Your home is a special place, but it can become outdated at times. It is natural to want to modernize your home. Luckily, modernizing your home is not as difficult as it may seem. Remodeling projects can be simple and effective in modernizing your home and making it look great.
It does not take much to spruce up your home. With a little time and effort, you can begin transforming your home. Read on to discover five remodeling projects to modernize your old home and to make it look great.
Update the Kitchen
One of the main areas of any home that can be remodeled to modernize the entirety of the home is the kitchen. Many old kitchens can seem run down. The cabinets may seem old, and the tiling on the walls may be dirty. The tabletops may not be modern. However, the kitchen can easily be updated without much issue.
Consider the following ways you can remodel your kitchen without having to rip the whole thing out and start from scratch.
- Refinish the countertops. If you do not have the money to completely remove and replace the countertops, which can get very expensive, then you can always refinish them. You can place a faux top over the existing countertop. This may not be a long-term option, but it is not expensive to replace, either.
- Replace the cabinets. The cabinets can become outdated fairly quickly. You can remove the cabinets entirely, or you can just change the doors of the cabinets. When you change the doors of the cabinets, you will completely reinvent your kitchen without the cost of having to replace everything.
- Change the furniture. If you have bar stools or a side table in your kitchen, consider updating them. Affordable options can be found online or in your nearest home store. You may have to assemble them yourself, but they will look good and last a lot longer than you may think.
- Deep clean the kitchen. Sometimes a good cleaning is all your kitchen needs to modernize it. A lot of clutter accumulates in a kitchen, so clearing away the mess from the countertop and then polishing it all down can transform the area.
Remodeling your kitchen does not have to be a giant project. Of course, if you have the time and the money, you can replace every inch of your kitchen. However, if you are on a budget, remodeling your kitchen is simple.
Little changes can go a long way in changing the aesthetic of a room. This is true for other areas of your home, not just the kitchen.
Remodel Your Bathroom
Another prime area for a remodeling project is your bathroom. The décor in a bathroom can become outdated quickly. Furthermore, many people do not want to bother with the bathroom. This is not because they do not want to remodel it but because it can feel like a daunting task.
It is often the case that people think they need to commit to a full-scale remodel of their bathroom if they want to see any real change. However, this is not necessarily the case. If you are on a budget, remodeling your bathroom to modernize your home can be easy. Consider these things you can do right now without having to rip the whole bathroom out.
- Remove wallpaper. A lot of older homes still have wallpaper in the bathroom. This can curl and become discolored and dated. Removing the wallpaper and replacing it with a fresh coat of paint can wholly transform the bathroom into a modern one.
- Use bright, clean colors. You do not want your bathroom to feel dark and dreary. Instead, you should opt for brighter, cleaner colors. The most common is a shade of white or pearl. The brighter the colors the more inviting it will feel. Moreover, brighter colors can make the bathroom feel larger than it actually is.
- Replace towels. Towels get worn down over time. The color in the towels can fade. Replacing the towels and facecloths can bring a modern flourish to your bathroom easily.
- Deep clean the entire bathroom. Every bathroom will, at some time or another, need a deep clean. Limescale can build up in the shower, bathtub, sink, and toilet. A deep clean will make everything look better. A clean bathroom will look sleek and modern.
- Replace the shower curtains. As with the towels, you should also change the shower curtains. Shower curtains can get worn down, too. Replacing them with something modern is a great way to transform the aesthetic of the bathroom.
- Replace bath mats. Bath mats are stepped on every day and can get flattened and dirty easily. Over time, it is better to replace it with something new and stylish than just cleaning the old one over and over again.
Remodeling your bathroom can be done on a weekend if you have properly planned out what you want to do. It does not require you to replace anything major or to hire a plumber. Moreover, these small changes can completely alter how the bathroom feels.
It is important to consider the guest bathroom, too. You want your guest bathroom to feel modern. You want to give a good impression of your home, and your bathroom, while it may be last on your list of projects, should be a top priority.
Minimize Clutter Throughout the House
Cleaning may not seem like a remodeling project, but if you want to modernize your home, it can go a long way. Oftentimes, homes get cluttered with many things, such as clothes, bags, and toys. At first, it may not seem like such a bad thing. Over time, however, it can start making the home feel claustrophobic.
An old home, which most likely will have smaller rooms anyway, will feel very crammed with a lot of clutter. You may begin wondering if you need to remodel the entire house from top to bottom. However, removing clutter from throughout the house can truly transform the home, and it can feel much more modern as a result.
- Get rid of what you do not need. Most of the things that are cluttering your home you do not need. You can take it one room at a time and throw away anything you are not currently using. It is just taking up space, and that is space that could be best put to other uses.
- Install storage areas. Storage is key in decluttering a home. To minimize the clutter throughout the house, you will need to install storage areas in your home, but these do not have to be plastic bins. Rather, get creative with it so that it matches the aesthetic of your home.
- Utilize your space. The main goal of decluttering your home is to create more space. The more space you have the more comfortable and modern your home will feel. If you have space you are not utilizing, consider putting some sort of storage container there that matches the décor of the room.
If you want your home to feel fresh and inviting and lively then you need to minimize the clutter that is present. Of course, clutter is inevitable for any home, but in an old home where every inch of space is critical, you need to mitigate it as much as you can.
Moreover, get creative with your storage. For example, use special footrests that can store small items inside. You may use wicker baskets (if they match your aesthetic), and you may want to install stylish bookcases and shelves on the wall to help clear space on the floor.
Repaint the Walls of Your Home
If your old home is feeling too dark or restrictive, it could be because of the walls and the color schemes you are using. If you have old wallpaper, you should remove it. You can replace it with modern-looking wallpaper, or you can give the wall a fresh coat of paint.
Sometimes, your walls can appear faded. This happens with time. Additionally, chips and cracks may appear in the paint. These chips and cracks can make the inside of your home seem run down and uninviting. However, by repainting the walls of your home, you will breathe new life into them and make your home feel modern.
- Avoid dark colors. Dark colors will not help your old home be more modern. Instead, they will make your house feel like a cave. Moreover, you do not want to use all white all over your house, either. This will make your home feel lifeless. Instead, you want to use bright colors that are somewhere in the middle.
- Use neutral wallpaper. If you want wallpaper, go for light, neutral wallpaper. Wallpaper should not be overly complex in its design. You want something minimal while also bringing life to the room in which it is hung. Neutral colors go a long way when it comes to new wallpaper.
- Hang artwork on the walls. Once your wall is repainted, consider hanging artwork you enjoy on them. Nicely placed artwork (or photographs) can make any room feel modern.
- Use the space on the walls wisely. The walls can create a beautiful atmosphere in any home if it is utilized wisely. You can install shelves on the wall, use simple decorations, or hang a nice, modern clock on the wall.
You do not want your home to feel like a box closing in. Repainting your walls with a nice, neutral (but bright) color scheme can make it come to life. You can stretch the same aesthetic across different rooms, or you can style each room differently. Either way, the inside of your home will be modernized.
Update the Lighting in Your Home
The light in your old home is probably not evenly distributed in each room. You probably have simple lighting fixtures like a set of lights beneath a ceiling fan. Moreover, you may only have a few lamps spread out here and there.
Lighting can make a huge difference in modernizing your home. Lighting can make a room go from uninviting to cozy really quickly. So, what should you do when you want to update the lighting in your home?
- A chandelier does not have to be a massive lighting fixture that costs thousands and thousands of dollars. You can have a simple one installed over your kitchen table, which will bring an air of elegance to your home.
- Modern lamps. Replace your old, outdated lamps with fresh, modern ones. These will look aesthetically pleasing and will give off the right amount of light in different areas of the house.
- Rustic lighting features. Rustic lighting features, like a hanging lantern, are popular in contemporary homes, so using rustic lighting features can actually modernize your home. You can change the glass coverings of the lights in your bathroom to be more rustic, for example.
- LED lights. LED lights are very popular, and they can bring a warm atmosphere to your home. Moreover, they will evenly distribute the light they give. You can place them practically anywhere.
When deciding how and where you would like to update your lighting, consider the rooms that need more light and the rooms that could use new lighting.
About Element Home Remodeling East Bay
Element Home Remodeling East Bay is an Oakland based home remodeling contractor serving the entire Bay Area. We specialize in modern, fresh designs and can transform your space into the home you’ve been dreaming of. Contact us today to schedule a free consult.
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