Ideas and Tips for Easier Home Improvements
A bit of time spent planning and organising before you dive into any kind of home improvement project pays dividends down the line. Not just in terms of time saved, but also for the sake of your mental health. You’ll create less chaos, make fewer mistakes, and generally feel a lot less stressed while the job’s underway.
See the Bigger Picture
Have an end goal in mind when you first start planning. Focus on the atmosphere you want to create as much as on the colour, style or even budget.
Maybe you want to let in more light, make a room feel bigger or create better storage. Maybe you want to modernise, using the latest trends. If so, decide what kind of modern style you want. You could hanker for clean, minimal lines or prefer something with a modern ‘vintage’ feel.
Once you nailed the atmosphere you want to create, and the reasons you want to make the change, dig deeper into the practicalities and specifics of the improvement.
A mood board can help with putting together colours and styles, fabrics, and wallpapers. You can curate ideas in a digital file on your phone so it’s always with you while you shop, or make a physical board with actual samples of wallpaper, paint tester pots, and fabrics.
Organise the Job
Make a running list of tasks, the tools you’ll need and the order you’ll tackle jobs.
Doing this helps you figure out what tools you’ll need, and if you need to buy some so you have them ready. It’s very frustrating to have to pause mid-job because you forgot to buy a particular tool. A typical mistake is buying rollers or large brushes to paint a wall but forgetting smaller edging brushes or masking tape.
During this planning phase, also consider the logistics. You’ll need to clear space, and this can involve lots of moving furnishings from one end of the room to the other as well as packing up ornaments and books or other equipment and decorative objects.
Renting a self storage room can help you get this organised. Facilities will happily discuss what you need and make sure you’re not renting a warehouse if a locker would do the job. Having this extra space for storage means you can clear the decks completely while you work, saving time and avoiding damage to treasured items in the process.
In the longer term, it’s also useful to have a self storage room for tools and ladder storage when you’re between home improvement jobs.
Factor in Delays
Things don’t always run exactly to plan, especially if a team of people need to work together. Plan when you’ll tackle the job, so you have the most chance of it running smoothly and finishing in good time.
Make sure you’ve got trades people booked in the right order, for instance, and that you can be home when you need to be. Maybe you need to book time off work, or arrange for extra childcare, or even a night away from home while the builders work.
Working with a team, where jobs need completing in a certain order, can be a challenge if one team member needs to change dates for any reason. Try and have a ‘plan B’ just in case things go awry.
Capitalise on Sales and Bargains
Planning for upcoming jobs gives you some lead time to scout out the bargains.
Armed with your overall plan and mood board, when you spot something that would fit perfectly, you can confidently buy it there and then. Stocks and ranges change all the time, sometimes surprisingly quickly, and it’s very frustrating when you go back for a wallpaper you spotted a couple of weeks ago, only to find that one’s been replaced with something different.
If you worry about keeping your collected items safe, your storage room is the perfect place. Early buys are great candidates for your self storage room. They’ll wait till you’re ready, staying in perfect condition.
Planning and scheming are part of the fun of home improvements. There’s nothing quite like the satisfaction of seeing a room or entire house transformed. Putting in the work at the beginning so you know what you want and how to achieve it, makes it all happen that bit quicker.
