Hello and happy Tuesday all!
Alright friends–it’s confession time. The last few months I’ve been experiencing some serious house dislike. It’s so easy to get caught up on other blogger’s homes, friends’ homes and homes on HGTV. I often find myself wishing that we could sell our house and move like–TOMORROW!
There are a lot of things that I don’t quite care for in our house, not to mention our quickly growing kids could definitely use some more space.
But I have to keep reminding myself that not everyone can start off in their dream home right away. Sometimes life happens and you just have to work with what you have. So today I am going to share a few budget friendly ideas that anyone can do in their home to love it a little more because I figure that I can’t be the only one out there patiently waiting for their forever home!
1. Plant Flowers
It may sound silly but the outside can totally set the feel for how you feel about your home when you pull up to it at the end of the day.
I planted these cheerful yellow-orange ones a couple of weeks ago and I absolutely adore how they look in front of our house!
They totally help distract me from the fact that we desperately need new exterior paint!
2. Add Wall Treatments
This is without a doubt my favorite item on the list. There isn’t a room in our house (except the boys’ rooms) that has been left untouched as far as wall treatments go!
Shortly after we moved in I did a plank wall in our dining area. Although the occasional spaghetti toss and juice splatter has made keeping it clean a struggle, it adds a ton of character to our main level.
I also added planking to our bathroom walls and it helps break up the space and makes it feel larger than it really is.
I also installed board and batten to our breakfast bar, upstairs hallway, master bedroom and basement staircase.
Yes–it’s safe to say that I’m kind of obsessed haha!
The best part is that it’s super affordable and easy to install yourself. It polishes up a space so nicely and can make a builder grade house feel more luxurious.
3. Add Area Rugs
This one almost seems too simple but it totally works. Have carpet or flooring that you can’t stand? Throw a pretty rug over it!
One day I would really like to have hard surface floors in our room but for now this pretty vintage one helps pull the room together nicely and helps me forget about our carpet.
Same thing with our main level living area.
4. Use the Power of Paint
This one is kind of a no brainer. When we first purchased our house the previous owner had used a paint that looked super yellow. And they used this on every square inch! We’re talking about baseboards, doors, and even the staircase! We painted the entire house and it instantly felt better.
But the biggest impact of paint was in our kitchen. Painting the cabinets and countertops made our kitchen feel totally different.
You can even get creative and try stencils or stripes like I did in our laundry area.
Carol ("Mimi") says
You've done a ton of work! Everything looks great. Congrats on your home improvement projects.
Angela says
Thank you so much Carol I really appreciate that!!
Cherryl Ehlenburg says
Some very creative ideas. When I look at the before and after pictures, it's amazing how much better it looks! Thanks for sharing!
Angela says
Thanks Cherryl! It's easy to forget how far it's come until I look at the before pictures haha!
and baby makes 4 says
Sometimes I feel that way too. But you right about appreciating what does work and tips to enhance your home. You did a great job in your master bedroom, laundry room and you recently renovated bathroom! You are very talented!
Angela says
I am glad I'm not the only one that gets that feeling! Thank you for the kind compliment 🙂
Nitka Design says
Great ideas:-))) I liked number 2 the best. I think that in every house there are some things that the owners would like to change. There is such a saying that you build the first house for your enemy, the second one for your friend and the third one for yourself. I didn't believe in it, but now after building our house I think it's very true. There are plenty of things I would change in my house although we really spend a lot of time designing it.
Greetings from Poland:-)))
Angela says
What a fun quote–I love that! Thank you 🙂
Lorelai @ Life With Lorelai says
Hey, Angela! Just wanted to let you know that we loved your Budget Friendly Updates To Help You Love Your Home so much when you shared it at the #HomeMattersParty last week, we’ve FEATURED it THIS WEEK! Hope you can check it out when you get a sec. Happy Friday!!!
http://lifewithlorelai.com/2017/06/22/home-matters-linky-party-141/
~Lorelai
Life With Lorelai / Home Matters Linky Party
Lindsey@dmv construction says
Quite an informative post. If you’re pinching pennies, there’s plenty you can do to create a stylish and inviting home for yourself and your friends. The first step (and this is true no matter where or how you live) is to clean your home and get it organized. Doing those two things alone will drastically improve the quality of your space.