Many of these ideas don’t require buying anything new, but simply updating the items you already own with custom touches. A builder-grade bathroom mirror looks high-end when you add a frame, while a dated wooden headboard turns luxe once wrapped in elegant tufted fabric. These small-budget, big-impact changes will make your dream home more affordable than you ever thought. “After adding the furniture into my office, I realized that the white paint seemed like it could use some additional texture to really warm up the space. That’s where the DIY shiplap came in!” she says. By painting the plywood with the paint she had left over from the walls, she was able to cut costs and create a cohesive look. When combined with a soft rug and a wooden shelving unit, the wood paneled wall makes the office feel cozy. “Both colors are great, but the yellow just suits us so much more!” says Rooney. When selecting a front door color, there’s no single hue that works for every home, but the color you choose should match the feeling you want your home to inspire. Rather than splurge on a store-bought beauty or build a new headboard from scratch, Carmona decided to use the dated headboard she already owned as a framework for building something more magnificent. After adding wooden boards to the stripped-down frame, the former eyesore was ready for its refresh. “While most people run out and buy upholstery foam (which can run well over a hundred dollars for just a couple yards), I used cheap $11 egg crate mattress foam with the same results,” says Carmona. Creative material alternatives, coupled with the patience required to tuft the fabric by hand, paid off in this $50 statement piece. By adding a couple custom updates, builder-grade accents can be made to match your personal style. When Chelsea Coulston of the blog Making Home Base moved into a home with large, unframed mirrors in the bathroom, she knew a quick custom frame would transform the space. The main goal for the makeover (other than adding some flair) was to outfit the room with cabinets for linens and supplies. The second goal? To give Bowie a spot to fold laundry beside the couch. “I was able to keep costs down by shopping the Habitat for Humanity ReStore. I got the cabinets we installed above the washer and dryer for $20. That was a steal!” she says. A couple coats of white paint later, they look brand new. A wooden board above the washer, attached to the wall with brackets, provides a perch for folding towels and t-shirts. After the $99 makeover, the room is not only a more pleasant spot to do a load of laundry, but it’s also a more functional space, so she can get it done in less time. Laura Tusken, the owner of Inspiration for Moms, wasn’t satisfied with the builder-grade cabinets that came with her kitchen, but when she started a remodel, she realized that sprucing up the original units was much more cost-effective than replacing them. Willing to put in the elbow grease required to update the cabinets, Tusken decided to DIY rather than buy, and ended up saving hundreds of dollars. “But I knew that with four kids, those white steps wouldn’t stay white for long,” she said. To give the stairs a fighting chance, Wilson then installed a seagrass runner, which she secured to the stairs with a staple gun. The seagrass matches Wilson’s shore-inspired aesthetic, and it protects the white stairs from a stampede of dirty sneakers. To make sure these tops are always ready to wear (and keep them looking neat on open shelving), follow our no-fail folding technique. It may take a couple of tries to learn the steps, but once you have the method memorized, you’ll never want to go back to a sloppy jumble of shirts again. A few years later, tired of staring at her messy closet while working in her pristine office, Benavidez finally decided it was time to finish what she started. Rather than buy new doors, she got creative with wooden lattice strips and some pretty coral paint. The estimated cost of the entire project, including paint, lattice strips, caulk, sanding blocks, and door pulls is just $75, but the finished doors look many times that price. To get the look, use wooden lattice to make custom designs on your closet doors, and be bold with an unexpected hue. Rather than remove the tiles and face what’s hiding underneath, Druke opted to brush over the unattractive flooring with a fresh coat of paint in a contemporary hue, once again proving paint’s magical ability to refresh dated design decisions. “It took a couple of weeks of painting during naptimes,” says Druke, but the final result is worth the time put in. Located between the garage, bathroom, and laundry room, this hallway gets a lot of traffic, but a few months after it was painted, Druke reports that it’s still holding up well. While this quick fix isn’t designed to last forever, for less than $100, Druke was able to modernize a 40-year-old eyesore.
