While spending a lot of time at home things around the house can start to feel a bit old and tired fast. You may decide that it is time to do some renovations. It’s a great way to add value to your home and make everything feel more welcoming again, but improvements can be expensive. Many people find themselves in a tough situation because they want to improve their home but they don’t want to spend a lot of money. But what if you could make the changes that you want without breaking the bank? As long as you follow these tips, you can save a lot of money on home renovations.
If you are renovating a room like a kitchen, for example, you may decide that you are going to replace all of the appliances in there. But that is going to get expensive very quickly, so you need to find another way. The thing is, those appliances are probably fine and if they do have any small issues, they can easily be fixed by an appliance repair company, which is a lot cheaper. As long as you take care of your appliances properly, there is no need to replace them every time you do work on your home.
In some cases, when paint is peeling off the walls, it’s best to strip it back and give the walls another coat of paint. However, when it comes to the exterior of your home, there may be no need to paint the walls because they may just be dirty. Moss and grime builds up over the years and even though your walls don’t look great, the paint underneath is actually in good condition. If you use a house washing service to clean the walls off, you may find that they look as good as new. This will be a lot cheaper and quicker than stripping back and painting your entire house.
Imagine you’re looking at some new tiles for the bathroom and you find some that you fall in love with right away, then you check the price tag and realize that they are very expensive. If you are not willing to compromise, your renovation budget is going to be stretched. The thing is, you can get budget versions of the most expensive materials that will give the same end result. The only difference that you will be able to notice is the big difference in price, so be willing to compromise. You can also save a lot of money if you use reclaimed materials in your home instead of buying brand new.
If you start shopping for materials and making plans without a budget in place, your spending will spiral out of control in no time at all. But if you draw up a clear budget so you know exactly what your top limit is, you will find it a lot easier to stay under budget and work out where to spend your money.
As part of your budget, you could consider asking for help from at least one professional in your home renovation journey. You don’t want to get the construction team in to do it all for you, and we get that/ however, there are some jobs that you shouldn’t do yourself around the home, and it’s these that you should budget for a professional. For example, you could clean out your gutter yourself, but replacing the gutter systems? That should probably be left to a team of experts who know exactly what they’re doing. This is the time you should budget that little extra so that you can afford to have someone who knows how to work a ladder check out your gutters and give you some feedback. Home renovations don’t have to be mega expensive: you just have to know when to ask for help!
Follow these simple tips and you can cut the cost of home renovations in a big way.
Most of my house has a chinoiserie look to it. While I have been sheltering in place, I started thinking that maybe I should carry that look out to the patio. It is work in progress, as is everything around here, but I am going to show you what I used as my inspiration and will hopefully have a finished product of my Chinoiserie Chic patio soon!!!















I hope everyone is having a relaxing Memorial Day weekend. As we toast all of the Heroes who have served our country, here are some very festive tables for us to celebrate. I am also giving you a jump start on your Fourth of July decor. I love Red White and Blue but I am also loving just the blue and white theme this year!!!! Enjoy!!!!..Happy Memorial Day and Stay Safe!!!!












Today was supposed to be my son’s graduation from Providence College. Like everything else, so much was planned and then canceled. Overall we are so grateful for an amazing school that he loved and had the best 4 year experience. So instead of dressing up and heading to the graduation ceremony, I thought I would do a Weekend Real Estate Staking to lighten the mood around here…I have loved Amanda Lindroth’s Island style (she is based in Lyford Cay) for a while now. Her WEBSITE is nothing short of fabulous. The hurricanes, tabletop items, wicker furniture are so beautiful. I finally caved and treated myself to a gorgeous Pagoda. HERE, Amanda gives us a tour of her beautiful home “Hope Hill” in the Bahamas. I hope you enjoy her gorgeous aesthetic as much as I do!!! Happy Sunday!!!














These days, we’re all trying to save money. When you’re trying to fix up your home or you are figuring out the best ways to keep your finances in check you have to look at your immediate surroundings. When it comes to your appliances you must remember that these are one of the biggest expenses in the home. As such, we have to remember how important it is to look after our appliances. Many people believe that appliances are only built to last so long. But the important thing to bear in mind is to make sure that your appliances last longer, not just for the benefit of your wallet, but for the environment as well. What are the best approaches to take?
Read The Instruction Manual
When you need to fix your brand name appliances, do you ever refer to the instruction manual? We’re all guilty of throwing the instruction manual away but as boring as this sounds, the user manual will help us to make sure that we are using our appliance properly. Also, user manuals give plenty of pointers on the appliance maintenance. When we start to care for our appliances properly they will last longer, but also remember that there is plenty of customer support for your appliances available from the manufacturer.
The Importance Of Ventilation
Whether it’s your washer dryer or your refrigerator/freezer, it’s important to remember that these appliances need adequate ventilation to do their job properly. When the coils on your fridge gather dust and you do not routinely clean it, it can cause issues over time with the power supply. As dust collects, the fridge has to work harder to pump the electricity around. Leave 2 cm of extra space behind and above the appliance, allowing for ventilation but also to give you the opportunity to clean these items properly.
Keeping Your Appliances Clean
Many people think that they only need to clean the appliance when they start to see aesthetic issues. But when it comes to something like your washer-dryer, the amount of mold and bacteria that can build up without you being able to see it can mean that your appliance is corroding from the inside. It’s important for you to run your washer-dryer without any clothes in it once a month without any detergent. The vast majority of your appliances will work much better when the residue is clear. I use THIS washing machine cleaner and it works wonders!
Inspect the Items Around Your Home
It takes a couple of seconds to look at your toaster or kettle before you use it and once you get into this mindset of having a quick glance to see if there are any problems you’ll be able to keep on top of these issues. It’s a good idea to get into a maintenance mindset because you will be able to spot any problems before they get worse. The same thing applies to your appliances like your washer-dryer. When you check the filter and empty it on a regular basis, you will get rid of the debris and other bits that have accumulated inside there over time.
It’s very easy to make your appliances last a long time, but so many people don’t think that they can’t do anything about it apart from purchasing a new one. If you really want to save money and save the environment, follow these four practices, and extend the life of your household appliances.
2020’s current events are leading all of us to have a lot more quality home time on our hands and increased opportunities to spend more tech time each day, whether it be Binge Watching, making Tic Toc videos, Zooming or playing video games. It makes sense to improve the space in which you do those things. We’re going to talk about some of the most important things to get right as you look to improve an entertainment area in your home.
Sort Out Cable Organization and General Storage

Firstly, you should take a look at your cables and see how much of a mess they’re in. Most gaming rooms or tech-heavy rooms have big cable management problems, but they can be overcome. Everything looks so much tidier and cleaner when your cables are properly managed and tucked away and separated from one another. So make that happen, and the same goes for your general storage. Make sure everything has its own place. THIS or THIS can greatly help improve your cable management quickly and easily.
Decorate it Creatively

Getting creative with a fresh approach to decor might be something that’s worth looking into and experimenting with a little more too. Whether you want to decorate with mid-century modern furniture, iconic vintage game images, or simply add some new color to the walls.
Get the Lighting Right

The lighting is something that’s definitely worth thinking about when it comes to the quality of the space. When you’re watching a movie or gaming, you want the atmosphere to be just right, and that will be possible when you have good LED lights in place. This Installation guide of LED strip lights is an easy quick fix to make this change in your entertainment room.
Invest in a Great Desk and Chair

Nothing matters more than the furniture you have in your space when it comes to comfort and relaxation. I’m sure you want to be able to sit back and relax, but that will only be possible if you invest in the right DESK and a supportive CHAIR . Or get SOMETHING really comfortable and out of the box to sit on!
Use the Best Speakers You Can Afford

Finally, you should think about the audio. Having great SPEAKERS is vital because they will deliver a booming and all-encompassing sound that will help you to feel fully immersed in your game. At the same time, if this is a family home, you might want to also think about soundproofing the walls so you don’t end up disturbing other people with the noise.
If you’re looking to get more out of your entertainment room, these are the ideas that’ll help you to do just that. All the more now, we all need a space dedicated to the things we love and if for you that means watching Net-Flix, gaming, or other tech-related activities, it pays off to put some effort into refining that space.