5 easy DIY tips to improve your home

The new year can be a great time for you to renovate your home, whether you want it to look its best ahead of the summer months or you’re looking to boost the value of your property on the market ahead of a potential sale.

When carrying out work on your home, enlisting the services of a professional may seem the best way forward. However, the months after the Christmas period can be tough financially, which is why it’s important to try to save money wherever you can.

If you’re looking to tighten your belt in the upcoming months, look at the following cheap and easy DIY tips, starting with that all-important first impression. 

1. Give your property’s exterior a facelift 

Looks are important and human beings tend to make instant judgements based on a person or object’s appearance. It’s the same in real estate, where the term ‘kerb appeal’ is regularly used: if a potential buyer sees a patchy front lawn or crumbling brickwork, they’re instantly going to form a negative opinion of what your home looks like inside.

If, however, suitors are greeted by a manicured expanse of grass, blooming plants and a freshly painted front door, they’re much more likely to be enthused about the prospect of entering your property and taking a look around. Even if you aren’t looking to sell, ask yourself how much better you’ll feel coming home each day and seeing your tidy garden.

You don’t need the services of an award-winning gardener to achieve a gleaming exterior: simply make an effort to trim the grass, paint the exterior of the house, clean the gutters, varnish or paint all fences and gates and – at this time of year, especially – ensure all leaves are swept up.

2. Let there be light 

The UK winter can drag on for months, leading you to feel glum and depressed, especially if your home doesn’t allow a large amount of sunlight to permeate.

To brighten your space up a little, consider swapping your tired old light fixtures for more contemporary options, which accentuate your home’s best features. Don’t forget to replace your old light bulbs for newer, brighter options. This should instantly help to lighten the mood, for a relatively small cost. If you’re feeling confident, install a dimmer switch so you can tone things down in the evening.

3. Install window shutters

If your home welcomes in the light from outside, that’s great, but what about your privacy? What if you work from home and you need to be shielded from the sunlight’s glare during the afternoon? Old-fashioned curtains may solve each of these problems, but are they really an option that ‘improves’ your home?

Plantation window shutters can offer a number of benefits to the home all year-round. They are they a flexible option, fitting any size of window and allowing you to maintain your ideal level of lighting, but they’re also easy to clean, aesthetically pleasing and can help you save money on your energy bills through their insulating properties.

If you’re presuming you’ll have to call in a specialist to fit your new window adornments, think again: there are plenty of shutter companies which offer helpful DIY guides alongside their products so you’re not left out in the cold when it comes to installation.

4. Revitalise your old furniture 

Tired, dusty-looking old wardrobe sat drearily in the corner? Chest of drawers with its best days behind it? Everyone would love to restore old furniture to give their home a new lease of life, but the cost of replacements can often be prohibitive, leaving you to put up with that fading wood for a little while longer.

Why not try to replicate the effect of that new furniture by bringing the old back to life? All you need is sandpaper, paint and a touch of imagination.

5. Mirror, mirror on the wall… 

Are there any rooms in your house that feel a bit on the small side? A lightweight mirror, in the right place, can turn a box room into something approaching a banquet hall.. Inexpensive mirrors can be picked up from charity shops or even car boot sales, but for a truly personalised look, cut mirrored glass to fit a quaint, vintage frame. You can also change to fitted wardrobes to make use of dead space and get rid of old free-standing furniture.

Whether you’re looking to make home improvements for your own enjoyment, or to attract and impress potential buyers, consider these 5 tips before calling in the tradesmen. You may just find yourself saving a fortune, and having some fun and fulfilment in the process!