A full home remodel can take four to eight months. Remodeling just your living room, then, should take far less time than that.
However, that’s not always the case. If you plan to renovate your living room poorly, the entire project can take far longer than you expect. The same can happen if you make many of the common mistakes.
If you want this kind of home improvement project to go smoothly, read on. You’ll learn eight useful living room remodeling tips.
1. Make a Budget and Stick to It
It’ll be tough to enjoy a living room that ruins your finances. Unfortunately, spending can get out of hand real quick with any home improvement project. You can focus on getting all the pretty details right and forget how much you’re spending.
Having a set plan ahead of time can help you avoid this dilemma. However, you may want to change it halfway through or so. If so, you can use your budget to keep yourself from going overboard.
To set your budget, check what you expect to make and spend in the upcoming months. Set aside some of your finances for any unexpected emergencies. Then use the rest of that amount for your living room remodel.
2. Research DIY Renovation Projects Ahead of Time
There are some renovation projects that amateurs shouldn’t DIY. Things such as rewiring your electrical system or taking out support beams can be dangerous. These should be handled by a professional.
Of course, you won’t know that if you don’t research how to perform certain projects ahead of time. Doing so won’t just help you learn how to perform certain tasks. It can also help you realize that some renovation tasks are too complex for you to handle.
You can then decide to hire professionals or relegate yourself to a less complicated renovation. Don’t feel bad if you have to take the latter option. Even simple changes can make your living room look great.
3. Don’t Let It Interrupt Your Life
It’s easier than you think for a renovation to completely overtake your life. Since the project is happening inside your home, you’ll likely be reminded of it every time you wake up. This can set you up for a full day of thoughts of power tools rather than work.
This can be dangerous. You shouldn’t want a renovation project to be the reason why you lose your job. You need to force yourself to only think and work on your project at certain times.
For example, you can work on the living room only after you’ve finished work for the day. Doing so at this time also gives you the benefit of not getting interrupted at your task. This will allow you to be more productive.
4. Consider How You’ll Use the Room
Don’t just base your renovation plans on what will look great. Think practically as well. After all, a living room should also be a comfortable place to spend time in.
Who is going to spend a lot of time in the room? If you have kids and/or senior parents, you should ensure that there isn’t anything dangerous to them in the room. For example, you may want to brick up the fireplace or get a safer electric one.
You should also consider how many people will regularly be in your living room. You may want to make it bigger if you’re planning on having lots of big parties in the future.
5. Use Color Theory to Plan Colors
Color theory is basically like color science. It’s a set of observations regarding the relationships that colors have with each other. These can be a big help when you’re deciding on what colors would work best for your living room.
For example, you can use complementary colors in your living room color scheme. These are pairs of colors that strengthen the power of each other. Examples include orange/blue, purple/yellow, red/green, and many more shades and tints in between.
6. Look Up Reviews of Products
People who are rushing to get their renovation project often commit this mistake. They need to order something online to complete their dream look. However, in their rush, they’ll forget to check and make sure the project is of high quality.
They may either get stuck with the item or have to go through the inconvenience of returning it. That’s a bad position to be in when you’re so close to being done. Therefore, you need to take the time to check the reviews on products.
7. Get Opinions From the Whole Household
Remember that everyone in the household will use the living room. If there’s an aspect of it that they don’t like, they could get upset. This could lead to unwanted tension between household members and maybe even fights.
Make sure that the whole household has at least some say in the living room renovation. At the very least, try to hold votes with everyone present. This way, all household members will feel that they haven’t been left out.
8. Be Flexible With All Renovation Aspects
Things happen! You might have an unexpected situation that eats away at your time and/or money. The paint color that you desperately want to use can go out of stock at the last minute.
Be sure to prepare yourself emotionally for the strong possibility that something can go very wrong. When these things happen, all that you can do is stay calm and adjust your plan accordingly.
We’ll Renovate Your Living Room in Mount Pleasant, SC
Yes, following these tips may take some effort. However, the task of renovating your living room is not something to take lightly. As you’ll likely have the same living room for years, you’ll want to make sure that you like it.
Also, if you want to renovate your living room in Mount Pleasant, SC, consider our services. We offer high-quality renovations that are rewarding and inspiring. Contact us now to schedule a free onsite consultation.
