Tuesday, October 20, 2015

{ Practical Alternatives for Costly Home Updates! }

Welcome back to my little blog guys! You know  how some weeks are busier then others..Ya, this is one of them, but no complaints..yet haha! I'm blogging something I hope many, if not all of my readers  appreciate & gain some simple insight..HOME UPDATES FOR LESS!! I know that sounds like something crazy to say,  even though no updates are usually "cheap" or what I consider cheap, I'm here to show you guys some "alternatives" to some of the more costly projects that you can somewhat skimp on.. If you've been following us we've been updating some stuff in our little suburban cottage { 1950's Ranch Style Home} for a more charming cottage look. This past weekend we updated the garage --> Garage Update . I'm back with some other alternative ways to update otherwise costly projects inside & outside! I know this may seem like a repetitive post, but honestly many people skip these things & go right to the big or expensive fix, which doesn't always need to be done. I mean why waste money if you don't need to? I'm sure we can find other ways to spend our hard earned money on..right?! 

- DOORS -

Doors are one of those things that you obviously need, but they're not cheap, & most of the time aren't pretty! With some paint & creativity you can add subtle charm & update just about any door. Our front door is just a standard semi newer door, but it was so blah..The door I liked was super expensive , so I broke out some paint & DIY'd this guy haha! Here is the full blog post-- > Door Makeover  on how I painted this for a custom & fresh look for under $30 compared to $300+...


- LIGHTING + -


You can update just about any door entry with some simple lighting. I wanted a more cottage/ farmhouse look so we picked this light up +The Home Depot  for under $25!! Pick something neutral, big enough & fun!  Try to stay cohesive with the lights & door. For example if you're going more modern stick with both modern etc.. I mean it's nice to mix & match but in this case try & keep it all together for a clean & cohesive look!  

Side Note: The mailbox is from +Pottery Barn  $65! After Mark updated the new light, I added some black to the lettering..see here comes that cohesiveness I'm getting at ;) . Pulling some dark onto the mailbox so the light & mailbox come together.

- KNOBS / HARDWARE etc... -


Hardware is one of those things that can make such a big impact & it's so simple to do { I switched these all out in 30 mins minus the one that stuck haha ;) } . They cost $15 a pack & with 4 doors we spent under $70 & the update is remarkable. Again, we're going for farmhouse charm so we went with dark bronzed knobs, but just having fresh newer knobs on doors can update them. These doors were in horrible shape when we bought this house over 3 years ago & with many coats of white paint [ they were light wood } & new knobs { we had silver before} they look fresh & actually pretty decent. I mean to replace four doors with mid-grade doors would have been over $500 & lets be honest I wanted more then mid-grade haha #picky!! I mean you can weigh the difference...& not to mention the project was pretty simple!!



The same goes with the cabinets in the kitchen..We added new hardware to them & the difference was shocking!! We got all this hardware from +Target  in the packs { not individual} because it's cheaper that way usually & love the difference!  The hardware that was on the cabinets  were similar, but silver & after we painted the cabinets white { they were newer  cabinets when we moved in} they kinda just blended in. I know everyone says painting cabinets is a no-no, but honestly DO IT!! I love the fresh look & they've hardly chipped AT ALL after 3.5 years..Paint/ stain/gel etc.. gives an instant update even to older cabinets & for a fraction of the cost. The knobs cost under $100 total for the whole kitchen!!!!!


I really hope these tips/tricks help when updating an older or just dull house. It's the smaller things that make the biggest impact. If you can't afford bigger updating just compromise & update something similar that will give the illusion of a freshened up space.  

Have a great Wednesday everyone! 

Paige.Rose

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