5 Easy Ways To Add Pizzazz To Your Home
By Stefan Walther | January 25, 2023
Enhance a home’s exterior and curb appeal with attractive accent lighting.
Time and time again we here at ThunderBayHouses.com notice that owners only consider and complete updates and improvements to their homes once they are ready to list and sell.
To this, we ask why? Why not sooner? Why not now?
And we ask for a selfish reason — but for your self, not our self
We encourage owners to make enhancements to their homes sooner so that they and their family can enjoy them — now and for perhaps many years to come — before they may move on to their next home.
It is a shame to make enhancements to your living space only for the next owner to enjoy. Do it now, do it for you.
Whether you plan to be in the market today, tomorrow, next year, in five years or in 10 — or even if you have no intention of ever selling — ThunderBayHouses.com has come up with 5 Easy Ways To Add Pizzazz so that you can make your home more comfortable and enjoyable, before passing it along, someday, to the next owner.
1. Tidy Up, Clean, Organize, Paint — We start with the very easiest way to add some pizzazz, something that requires little to no cost, mostly just some thought, time, effort and maybe a bit of elbow grease. If you are like us, you tidy and clean your home only when guests are coming over. But how wonderful is it when the house is clean, the toilet sparkles, no hair or pet fur floating in the corners, and you can actually once again see the tops of the coffee table and the kitchen counter. Ahhhhhh! We know this is not fun “work” so put on a favourite TV show or podcast, crank some music, pour a favourite beverage. Maybe get the family to join you and make it a team effort — and get it done quicker.
Put stuff away when finished: magazines back in a rack, multiple TV and cable remotes in a drawer or on the shelf below the TV, toys in a bin (preferably with a lid, so out of sight). And if you don’t have a rack, shelf or bin, then buy them, they don’t have to cost a lot. The tidiness and organization will make you very happy, every day.
Add some fresh paint. Maybe just one room, start off simple. Or paint the living room or dining room so you can show it off to your next dinner guests. Try a darker accent wall with the rest of the room lighter, painted or maybe try a patterned accent wall (have you heard of fluted wall panelling — yes, it’s a thing). Head to the paint or hardware store and pick up some swatches, get some inspiration. Planning and anticipation are part of the fun, and even in themselves provide some good satisfaction. Remember, dark colours make a room appear and feel smaller and cozier, so ideal for spacious open-concept areas, while light colours give the sense of more space and airiness, brighter and better for small rooms. This is why we never darkly paint the inside of a closet, and why we never darkly paint a ceiling, otherwise they feel like dank caves.
Happiness is tidy, clean and organized. Swap out a light fixture for an exciting new ambiance.
2. It’s The Little Things — Homes are, for the most part, relatively large spaces made up of many smaller elements. Take a look around your home and see what could use some updating or improvement. Are the faucets in the kitchen and bathroom from 1950? What about the shower head? The handles on the doors? The hinges on the doors? The doors themselves? How about the door stopper, is it one of those old awful springy things from 1975? Are the light switches those old little sticks? You may be shocked by all the options for replacement if you walk down the aisles of the hardware store — while decades ago there were only one or two options for replacement, today’s are endless. Hit the Internet for even more. And many of these cost less, some far less, than $100 for high quality and high style.
One of our favourite things to update is light fixtures. Again, there are so many options and they can really transform the feel and comfort of a room, or the exterior of the home — the curb appeal out front, the ambiance on the deck out back. Again, see the hardware store or the Internet for amazing options to suit any size, style and preference.
Add some function to your form. Swap out an overhead light and put in an attractive ceiling fan. It will keep you cooler in summer. Moreover, ceiling fans have a reverse direction and can improve air flow and air quality year-round, while at the same time reducing heating and cooling costs.
Add some form to your function. A pocket door is a great alternative to a regular swing-open door, especially for a tight space, but have you thought about a barn door? It’s easier to retrofit, requiring no interior wall modification. This trend is still catching on. Check out the various options at Home Depot.
Something else that can really make a dramatic difference: drapes and blinds. Once again, endless options. The owner and founder of ThunderBayHouses.com, also the author of this article, has custom Levolor cellular blinds on just about every window in his house — they are not only sleek and stylish but the honeycomb pockets trap warm and cool air to keep the interior more comfortable no matter what the season. Many of his windows, such as those in the living room and dining room and primary bedroom, also have drapes to add some style, flourish and ambiance. Prices can range from low, for standard off-the-shelf window coverings, to higher for custom-made, custom-cut, custom-ordered pieces. The latter will usually look far nicer, as well as come with a warranty.
Form and function, you can have them both — barn doors are a unique new trend.
3. Rearrange Furniture And Décor — Another easy, no-cost suggestion. Many of us have our furniture and our décor set up just the way we like them, in the rooms where we like them, and we don’t want to change them, we don’t want to move them. But think outside your tastes, you may be surprised. Move the dark-blue recliner from the living room to the primary or guest bedroom, it could open up the space in the former and add a useful accent piece to the latter. Maybe you’ll discover a great new sitting area in your home to relax and read a book, watch the birds in the back yard. Move the console table from the dining room to the entrance way, see if it works better there. What about that beautiful and colourful Tiffany lamp, try it in a different room. Same goes for décor, maybe move a painting or photo or family heirloom. Remember, you can always move stuff back.
4. Shop Local Crafts — Perhaps it doesn’t matter where you move furniture and décor, maybe you’re sick of looking at it for so many years and the only place you want to move it to is into the trash bin. Thunder Bay is home to many so very talented crafters, who make anything and everything, much of it to enhance our living spaces, much of it inspired by the beautiful nature that surrounds our great city: custom poured candles, pottery, quilts, art and accent pieces, special signs and more. For the home or for the camp or cottage. To get inspired with ideas, make sure you attend the next Craft Revival show on May 7, 2023. Or do a search for “Thunder Bay” and whichever craft you may be looking for on Google, Facebook or Instagram.
5. Shop Beyond — Speaking of Internet searches, you can jump down a rabbit hole and spend countless hours shopping, or simply getting inspired, on Wayfair, a treasure trove of home goods and furniture, of all styles, of all colours, of all prices. The world is at your door step. Ditto goes for Amazon as well as websites for Walmart, Home Depot and, yes, even Canadian Tire — it’s not just tires anymore, in fact the latter has almost 50 sub-categories under “Homes & Pets.” Looking for a new accent lamp, new clock, new pillow or throw rug, you can find hundreds online. Bonus is dimensions are usually listed so you can ensure a good ideal fit for your space. As well, shipping is usually free and items go on sale or are discounted frequently.
Hopefully this article inspires you to make some quick, easy and effective enhancements and improvements to your home and living space — if not for the next owner, then just for you. Stay tuned for many more great “5 Easy Ways” articles on the ThunderBayHouses.com Market Insider.
Have a question or comment? Reach us anytime at info@ThunderBayHouses.com. Or call 807-344-9393.
<< Mortgage Getting Too Expensive? Here Are Some Options <<
>> Partner Spotlight: Rock It Chocolate >>
