*This is a collaborative post.
Refreshing home decor always sounds like a fun and rewarding, quick exercise.
It’s only when you get stuck in you realise it can be quite time-consuming. It’s nearly always worth the effort though, so we’ve rounded up a few tips to make it a bit easier so you can get finished faster and enjoy the results of your hard work.
Make a Plan
Whether the job’s big or small, you’ll get on a lot better when you know exactly what you’re doing and why.
Even if you’re just repainting a wall, you must choose the colour, decide on the paint type, figure out which brushes or rollers and other equipment you need, and make sure you’ve got it all.
For larger jobs, you might have to consider specialists such as cabinet makers, builders, electricians, or plumbers. It can end up being quite a complex logistics exercise, so make a plan of the work to help keep things on track and on time. It might help, for example, if you can rope in some extra childcare while you work. Little fingers and wet paint don’t always go together.
Know Your Style
If you’re planning a makeover rather than simply freshening up your existing style, creating a mood board can help firm up your ideas.
You can keep it on your phone, on social media or in your personal cloud. Having everything on your wish list in one place lessens the risk of creating a mishmash of ideas that don’t quite gel when you put them together.
Alongside a digital record of the look you want to create, having something physical you can touch is also a good idea. Getting a sensory impression of a thing helps us understand and identify with it. How many times have you been drawn to a piece of clothing for its colour and style, for instance, only to realise you don’t like the fabric once you touch it?
The same goes for wallpaper. Shops don’t normally mind you tearing off a little strip to try on the wall at home – and you can ask if you’re not sure it’s okay. Tester pots when you’re choosing paint colours can be life savers. How the light falls in your room can totally alter the way a colour looks, so something can look glorious in the dining room, but dismal in the hallway.
Gather Materials Before You Start
Nothing can fray a temper quite like wanting to get on with the job then realising something vital is missing. Maybe you’ve forgotten a little thing like masking tape, or you discover a bigger hassle such as your ladder is too short. Having a shopping list of everything you need (and measuring to make sure things fit) makes the job a lot easier.
If finding house room for DIY tools and materials is a concern, consider renting a self-storage room to save things during the planning stage. Storage unit prices are reasonable, and well worth it if only for reducing stress and frustration levels.
Complete the Work in Stages
Having gathered all you need and sorted out your time slots for working, go at it logically.
Start painting at the top of the room, with the ceiling. Next, paint the walls, then move to skirting boards and window frames, then do the door frames and doors last.
Complete all the painting before wallpapering so you don’t accidentally splash paint on the fresh paper. Remember to wipe any wallpaper paste off the paintwork straight away before it dries.
When you’re doing a whole room, it can also help you finish faster if you remove as many items as possible before you start. That way, you’re not stopping constantly to shift boxes or move furniture. Put as much as you can into your self storage room so it’s completely out of the way and protected from accidental damage.
As the days slowly lengthen, lots of our thoughts turn to nest building and renewing. If your spring reset includes a spot of redecorating, we hope these few tips will help make it a bit easier.
I seem to always start a redecorating project nowadays using Pinterest and gathering all sorts of ideas for the room and how I want it to look before I start anything. I love that there are so many ways to get so many great ideas.