There’s probably at least one thing in your home you would like to change. Maybe it’s a whole room remodel or a new coffee table. Whatever it is, I know it is not always in the budget to just run out and make the changes you’d love to make. But I wanted to share with you some minor changes I’ve made in our home that I think have and can make a big impact.
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Door Hardware
This often overlooked or forgotten detail can really date a room or not match the style you prefer. If you have a lot of doors in your home you can do like we did and buy 2-3 or 3-4 at a time when you find them on sale or have the money you want to spend on them. I LOVE the Emtek Satin Brass knobs, but alas with over 17 doors in our house I couldn’t spend $118/knob 😳 . BUT I found a very good dupe by Schlage at 30% of the price! YAY!
I think we still have 3 doors left to replace and then our whole house will have all the same knobs. The funny thing is, when we moved in some of the knobs were shiny brass and some were nickel🤪. Bizarre!
You will be surprised how much better it will look just to switch out door knobs. Seriously! Try it! It is also super easy to do yourself. I did ours upstairs and it literally took me all of 5-6 minutes.
Paint, paint, paint!!!
I probably should’ve listed this first, but oh my heavens I can’t express enough how much paint can transform ANYTHING. Walls, ceilings, doors, furniture, vanities. You KNOW I love me some paint!
If you aren’t sure how to pick colors for a wall or aren’t brave enough to do it yet, start with a door. Here is the before and after of the inside of our front door. Look how much more luxurious and dreamy that space looks with a touch of color!
In our boy’s bathroom makeover, I decided to go bold and bright with a vivid Kelly green on their vanity. I couldn’t love it more. Before it was just white and had a little blah factor. Now it has a wow! factor.
As for walls or whole rooms, I am currently writing a whole post on how to pick paint colors and will come back and link it here once I have it completed. But for now, I’ll say honestly white is a great starting point for anyone because it is clean, crisp and fresh and will go with anything in the way of furniture, design, woods, etc. You can’t wrong with white. It brightens up a room and is light and airy. I honestly want to paint all my light gray walls white, as the gray is feeling a bit cold. White is warm and some whites are warmer than others (more on that in my post too).
Cabinet and Drawer Pulls / Knobs
Much like the door hardware, replacing those dated cabinet knobs or pulls can really elevate the look. It can be as easy as a little nightstand or side table, it doesn’t have to be your entire kitchen if you aren’t ready for that.
PRO TIP: I have found the most inexpensive and best choices for knobs and pulls on Amazon!
Here is an example using paint and hardware changes to the nightstands in our guest room. I love how these turned out.
Plants!
Ok, now hear me out. I know not everyone loves having plants in their home. I never really thought about it or cared in our last home. When we moved in here I knew with all the window light we had that not only would having plants add to the decor, but also liven up the space. Plants bring in nature, provide oxygen and also are natural air purifiers. Which is awesome.
I’ll openly admit I would kill any plant I touched before we moved into this house. So I dedicated myself to reading and finding out which plants did best in which windows, with pets, beginners, etc. I quickly found that the ZZ Plant and the Snake Plant are the absolute easiest to care for, as they can go without water for weeks. Sometimes even a month. They also don’t need much light, so if you are short on that they are a good bet! I do know both plants are not pet friendly if your pet eats or chews on your plants. Luckily our dog is oblivious to our plants and could care less so I am fine with having several around the house.
Some great beginner plants that are pet and kid friendly/safe are:
- African Violet
- Christmas Cactus
- Boston Fern
- Spider Plant
- Peperomia
- Prayer Plant
So sum up small ways to make a big impact in your home:
Replace your door hardware. Even if it is one door at a time.
Paint. Enough said.
Replace cabinet door knobs and/or pulls.
Add plants and LIFE to your home! Try one plant at a time to learn how to care for them if you’re a beginner. You’ll be surprised how quickly you can become a green thumb!
I hope some of these ideas got the hamster on the wheel to help you add a few small touches to your space to make a big impact!
