As you prepare for the holidays and look forward to hosting family or friends in your home, consider some quick and affordable renovations before your guests arrive. You’ll want to avoid major home improvements before the holidays, but smaller fixes and maintenance items are things you can do right this very moment. Plus, any home improvements you make now can help create a more festive and calming atmosphere for everyone.
Ensure Your Curb Appeal
As your guests drive up to your home, what do they see? Does the outside of your home look cozy and comfortable? Fall is a wonderful time to do exterior improvements, because the weather is milder. You can upgrade your siding, give your porch a new look, or even replace your roof. Just make sure to get on the schedule before the weather starts to turn. If that seems too much to take on, consider sprucing up the front porch with festive plants and/or painting the front door a fresh new color.
Upgrade Your Entryway
When guests first enter your home, your entryway has a big role to play. Does it look inviting, or cramped? Is there room for visitors to put on their coats or boots? You can solve all these problems and more, even if you don’t have a ton of space. Turn your entryway into a great transitional space with a small closet, pretty storage bin or coat hooks. If you have more room and vaulted ceilings, you can splurge for big windows or a chandelier to really set the stage.
Add Fresh Coats of Paint to Walls
Wouldn’t it be nice to switch up a room’s color palette before company arrives for the holidays? It’s often assumed that the spring and summer months are better times to paint. But winter offers the perfect opportunity to splash some colors on the walls, too. The arid winter air helps paint dry quickly and speeds up the task. That way, you can tackle this project in a single weekend, allowing more time for holiday shopping and family activities for the rest of the season.
Update Lighting Fixtures
A simple renovation you can tackle in the winter months is to update lighting fixtures. By improving the quality of your home’s lighting, you can create the illusion of natural sunlight. Replace low wattage bulbs in any overhead fixtures, such as chandeliers and recessed lighting, with full-spectrum and energy-efficient bulbs. This casts a brighter and wider glow comparable to sunlight. After you’ve tended to general lighting elements, you can then use accent and task lighting to create a more soothing glow. Illuminate a dark reading nook with a sconce and add a desk lamp where you intend to sign and seal holiday cards.
New Stair Runner
Carpets and stair runners can look outdated, dingy and worn. Fall is a great time to get a new stair runner to freshen up frequently trafficked stairs. You will be amazed how inviting a fresh new carpet can make an entryway look!
Install Built-in Shelving
These can be added to any room to help add more space in your home. Extra shelving and storage is great for guests to be able to organize their overnight items while the stay in your home.
Remodel your Powder Room/Guest Bathroom
These rooms are typically small which is great for taking chances with bold and eccentric designs. Try out a fun printed wallpaper or tiles with bold colors, a unique counter, add multi-layer lighting, creative tiling, and updated fixtures.
Introduce a Bar/Beverage Area
In social settings, a bar can be a frequented place. Add function and form by switching all wooden cabinets for display cases to showcase your glassware and bottles, add in a mini fridge for cold drinks, a sink and faucet, along with counter space to create cocktails. Perfect for holiday entertaining!
Convert a Living Space
No matter the size of the home it can become cramped over the holidays. Out-of-town guests – whether it is extended family members, children returning home from college, or friends needing a place to stay for the holidays – can quickly fill a house. While most people don’t want the headache of adding a second story or extending additional rooms to their house, there are ways to take advantage of existing spaces to make them more useful.
One of the most cost-effective ways to gain valuable space is by remodeling an attic. An attic remodel is a great way to add a bedroom, home office, or play space for children. It can provide much-needed space for the holidays and also add to the resale value of your home.
Other options include converting a garage into a living space, remodeling above a detached garage, or even installing a small room underneath the stairs. A room underneath the stairs can be a cozy place for a child to sleep at night and a quiet place during the day when they need to escape the hustle and bustle of the holidays.
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