5 EASY WAYS TO UPDATE YOUR HOME

With January in full swing and winter (finally) raging on outside. I find myself staying in more often than not. Gone for the moment, are long walks around the city and sunny days spent outside at a cafe or rooftop with friends. In their place are cocktail parties hosted at home and long easy weekends curled up with a good book.

Because of this, the colder months always seem to be the time when the interior design bug bites. Bored with last year’s pillows or no longer happy with how the furniture is arranged, I always like to do a bit of redesign in January to start off the new year right.

So, below I am sharing with you a couple of easy tips on how to update your home without breaking the bank.

1. Go Green

Plants are one of the cheapest, easiest ways to update a space. They bring in life and a little bit of color to the otherwise bleak, colder months of the year as well. For a fun project to try at home, start a potted herb garden from seed. You feel super accomplished with your self once the plant has matured and it makes for a cool story to tell your dinner guests that the fresh herbs in the meal were grown by you. #humblebrag If you feel like your thumb is more black than green and your plants aren’t prone to survival, try greenery like Snake’s Tongue, Rubber Plants, or Spider Plants. All three of the shrubs are easy for beginners and are pretty forgiving when is comes to care.

2. Paint the town… or just your home

 

Changing the colors of your walls is always an awesome way to update a space. Paint is relatively inexpensive and it will create a bold, new look. A good way to choose the new color for your walls is to evaluate your existing furniture and other decorative items you own. Decide what are some of the common color themes in the space. If you have a lot of neutral items than perhaps go with a bright color for your walls or if you have lots of colors already throughout your home then go for a neutral wall. It is all about creating a balance. If painting an entire room feels too daunting of a task, try an accent wall. When deciding which one to paint look at the configuration of your room. Are there any areas you want to highlight? Some places that work well for an accent wall include around a fireplace or bookcases, the wall that anchors your bed, or an interesting nook.

3. Frame your space

Art is one of those decorating tricks that will instantly personalize a space. Whether pictures of loved ones, cool quirky prints, or gorgeous paintings, what someone puts on their walls will tell you a lot about a person. While collecting pieces for your home can be expensive, thrift stores and Etsy make it considerably easier to buy things at an affordable price. If you already have lots of pieces in your home, try trading out the frames for an updated feel. Also, a great tip is to buy in bulk, if you are having something custom framed most places will work with you in price if you are bringing in multiple pieces at one time.

4. All in the details

Changing out your pillows, blankets, and linens is a fabulous way to bring new colors and style in a space. To try and cut down the costs, buy pillow or duvet covers instead of all new items. These covers can be used on top of all ready existing pieces you have at home and are much cheaper than buying new pillows or comforters. Blankets and throws also offer a new feel in a space without breaking the bank, and are fabulous to curl up with on a cold winter day.

5. Work with what you’ve got

One of the cheapest and easy ways to update your space is to use what you’ve already got, it’s actually free! Try reconfiguring your existing furniture around your room. Trade out items from one space to another. Just because it is in your bedroom now doesn’t mean it might not work in your living room later. This is all about playing, try different things,  you don’t like the out come? The great thing is you can change it and it didn’t cost you a thing.

Hope you enjoyed this post and that you have some new ideas to update you space for 2016. As always thank you for reading and if you have any ideas for a post that you would like to read on the site please leave them down in the comments below.

xx

The Everyday Editor