How to Plan Enough Money for Your Home Renovation
Most of the amateur home renovation projects end up with a huge figure of expense because of lack of proper planning about what you exactly need and how to accomplish them. Here are some vital ways to make a renovation on budget:
Why Do You Need to Renovate?
It is very important to find the answer of this question because the expense of the project will depend on it. Some reasons for renovating the home can be the need for a home office, increasing the resale value of the house, or a growing family. The costs of adding an additional room and increasing the resale value will not be the same. For example, if you just want to add interest to the boring decorations of your home, some lighting fixtures, new paint, furniture pieces, wallpaper, and accessories will serve your purpose.
What type of home improvement can you afford
Image via: Cheryl Scrymgeour Designs
Work on Your Budget
Once you know the reason, you have to figure out how much you can afford to spend. If the project is likely to exceed your intended budget, try to manage money from some other sources. If it is not possible, you have to compromise on one or two features of the project to keep its expense within your budget.
Make a Realistic Budget
The TV shows on home renovation do not show you the real cost of a project. The budget shown in those shows tend to be the half of the real costs because they often use drywallers or tillers who are doing the work just for exposure. So, you have to research by your own to determine a realistic budget for your project.
Bathroom remodeling can you afford it?
Image via: Clark Harris
Choose Between Professional Help and DIY
Employing a professional contractor will give you greater and faster expertise with proper knowledge about permits and building codes. However, it will definitely be costly than a DIY project. Choose a DIY approach because it will be cheaper, more flexible, and can be very rewarding. However, you can save some money even if you use a contractor by buying most of the tools yourself. Reduce the cost even more by buying salvaged tools if your contractor allows.
Depending on the size and scope of the project, your budget can range from a few hundred dollars to tens of thousands. Estimate the cost of the project carefully to make it consistent with your current finances.
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How to Match Your Countertop with Your Family Lifestyle
Your kitchen is undoubtedly the center of the activities of any home and the kitchen countertop is probably the most used area of a kitchen. With so many choices out there, choosing a kitchen counter is a difficult task indeed. This surface area ultimately influences many kitchen palettes. So, it is important to pick up something that looks good, has a price tag that suits your budget, and holds up under your household’s kitchen activities.
What type of countertop is right for your family?
Image via: SubZero Wolf
Asses your lifestyle
It is important to evaluate your lifestyle before setting on a countertop surface. Your choice should be based on how many members you have in your house, how frequently you have to use the countertop, and for what activities you will use it. For example, white granite will not definitely be a great choice if you have kids in your house and you are going to make jelly sandwiches and peanut butter on the countertop every day.
Feel free to mix and match materials and colors when choosing a countertop
Image via: Papazian R.A.
Consider budget & durability of the countertops
These two things are intertwined with each other. Costly countertops tend to be durable and cheap ones get damaged easily. However, cost also depends on the quality of the materials used, range of customization, color, weather resistance, heat resistance, etc. Depending on the budget, it will be appropriate to choose something durable, especially if you have children in the house. In this case, wood countertops will be great because they are easy to clean and you can sand out any scratches. The countertop selection must be based on the purposes you are going to use it for. For example, if you are going to do a lot of baking jobs, select a surface that can withstand the heat of trays with warm cookies.
Choose a countertop that is durable and beautiful
Image via: Alexandre Parent
Mixing & Matching
Sticking with a single countertop substance ensures simplicity and consistency. However, you can adopt the policy of mix and match surfaces if you fail to decide on just one material. Bring a small variance by using a different material on the island or pantry. You can also put a different material into the countertop like adding a butcher block for chopping.
It can be tempting to pick up a countertop just based on the looks but do not forget considering other aspects too.
How Silver Tones can Bring Life to Your Interiors
There is something alluring about silver tones in your interiors. They bring about a sense of confidence, clarity and sophistication and in modern interiors has come back in a big way! From painted furniture with metallic silver tones to fabric and accent pieces, see how silver can brighten any room in your home. Whether using silver, chrome, pewter, nickel or platinum – look at these beautiful ways they can enhance your interiors.
Silver painted furniture is gorgeous in your home
Image via: Amoroso Design
Silver tones in your furniture
Silver paint gives walls a dramatic reflexive elevation and creates the impression of light and space in any room. You can apply the metallic paint like any other paint applications but do not forget to decrease the silver’s intensity with an extra overcoat of metallic glaze and undercoat of black paint. It will also help hiding lap lines and increasing the metallic look. Silver tones are available in various metals – silver, stainless steel, nickel, platinum, and chrome. So, furniture pieces made any of these metals combined with complementing wall color and other accessories can increase the glamour of a room. For example, a silver-leafed dresser will look gorgeous on the backdrop of dark-toned textured walls and black drapery.
Silver Toned Textiles
Silver tones in the fabrics can also enhance the look of a room. You can turn a normal dining room into a royal-like one by giving it a ‘silver treatment’. A combination of silvery crocodile fabrics on the chairs, a glossy-surfaced dining table, silver-leafed stripe wall treatment, and highly textured drapery can uplift the look of a room any time. Just make sure to keep the right balance between textures and materials.
Use silver in small accents in textiles, and wall finishes
Image via: Atmosphere Interior Design Inc.
Create a Focal Point
A focal point of silver tones will arrest the attention of guests for sure. Use a silver-leafed mirror frame above the sink of your powder room or hang a big over-the-top mirror with silver finish in your dining room.
Create a focal point with silvertone color
Image via: Rachael Boling
You can use silver tones in every room of your house. For example, silver wallpapers in the bedroom, sinks in the kitchen, faucets in the bathroom, cushions and picture frames in the living room, and silver plate sets on the dining table can give a gorgeous look to your home interior. The glow of silver in the interior is absolutely lovable no matter whether you paint, accessorize, or make upholstery with it.
How to Create a Relaxing Seating Area for your Master Bedroom
Your bedroom is one of the few rooms in your home that you can enjoy without having to answer to anyone about the decorative style or how you create a comfortable space for yourself. Master bedroom seating can help create a space to read, watch television, relax after a hard day or catch up with your spouse over a hot cup of coffee. Whether you choose a couch, individual chairs, a chaise lounge or just a bench at the foot of your bed, here are tips to help you create a relaxing seating area for you to enjoy.
Use a bench seat in your bedroom
Image via: Erica George Dines
Determine how much space you can dedicate to seating:
While most of us would love to have a couch, chaise loungers and a full seating area in our master bedrooms, this isn’t always feasible. Determine how much space you have to work within your room. A bay window or area adjacent to the main master bedroom area is ideal. If you don’t have this, a chair in a corner may suit your needs as well. For extra tight master bedrooms, consider doing away with one nightstand and replacing with a comfortable chair.
bedroom separate seating area
Image via: Christine Tuttle Interior Design
Assess your living style in your bedroom:
For many homeowners their bedroom can double as an area to look over the kids’ homework, or as a mini-office away from the main office in the other portion of the home. Assessing how you relax in your bedroom could be a challenge and often times just a chair in the corner can create a space you wouldn’t of used before. Try adding a bench or stool at the end of your bed to create a sitting area or place to put clothes while dressing in the morning. A separator half-wall between your sitting area and sleeping area is ideal for homeowners that have plenty of space and would like a clear and delineated area for both functions. Determine how you best use your bedroom and design seating around this.
A window seat can make use of a spare window without using floor space
Image via: Bosworth Hoedemaker
Your bedroom should be a welcoming haven each evening and to wake up to in the morning. Choosing the right seating to carry out your daily relaxing and family lifestyle activities is essential. Use these tips to turn your boring bedroom that only housed a sleeping area into a destination that you love sitting in each day.
How to Bring Old World Tuscan Details into your Home
Tuscan or Mediterranean is a nice Italian theme to use in the decorative details of any home. While earth tones and tangible texture are the foundations of Tuscan style, the finishing touches can be achieved through the use of natural and rustic looking furnishings and accessories. If you want to bring a flavor of Tuscan countryside into your home, just try following these simple ideas:
Tuscan colors into your home
Image via: Sennikoff Architects
Color & Texture
Natural colors and textures are the features of Tuscan style. Earthy tones like gold, dark green, ochre, yellow, sage, and different shades of brown can be added in walls, fabrics, and rugs. These colors along with textured walls display the strong connection to nature that Italian style keeps. You can use Venetian plaster on walls, stone and wood for furnishings, and tiles for flooring to add texture. Wood is particularly suitable for creating a comfortable and rustic look. Textured objects create a timeless look that gives any space an old-world feel.
Accessories and Decor
Homemade and common accessories able to highlight the cultural heritage are cherished by Tuscan style. Ceramic, silver, copper, iron are all common in Tuscan design. In fact, this theme embraces old world and natural styles like scrolled ironwork, marble, pottery, stone, handcrafted tiles, etc. Terra cotta is also a popular addition to this style.
Walls that look aged and natural rustic tones are characteristics of Tuscan living
Image via: Jim Boles Custom Homes L.L.C.
Fabrics and Textiles
The use of fabrics is an integral part of Tuscan style. Tobacco, savannah, and burlap clothes and fibers from banana, abaca, and coconut are all used in this style to create a natural lived-in vibe. You can use these materials for anything including floor coverings, rugs, table place mats, wall decorations, privacy screens, space dividers, curtains, blinds, and drapes.
Outdoor home
Patio is an important part of Tuscan style homes. Create a truly cozy outdoor experience by setting up the patio with lounging and dining furniture. Enhance the look by using artworks featuring something natural like floral still life or landscapes. Do not forget to pick up a palette of colors that resonates to the Tuscan countryside.
Brighten your outdoor home with old world charm
Image via: Sennikoff Architects
Bring these creative Tuscan ideas in your home to get that Old World feel in your home. From colors and textures to add decorative accessories and fabrics. See how your home will feel transformed into a warm and inviting home from Tuscany, Italy!
