House & Garden

Give Your Home A Spring Revival

We are all sometimes guilty of letting our homes fall into disrepair in winter. This is particularly true around this time of year. So many of us find ourselves simply hibernating through the colder months, without giving much care to the state of our living space. But there’s no need to feel guilty; that’s just the kind of effect that winter can have.

However, the days are getting longer, and Spring is very nearly upon us. If you’re anything like me, you’re already itching to do a bit of Spring cleaning – if only to get the worst of it out of the way so you can relax! Perhaps you have started the warmer months feeling like your home needs a bit of a face lift. If that sounds familiar, then we’ve got you covered. Read on to find out about my top tips for giving your home that much-needed boost.

home nookSource

Spring Clean

A really easy and simple first step is simply to give the whole house a bit of a spring clean. Spring cleaning is a great way to get yourself in the homemaking mood. The best thing about it is that it is completely up to you how far you go with it. This means that, even if you are low on time, you can choose just to give the house a bit of a once-over. But if you are at a loose end for an entire weekend, then why not give the house a thorough deep-clean? Spring cleaning is like making the home a blank canvas again. It allows you the opportunity to do some more exciting and more interesting things with your home – some of which I will be covering later on. Your home isn’t the only place you need to think about, don’t forget about office cleaning

Update the Stairs

In most homes, the stairs are the very first thing you see when you enter through the front door. So, if you are looking to wow your guests, then this is a fantastic place to begin. Updating your stairs can be pleasantly easy to do; there are all sorts of fascinating end-results you can achieve here. If your house has a simple wooden staircase, then your first step might be to simply give them a really good polish and buff up that handrail! Or, for a more exciting feel, you could paint the steps themselves all sorts of bold colours and fancy patterns. If you are looking for a simple remedy to update your stairs, even installing a new handrail can work wonders for the overall feel. Updating the stairs has a huge impact on the home. It affects the ambience when you enter the house, but it also changes the feel of the hallway and the upstairs landing. This is cost-effective upgrading at its finest. 

kitchen windows spring cleaning

              Source

Replace the Windows

I’m going to take a punt here and guess that your windows are probably fairly old. Statistically, that is pretty likely. Maybe 2016 is the year to finally get the windows your house deserves? There are so many great benefits to replacing your old windows. First and foremost is the effect that it will have on your energy use. You will find that you are spending less and less money on heating in no time at all. There is also the advantage of being able to immediately change the style of any room. Replace the windows and the whole feel of the room alters dramatically! Not to mention that this is a quick way to update how the house looks from the outside. How long has it been since your neighbours were jealous of you? Give them a reason to be by installing fancy new windows.

Increase Your Storage Space

If you’re anything like me, you are constantly tripping over random stuff. On the stairs, in the living room, sometimes even when you’re trying to get into bed for the night. One amazing thing you can do for your home is to increase the storage space. This way, you can clear up some of that random rubbish from the floor. There are so many homeowners out there who aren’t making use of the space in their home. Often, this is due to a lack of knowledge. Fortunately, there are plenty of unique and quirky ways to introduce some new storage space into your home, fast. Is the space under your stairs being utilised as well as possible? Chances are, you could spend an afternoon rearranging it and magically produce a considerable amount of space. Also, the majority of kitchens could easily benefit from the installation of some simple hanging racks. These can be ideal for storing pots and pans, and it means you can reclaim the kitchen for what it was meant for – cooking!

bathroom spring cleaning

Source

Renovate the Bathroom

No matter how keen a cleaner you are, the chances are unfortunately high that your bathroom has seen better days. The fact is, renovating your bathroom is such a delightful way to upgrade your house for the new year that you can’t afford not to. We all find ourselves dreaming of a new-and-improved bathroom, don’t we? A bigger bath certainly wouldn’t go amiss. However, this is likely to be a bigger job than some of the others on this list. But that doesn’t matter; there is always help available: http://www.lavare.com.au/renovations/. Renovating your bathroom is the perfect way to treat yourself this Spring. And it won’t just benefit you. Your whole family – not to mention your guests – will love the new addition to the house.

Redecorate

How long has it been since you decorated the house? The fact is, redecorating is one of those jobs which we hardly ever think about. Most of the time, we only consider painting if there is one room which is in particularly dire need for it. And too often, when it does occur to us, it seems like too huge a task to bother even beginning. But is it really? Redecorating a room in your house need not take longer than a day. And that of course means that you could redecorate both your bedroom and your kitchen in a weekend. Especially if you can enlist the help of some of your friends. In my experience, decorating is enjoyable enough that people don’t mind giving you a hand. Just make sure you feed them afterwards! Once you have redecorated even just a couple of rooms, you will be amazed at how fresh and new your house seems to be. And if you don’t want to do it yourself, it doesn’t cost all that much to get the professionals in to do it for you.

Make it Efficient

Eco-efficiency is really important, as we all know. But how efficient is your house, right now? While you are on a mission to give your home a revival, you might as well look into making it as eco-friendly as you possibly can. After all, this won’t only benefit you, but everyone else on the planet as well. The first step here is to ensure that your house is properly insulated. The walls don’t matter quite so much, but loft insulation is an absolute must. Two-thirds of the heat escapes through the roof, so if your loft is not insulated, then you are wasting a significant amount of energy. Once you have insulated your home, you have already won half the battle. And if you have already taken my advice on replacing your windows, then you can consider yourself a true eco-warrior! If you want to go even further, you could look into installing some solar panels on your roof. These are by no means cheap to get installed, but they do end up paying for themselves in a matter of eighteen months or so. So if you have the money available, there are not many kinder things you could be doing for your home, yourself, and for that matter, everyone else.

Floor Your Visitors

How old are your carpets? Probably fairly old. Carpets are the kind of things that just don’t stay in a reasonable condition for very long. If you are looking for a relatively easy way to brighten the whole look of your home, then re-carpeting might just be the answer. While not necessarily cheap, even carpeting just your living room could make a whole heap of difference. Not to mention that fantastic feeling when you walk on your new carpet for the first time. Is there anything better than feeling like you’re walking on clouds?

fruit-veg01-md

                                Source

Refresh the Garden

So, the garden has probably seen better days. There’s nothing to be ashamed of, that’s just what happens over the winter period. All the plants have long since died, and the whole patch is looking a little worse for wear. Not to worry – Spring is upon us, and it is time to get planting again! Now is the perfect time to start planting your daffodil bulbs – these are ideal for making that pretty border around the edges of the garden. While you’re at it, consider planting your own fruit and veg as well. If you have an unused corner of the garden, just turn it into your own personal vegetable patch. Not only will you have lots of food growing in no time – you will also soon save a whole heap on your grocery bill. What better way to start the new year than with a money-saving activity like that?

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.