Make your weekend a productive one with some quick but effective DIY projects. Photo: Armelle Habib / bauersyndication.com.au
Add value and character to your home – all in one weekend!
1. Add a feature wall
Colour can add a whole lot of depth and personality to any room. If there’s a room in your house that’s lacking oomph, find a colour that complements the furnishings and paint a feature wall to give the room an instant update.
Whether it’s the hanging lights above your kitchen bench, or the down lights in your living room – replacing your light fixtures is an easy DIY project that will give your home a fresh look. You can find a plethora of options in Bunnings' interior lights range.
Nothing says dated like mouldy tiles. Give the rooms in your house a facelift by regrouting the areas where you have tiles such as your bathroom. A little elbow grease goes a long way in this case and you’ll love the transformative effect that clean and shining tiles will have.
The front of your house is the point of first impressions for your entire home. Why not give it a facelift by painting your front door a bold but complementary colour? You could even add large brass, wooden or gunmetal numbers to your front door to give it a little extra style.
This is a small project with big benefits. Updating the handles on your doors, drawers and cabinets can have a resounding effect on the style of your home, especially if your cabinets and doors are dated. Instead of replacing the whole unit, find some quirky handles and replace the old ones.
Find your greenest thumb and get planting. Whether it’s weeding your current flowerbeds, or planting new ones, a backyard tidy is an instant way to revamp your home. Try purchasing pot plants or some new outdoor furniture to really transform the look of your backyard.
This is a quick and simple way to freshen up your interiors and it’s easy to do yourself. All you need is some surfacing compound and a paint scraper. Using the paint scraper, fill the holes with some surfacing compound. When it’s set, sand the area down so it’s smooth, then repaint. While you’ve got your paint brush out, find any blemishes (areas where paint is peeling or damaged), and repaint them. Your walls will look brand new in no time.
Most wooden items around your home will need to be restained on a yearly basis. Why not use this long weekend to get it over and done with? Simply apply a wood stripper, let it set, then remove old stain from your wooden items. Sand each surface before applying a fresh coat of timber stain. Leave to dry before putting the items back in their place. Your timber cabinets, benches and tables will look just as good as the day you bought them.
It’s no secret that after cooking up a storm on the BBQ the last thing you want to do is clean it, so this task often gets neglected, which leads to a build up of icky stuff on your BBQ. Spend a little time this long weekend scraping, scrubbing and spraying your BBQ so it’s sparkling clean and ready to be used at your next dinner party.
This is a bigger project but one that you can accomplish over a weekend nonetheless. If your kitchen or bathroom is in need of an update, pick out some small, quirky tiles and create a feature wall mosaic behind the sink. This one will pay for itself in compliments.
