There are a lot of projects that you can DIY to create the modern home of your dreams! I enjoy putting in the work to make my house a home, and if you do too, here are some projects you can tackle.
The costs of each project will vary, depending on what materials you choose. For our first home we kept cost low by purchasing items on the lower end of our budget. And second home we were able to splurge/out source on certain projects. We were able to purchase more on what we liked, not only what we could afford.
1. Update Your Faucets:
There is a faucet out there that fits any design style. You can usually purchase faucets from Amazon, Home Depot or Lowes for less than $100, and bathroom faucets for less than that. I grabbed this faucet from Amazon and it was about $90. In this home I went with chrome finishes throughout.
We also update our countertops, which is a project we definitely outsourced.
2. Paint your bathroom vanities & update your hardware:
Well in this case it’s stain. But instead of replacing the whole vanity, you can paint (or stain) it. I purchased one can of stain for $16 and used it on the guest room vanity and master bedroom. Looks like a whole new vanity!
3. Replace blinds:
In our in our house we have a lot of windows, we decided not to do curtains down stairs so we invested in new blinds. When we moved in the blinds were a dingy yellow color. By replacing them we brightened up the whole down stairs.
4. Change the lights:
We had multiple outdated lights. We changed all the lights to the same light. These lights are easy to clean and only cost about $16 each. The lights are very bright, the bulbs last forever and are energy efficient, so will save you a some money in the long run.
5. Paint:
Obviously it’s cheaper if you do it yourself. Get a 5-gallon bucket and a few friends to help and knock it out. Our walls were tan and we painted it a neutral cool gray.
6. Update the stairs:
We updated the stairs in our town home and are currently working on it in our new home. It was much cheaper in our first house. So this project cab definitely vary in price.
Our current stair project is more labor intensive and requires more materials. Under the carpet is particle board. So all steps and risers have to be replaced before they can be stained and put down. Each step is about $10 and each riser is about $8, times 16 stairs. Not a cheap project, but check what is under your carpet you may just get lucky.
7. Replace cabinet hardware:
This is especially important if you replace your faucets. Change the cabinet hardware to match. We chose chrome to match the rest of the house. This is quick project, that will give your house an updated look. These were about $30 for 10, and I purchased them on Amazon. We used them in the kitchen and the guest and master bathroom.
8. Replace hinges and door knobs:
Our door knobs and hinges were gold. We changed them to chrome and used and used a more modern egg shaped knob.
9. Update the floor in bathroom:
Most bathrooms have out dated floor, and since it’s usually a small space it is an easy fix. Home Depot or Lowe’s has a variety of different pattern sticky tiles. This particular pattern was about $30 a box, and I think we had to get a few extra single pieces. It was also super easy, my mom helped me and we got this project done in just about 2 hours.
10. Update decor:
This can be done a few ways. You can sell what you have, and purchase new or used items or repurpose what you have. I’ve used paint, stain and spray paint (a lot of spray paint) to repurpose items we already owned. I don’t have many before photos, but 90% of our house and decor is DIY, definitely a trait I get from my mom.
I recently wrote a blog about purchasing and redoing our town house, you can check that out here.
Our second house is larger so the projects took a little longer, and overall cost more. I’ll be posting some different projects as we get them completed. You can check out my channel here.
Which project are you going to try to update your home this weekend? Leave a comment and let me know!
Now back to the projects!
xo
Related Posts: How We Completely Renovated Our First Home, then flipped it, 10 Non-intimidating ways to add black to your home
