Renovate Your Home: Tips For Making An Old House Feel Brand New

By Jane Lasky

It's time to renovate. The only problem is, you have little time and the time you do have is spent wondering where to start. The good news, many upgrades and changes are easy enough to make and won't eat up all your time in execution. Consider a slew of concepts that will definitely do the proverbial trick.

Artistic Endeavors

Switch up your wall art. Take down the old pictures you put up when you first moved in and weren't sure which way you wanted to decorate yet. In their place, choose artistic renderings that suit your current style. If you like modern art, try investing in a few lithographs or prints from your favorite local artist who paints in that style. Or, if you are into early American, consider mounting an iron eagle on the face of your fireplace or some old wagon wheels in the hall wall.

Mirror, Mirror

Add large mirrors opposite large windows to reflect the outdoors. Doing so will effectively bring the outside in while keeping the temperature controlled and the vermin out. You'll also make this particular space feel more spacious than it is with this one-step decorating tip.

Fresh Plantings

Put up window boxes as window treatments on the inside of your house. Then, plant herbs, flowers and other plants you can use in imaginative ways. Display your new plants in colorful, handmade vessels to really make them 'pop.' Take some old glass salad dressing bottles and spruce them up with colorful pigments for added effect.

Paint Worthy

Paint one focal wall a strong color to contrast with the others. For instance, if all of your living room walls are white or off-white, choose one of those walls to stand out by painting it, say, red. Or, contrast your light blue walls by turning one of them a primary yellow. Your new paint scheme will create an instant conversation piece, and it's a great way to brighten up your home.

Window Magic

Perhaps the best tip of all is addressing your existing window treatments. Make your old windows shine like new by switching out heavy shades for plantation shutters. You can also opt to put in eye-catching roman shades in the kitchen, elegant roller shades in the dining room and pretty pairings of select blinds or room darkening curtains with striking draperies in the bedroom. Consider any number of new window treatments to freshen up the entire picture in every single room of your newly renovated house.