DIY ten Home Improvement Ideas: How To Make The Most of What You Already Have!

Three years ago, nosotros moved into our house, a 1970's fixer-upper. I'm certain people thought I was crazy to accept on the renovation of an older home. I had a rattling express budget, together with I had never done whatever form of dwelling solid improvement or dwelling solid remodeling inwards my life. 

I knew that the exclusively agency I was going to create our quondam solid facial expression the agency I wanted it to was to larn to exercise things myself. Since our budget was basically nonexistent, I knew I would guide maintain to locomote amongst what I already had. 
And together with then that's what I've spent the yesteryear few years doing.
This post is a collection of my 10 favorite tardily DIY ideas.

Based on the reader emails I acquire each month, I know in that location are tons of you lot inwards older homes simply similar me, trying to figure out ways to improve things. I know how it feels. 
Not awesome.

 I was inwards that daunting identify simply iii curt years ago.  The skillful intelligence is that YOU tin exercise what I've done. It simply takes a fiddling willingness to learn. And the powerfulness to block out all of the people telling you lot non to pigment something. 


So, here are my locomote yesteryear 10 tardily solutions to update things you lot mightiness non similar nearly your house, most of which involve paint
Because when you lot bespeak low-cost, high-impact results, pigment is your best friend.

#1. Paint Your Trim
We'll start off amongst the i affair that volition give you lot the most bang for your buck. Painting your quondam wooden trim. I painted my trim, together with it completely transformed my entire house. Nothing volition create every bit large of an acquit upon every bit icon your trim. All you lot bespeak is pigment together with a decent amount of patience.

There are rattling few things that volition transform an quondam solid similar painted cut back will, every bit evidenced yesteryear the below icon demo of the upstairs.

Or this icon demo of the basement.

So, yes, I definitely hollo back it's the cheapest agency to create a large divergence inwards the overall facial expression together with experience of your home.

The consummate (and rattling easy) tutorial of how I pigment my cut back tin endure institute here.

#2. Paint Your Tile
Did you lot know you lot tin pigment your tile? Well, yep. You can. I had the ugliest tile countertop inwards our kitchen when nosotros outset moved inwards together with it drove me crazy until I in conclusion broke downward together with painted it. I couldn't afford to knock it out together with simply acquire rid of it (which nosotros eventually did during the renovation), together with then inwards the meantime this was the perfect solution. I institute a particular type of pigment made simply for sinks, tubs, together with tile, together with it totally lived upward to the hype...super durable. My tile icon tutorial is simply a few tardily steps together with tin endure institute here. I hollo back it toll me less than $50 to exercise this.

#3. Paint Your Old Furniture
After nosotros moved into our house, I rapidly realized that my fantasy of shopping for all create novel slice of furniture was non going to endure a reality simply yet. I was forced to instead hollo back exterior of the box together with honour inexpensive ways to supply our home. This totally spawned my thrift store shopping together with slice of furniture icon obsession.
 This french provincial dresser was i of my faves together with exclusively toll me $50.
The master copy tutorial tin endure found here. 

Another instance is this thrift store dresser I painted blue.

It's my most viewed post of all time, together with I even together with then acquire readers emailing me pictures of their ain versions of this dresser. Never inwards a 1000000 years did I facial expression that to happen.

You tin run into my locomote yesteryear 10 slice of furniture pigment projects here.

#4. Spray Paint Your Doorknobs

If you lot guide maintain tons of outdated 1980's brass doorknobs similar me, you lot tin easily update them amongst spray paint. Using the correct spray pigment volition give you lot a high-end, durable result. And it's much amend than paying $20+ a slice for novel knobs! 
(See to a greater extent than nearly what pigment to use here.)

#5. Spray Paint Your Light Fixtures:
I dearest a bully lite fixture. And our solid didn't guide maintain a unmarried one. I mean, nosotros had lite fixtures, but they were hideous. So, instead, I had Jesse accept all of them downward together with I institute or together with then (new to me) quondam thrift store chandeliers together with spray painted them a color I liked.

For example, here's an quondam brass pendant I institute for $5 at a local thrift store.

And hither it is inwards our office after a few coats of silverish spray paint. 

 #6. Paint Your Dirty Tile Grout
This i production has totally transformed our floors. I've used it on iii rooms worth of tile, together with it's held upward bully for a actually long fourth dimension now. It toll me nearly $10. 
Original tutorial tin endure found here.

#7. Paint outdated Bathroom Fixtures
Rather than pass hundreds of dollars on novel bath fixtures, I simply used this silver spray pigment and this metallic pigment pen (affiliate links) to completely update our outdated two-toned fixtures. It's even together with then belongings upward over a twelvemonth later.
You tin run into to a greater extent than details nearly that transformation here.

#8. Paint the insides of quondam cabinets
I used a quart of this chalkboard paint (affiliate link) to completely update the insides of my kitchen cabinets. They were actually disgusting before, together with it's made a bigger acquit upon on our fiddling kitchen than anything else we've done. 
See the total earlier together with afters here.

#9. Create an Accent Wall:
Adding a fun accent wall is i of my favorite ways to accept a room upward a notch. For cheap.
I did inwards in our bath (seen here) together with inwards our invitee bedchamber (seen here). 

#10. Paint your deadening quondam walls! 

I painted our deadening peachy colored walls throughout the entire house. I kept the color palette neutral, but varied the color from room to room. The overall number is a calm, serene, cohesive looking house! 
See my favorite neutral pigment colors here.

And my best pigment advice on choosing a pigment color here.

#11. BONUS!! Update your fireplace!
We were blessed amongst a 1970's jewel of a fireplace inwards our living room, together with then to create the most of it, nosotros built our ain diy mantel for less than $30! It totally upgraded the fireplace together with ended upward existence a super tardily project! You tin cheque out the total story here.

or you lot tin likewise pigment your fireplace similar nosotros did to our fireplace downstairs. 
See to a greater extent than nearly that here.

So, that's it! Those are my locomote yesteryear 10 ways of making the most of what you lot already have. Thanks for existence here.
You guys know I appreciate it.

'Til side yesteryear side time,

Follow my weblog with

Subscribe to amongst email!
Enter your e-mail address: