Have you found yourself indoors more this time of year? It’s natural to bundle up and try to stay warm during the snowstorms and low temperatures of wintertime. But that does give us a lot of time indoors.
If you’re looking for something to do to put your time to good use and avoid the winter blues, you can try some do-it-yourself home improvement projects. You’ll feel accomplished and improve your space at the same time.
So before you kick your typical spring cleaning into gear, check out these six ways you can improve your home during the remaining weeks of winter.
Repaint Your Home Interior
Let’s start with the biggest project first: repainting your interior. You’ll have to move furniture and take down anything you’ve got hanging on the walls, so it’s a great DIY project to kick off your winter home improvements. You’ll get to tidy up and refresh your home.
Pick a room that needs a fresh color scheme and reinvent it. A fresh coat of paint in a different color can make your room feel like a whole new space. You can also try adding in an accent wall, which is one wall in the room that’s painted a different but complementary color to the others.
Upgrade Your Furniture
As you settle on new color schemes and plan each room you’re working on, it’s also worth considering new furniture. Winter can be a great time to take advantage of specials that stores run to keep their sales steady after the peak holiday season.
If you’re planning to redecorate your home interior and bring in some new furniture, be sure to shop for the paint and new pieces together to avoid any color clashes.
Enhance Your Light Fixtures
Shorter days and cloudy skies can make your home darker during winter. A great DIY area to explore is upgrading your light fixtures. You can certainly buy more modern ceiling light pieces, but there are other ways to light up your space too.
You can add string lights or bring in a lamp to add more light to your rooms, enhancing your decor in tandem. If you’re feeling crafty, you could even create your own homemade lamp from a unique wine or liquor bottle.
Organize Your Kitchen, Garage, and Closets
You might read organizing and think, “I’m already planning to do that in the spring.” But when we suggest organizing your kitchen, garage, and closets here, we don’t mean just cleaning up and tossing out things you no longer need.
In addition to tidying, you can upgrade your storage altogether. Put some thought into how you can improve your shelving, cabinetry, and storage bins. Also consider adding labels as part of your organization. This will help you quickly find things you commonly need or frequently find yourself searching for. More importantly, it will help prevent any confusion over where your favorite spice or screwdriver was put back by someone else in the household if they know exactly where it should go.
Freshen Up Your Bathrooms
Whether it’s during the wintertime or any other time of the year, most of us spend a lot of time in the bathroom getting ready each day. You probably have a short list of bathroom improvements you’d love to have if you could. Winter can be your time to make them happen!
You can add in new some new storage, upgrade an old faucet, or install a new vanity mirror. You might typically think of hiring a contractor for bathroom improvements, but new products geared at self-installation and the ever-growing online DIY community can make these tasks doable winter projects to tackle on your own.
Upgrade to a Smart Thermostat
Our final suggestion for your winter DIY project list is one that can save you money during the cold months as well: installing a smart thermostat. There are lots of options to choose from, and many of these products are engineered to be easy to install on your own.
Some smart thermostats can even utilize artificial intelligence (AI) to learn your heating and cooling habits and preferences. They can take into account the time you’ll be out of the home and when you’ll be back to ensure you’ll arrive back to a comfortable temperature while also maximizing your energy efficiency.
Now you’ve got a list of ideas to keep you busy with DIY home improvements during those cold, winter days. If these ideas have inspired you to tackle even bigger construction or renovation projects, we recommend connecting with our expert loan officers. They can help you explore financing for your next remodeling project, helping turn your current house into your dream home.
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