Do you feel like the federal government, struggling to do more with less? We've found four spring makeovers for your home that are easy and won't leave you drowning in red ink.
Virtual design
Your choices when it comes to room planning: Lug furniture around till your back aches or do it virtually. Sweet Home 3D, a free download at sweethome3d.com, wins hands down.
Use the nifty application to replicate the dimensions of your room, add and move furniture that's the same size as yours, change windows and doors and accessorize with everything from lamps to artwork. There are also links to flooring, wallpaper, staircases and other images you can import into your digital room.
As the name promises, Sweet Home 3D creates a 3-D-like image on your computer screen. It also lets you take an aerial view of your plan or make a ground-level "virtual visit."
Other cool things to do with the app: Adjust the illumination level of your room by adding lights or changing the (virtual) time of day; create a video that lets you walk through your virtual living room, kitchen or other space -- a great way to get a sense of how a room or even an entire house will flow.
It takes some practice to use the application efficiently and there is a difference between the virtual and real results. But it beats moving that piano five times to get it right.
Pretty as a picture
With a database of more than 365,000 photos of design projects, Houzz could be overwhelming if you are trying to pick other people's brains for great ideas. Fortunately, the free website (houzz.com) organizes the cornucopia into styles (Asian, traditional, eclectic) and space (kitchen, home office, wine cellar).
A navigation tool lets you pick, say, a modern living room. Photos, many with descriptive text, will then scroll across your screen. Save the ones you like to the site's Ideabook and pretty soon you've got an inventory you can draw on to create your design.
Use the discussion section to pose questions to the folks who posted the photos or to simply comment on what you see.
There are also photos of fireplaces, lighting, green design and more, plus a product section with purchase information (it's an American site so you could have trouble finding some items).
Alert: You could fritter away months cruising other people's ideas instead of revamping your home. Approach the site with a sense of purpose and a stopwatch.
Thrifty spirit lifters
Spring makeovers are all about lifting your spirits and filling your senses, according to interior designer Susan Phillips. Big on Phillips' list of makeover essentials: Keeping the cost low
"Go for the high-low effect," she says. "Spend money on a few key items and then dress it all up with inexpensive stuff."
She recently freshened up her own home by shopping at HomeSense for a bright, fuchsia orchid ("It's artificial, but it looks great") for $16.99 and a couple of matching cushions ($24.99 each), a trio of huge, decorative green apples ($6.99 each) and a fluffy pea-green throw ($34.99).
Stores like HomeSense, Bouclair Home and Home Outfitters are perfect for inexpensive baskets, artwork and decorative glass balls, she says.
"Don't overlook Value Village -- there's stuff that you can repurpose." One of her favourite finds: a $5 lamp she transformed by painting the base black and the inside of the shade gold so it casts a warm glow when it's turned on.
Let there be light
They don't throw as much light as a professionally installed, 120-volt lighting system, but inexpensive DIY low-voltage kits do a decent job of brightening pathways and setting a warm mood.
The systems consist of a small transformer that's plugged into an outdoor receptacle, low-voltage wiring that can be laid on top of the ground or buried a couple of centimetres or so, and the lights. Because the system is only 12 volts, the current is harmless. You can also move the lights around easily.
Be sure to read instructions carefully. Transformers and wire are sized to the number of lights and the length of the wire; changing either one will likely require a more powerful transformer or heavier-gauge wire.
A Hampton Bay four-spotlight kit costs $72.99 at Home Depot. It includes cast aluminum lights with tilt heads and halogen bulbs, 30 metres of landscape wire and a transformer with timer. Home Depot also carries a combination flood/path light kit at $99.99. It includes eight LED lights, but only 15 metres of wire.
-- Postmedia News
