look out of place in any home!
Something else you can do to work around your budget is buy items that have a dual purpose. It’s always a bonus when anything in life can do more than one job, and it’s no different when it comes to home improvements.
Clean, reupholster and upcycle Instead of ripping out and getting rid of everything in your home seek to make them better, bring them back to life or give them a fresh leash of life. You can do this by cleaning, reupholstering and upcycling things in your home. Firstly, you should refrain from ripping out your carpets; you should clean them instead. By having your carpets professionally deep steam cleaned you’ll be amazed to find that they look even better than they did when you first had them fitted.
But cleaning isn’t all you should do; you should reupholster too. New sofas are always a nice thing to shop for. These are seats that attract so much usage, which means it is easy for them to suffer from wear and tear quickly. And this is why getting in a new one is always so nice; it injects a freshness into the room. But you don’t just have to buy-in in order to inject this freshness. No, you can reupholster the sofas you already have. By doing this you will save on a whole host of spending as you won’t have to buy a new sofa. Furthermore, you save yourself from the unfortunate circumstance of buying a new sofa, moving it in and then deciding you don’t like it. When you reupholster an existing sofa of yours you know exactly what you’re getting, only it will still have that fresh feel about it. And to further this fresh feeling you should buy new cushions; they will go a long way to sprucing up any sofa, reupholstered or not.
The term upcycle — if you are yet to come across it — means to reuse something creatively. And there are a whole host of things in your home that can be creatively reused. When you reuse things in this way you instantly save on the costs of having to buy something new, and you are able to put your own stamp on items too
Paint rather than replace Instead of instantly seeking to replace everything in sight, take to painting them instead. Everything can be brought back to life with a fresh lick of paint. Hardwood floors, for instance, look as good as new when they are painted. So, paint your hardwood floors with flooring paints rather than pulling them out and replacing them.
Ask for help Whether it be in regards to the manual work that goes into creating your dream home, or your financial capabilities, ask for help. By asking friends and family to help you with the improvements and renovations in your home you save on money that would probably have been spent on getting a tradesperson in, such as a painter or decorator. And if you feel that your budget needs to stretch just a little further in order for you to attain your dream home, then ask for help financially. Borrowing money, whether it be from somebody close to you or a professional borrowing company, is never an embarrassing thing to do. However, there are a number of factors that you should take into account when shopping for online loans. The most important factor to understand is that the money, plus any interest rates that are charged, must be repaid on time. Well, you don’t want the bailiffs coming round and disturbing your dream home, do you?
It’s time to start reclaiming what’s rightfully yours, and what’s rightfully yours is the home of your dreams. And if you take heed of the advice above, you’ll be able to claim this dream home without going overboard with the budget you set yourself.