We aren’t experts on home-ownership. Heck, we have been dancing this dance for less than two years. One thing we are good at though is improvising without feeling the pain. We are Joey and Lana, and we run JoeyandLana.com. If you aren’t familiar with us our bog, in brief, we went from the city to suburbia and have the challenge of learning to do things on our own and fill our space in meaningful ways.
As new homeowners, we know it’s overwhelming to take on new space, no matter the size. In the spirit of another year older and wiser, we wanted to share with you the most productive and least financially draining tips we have learned. There is one thing that you should always consider before you buy your dream house, which is to check for molds or hiring https://www.moldxpertsnj.com/residential-mold-inspections.asp to the inspection in your place. If you are buying a house where molds are a really common problem then this should be your first step. After that, you can follow all these tips as a new house owner.
Tip #1
Live with the big stuff, just for a little bit. You may absolutely hate something and feel the growing desire to rip it down, tear it up, or change it right away. For example, you love the house you just moved into, but you hate the avocado green kitchen with the tacky stick-on floors and yellowed counters that just never seem clean. You know you hate this kitchen and you want to get rid of it a.s.a.p, there is nothing you want to hold on to and zero emotional attachment. So let’s say you rip up the counters and the floors and paint the walls. Then what?
Until you live in your house for a few months, you won’t know how to move around the room. You don’t know quite yet what will make it better, more functional, and what you don’t want to do again. We suggest laying down some cheap floors, doing a little touch-up painting, and living with it just a little bit so the room has time to speak to you. Often people go in and gut right away, only to live with the newly renovated space, they want to change it again in just a few years. The time will allow you to know exactly what you want to include, exclude, and fix in the space.
Tip #2
Paint is your new best friend. Seriously. Painting walls, floors, ceilings, fireplaces, molding, doors, and even furniture will immediately gratify you if you ware looking to claim your new space and really make it yours. Some ideas to think about when painting are:
- Make sure to paint the trim in a glossy finish, or it will be a pain to clean
- Make sure to paint your Kitchen in a nice glossy coat too
- You can totally paint the outside of your brick fireplace and over paneling
- Stencils are not 80’s anymore, places like CuttingEdgeStencils.com have amazing and fresh designs, cheap
- Painting a room doesn’t have to kill a weekend, companies like True Value make paint (EasyCare Platinum) that include a primer in them to speed up the process
- It’s just painted, if you mess up, just start over again
Tip #3
If weather permits, plant some plants you love. Every time you come home you will see your touch added immediately. Window boxes, lining a pathway, or adding some urns are all great ways to add a burst of floral glee when pulling up to your new home.
Tip #4
Personalize a wall with photos, art, and frames you love. A lot of people use the stairway, or even hallway to make a personal statement, but you can claim any spot to personalize. Mix and match, but keep a single cohesive theme so it looks like it’s supposed to be in a collection. An easy way to start a wall is by using matching frames, matching matte color, or matching artwork.
Tip #5
Second-hand stores are perfect for new homeowners. What you buy for your new home, will most likely be sticking around for a while, so you may as well buy what you love. In the meantime, buying filler pieces at GoodWill, or other second-hand stores is a perfect solution. You can take a stab on refinishing pieces, and personalizing them. Who knows, you may fall in love with them some much you keep a few around. Instead of waiting a long time on your final design plan (because chances are your mind will change, more than once), scoop up some good boned pieces for a good cause, and donate them back when you are done with them.