When you’ve been living in your home for a long time, you can start to feel like it’s losing a little something. Waking up every morning just doesn’t have the same spark that it used to.
Something’s missing in your home, and although you’re not quite sure what it is, you’re ready to make a change. You need to embark on a home improvement project, but what should it be? Here are just some of our tips on how to take your home to the next level.
Make sure you have funding before you start
The last thing you want is to embark on a home improvement project only to realize that you don’t quite have the money together to match your vision. Before you start, it definitely pays to ensure you’ve got sufficient funding. There are several ways you could achieve this. Savings, family funds, and friendly loans are all great ways to amass a little cash. You could also look into borrowing money – some of the best second mortgage loans will give you quick cash injections with very little hassle.
Upgrade Your Flooring
If the flooring in your home is starting to look a little tired, why not make a change? Underfloor heating is becoming increasingly popular, and modern flooring such as bamboo or engineered wood can completely transform the look of your house. You could even consider installing heated flooring for those cold winter months! Not only will this give your rooms an instant makeover but it can also add real value to your home when the time comes to sell. Just make sure you do your research and choose the right type of flooring for each room.
Build a home office
One of the simplest and yet most effective ways you can improve your home is to install a home office. This completely transforms your living space, adding a dash of professional glamour while also making sure you have somewhere to work and study if you need it. Creatives, self-employed people, and those with an academic hobby will all appreciate the presence of a home office, and if nothing else it’ll give you a quiet space to retreat to if things get too overwhelming.
RELATED: These Home Office Ideas Will Make You Want to Work
Install some smart tech
Since science fiction began, we have imagined homes run by robot servants and filled with connected devices that respond to one another. Now, that tech is here. Whether or not smart homes are the future of living is up for debate, but one thing’s for sure: they’re certainly cool. Installing smart lighting, for example, which responds when you use a corresponding smartphone app, can transform your home from ho-hum to hyper-futuristic. The same can be said of smart thermostats, smart appliances, and other connected tech.
Stage a massive clean-up
No, seriously. Clearing out your house, and cleaning up, can significantly help your mental health. Staging a massive clean-up will help your thought process, it’ll create a less cluttered space for you to live in, and it’ll probably unearth some lost possessions you thought you’d never see again. Enlist the help of friends and family members and turn it into a day’s activity if the situation calls for it. When your home is clean, it can really feel like a totally different space.
Install speakers in every room
Multi-room audio has been around for quite some time, but it’s still something many people have yet to adopt. If you haven’t experienced the thrill of beaming your favorite song throughout your entire house and hearing it reverberate through every room, then you’re missing out. Most multi-room systems are fairly easy to install and maintain, and although you’re going to shell out a decent amount for a good system, it’s worth it for the massive jump in quality.
Redecorate
Maybe you’re still using the decor of the people who lived in your house before you, or maybe it’s just been a while since you last revamped how your home looks. Either way, it’s time to take another look at your house’s aesthetic. Changing how your home looks can make it feel more personal; tastes change, so there’s no reason your home shouldn’t change with them. Consult your family and friends if you live with them, and if you don’t, consider asking close friends and relatives to help for a bonding exercise.
RELATED: 5 Updates to Make in Your Home This Year
Fill your home with plants
It might sound like an ineffective quick fix, but plants actually have numerous benefits if you dot them around your home. They can clean up the air, so if you’re living somewhere polluted or somewhere with less clean air, plants are ideal. Some studies have suggested that plants can actually speed up the recovery times of hospital patients with certain conditions, while others say that plants are great ways to focus your mind on work. Put simply, there’s no downside to plants other than the time it takes to care for them.
Work on your garden
If you’re lucky enough to have a garden, then that’s a space you should definitely be using. If dotting plants around your house can improve your mental and physical health, then imagine the potential benefits of having an entire space dedicated to nature right outside your door. Growing plants, cultivating grasses, and even maintaining your own fruits and vegetables are all great ways to get in touch with nature. Gardening itself is even a pretty solid exercise regime if done right.
——————————————————————————————————–
We hope these tips on how to take your home to the next level have been helpful. Do you have any tips of your own? Is there anything obvious we’ve missed? What have you found helpful when you’ve been stuck in a rut with your living space? Let us know!
