 Quick Ways to Transform Your Home
- Paint a room a fresh color. There is no cheaper “fix” than a can of paint. It changes the atmosphere of the room and makes everything
feel fresh and clean.
- Organize the closets. Once everything is arranged with shelves and drawers and baskets, you will be able to find everything
and will have an incentive to keep it looking nice.
- Reface kitchen cabinets…or paint them. And then clear your kitchen counters. With large appliances and canisters and
crocks full of utensils off the counter, the space looks larger. Plus, you have added work space.
- Reclaim a space. Is the guest room used infrequently?
Add a home office along one wall. Or add a wall bed. Use it as a family room until the guests arrive. Attics and basements are often overlooked.
Carve out a game room or den where the kids can hang out. Turn an extra closet into a home office.
- Buy a slipcover for a stained or ratty looking
sofa. Purchase or make throw pillow covers. Stores like Pier1 and World Market offer reasonably priced pillows. Consider changing pillows
and accessories seasonally.
- Look at all of your furniture with fresh eyes. Use what you have to create a fresh new look. Move chairs, lamps and end tables
from room to room. Once items have moved you start to notice them again, which makes you appreciate them more.
- Add some plants or buy fresh flowers.
Have you ever looked at home magazines and tried to imagine the beautifully appointed rooms without the plants and flowers? Fresh flowers have high
impact. The rooms wouldn’t be half as appealing without them.
- Reorganize the book shelves. Go for the clean and lean look they display in the stores. Donate books you will never read again
to charity, the library or a friend. Turn books on their sides, display with photos, vases or pottery. Leave some open space to avoid a cluttered
look.
- Discover the beauty of baskets, boxes and bins. Find a style you like and buy multiples. I like the look of coordinated containers.
Varying the size and shape of the same type of container adds interest and continuity. It looks less jumbled than a mishmash of different styles
of boxes and baskets. Plus, it has the added benefit of camouflage. Magazines on a shelf can look cluttered. But, in a canvas or leather magazine
holder they look streamlined.
- Make your bed inviting. Buy Egyptian cotton sheets. Fold back the covers. Pile up the pillows. Use rich fabrics with different
textures.
- Buy a new shower curtain and a new set of towels.
- Use large accessories or cluster small ones together. Remember, all of your accessories do not have to be out at one time.
Switch and swap knickknacks and picture frames. During the holidays, put away some of the accessories before bringing out the decorations.
KAREN HENKE is a professional organizer and the owner of Come2Order. With a collection of 17 years work experience in design, space
planning and organization, she now helps others come to order. |
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