Transform your home from ordinary to amazing with start-to-finish renovation and decoration advice. Here you can find numerous tips on remodeling your home starting from budgeting and planning to finding a contractor for any of your projects, such as kitchens, cabinets, bathrooms, windows, closet organization, heating and security systems. Click any article or category for helpful renovation tips from In Renters.
Home Renovation Basics
For so many people, the life's biggest single investment is their home. Property holder spend millions of dollars every twelve months repairing, upgrading, remodelling and making additions of one sort or another. The money that they spend on renovations on an annual basis is perhaps equal to that spent on new home construction every year.
Renovations can be costly equally financially and emotionally and normally take months to complete. The turmoil of your daily life and routine can take its toll. In the end, during the renovation process the desire and pressure to complete can lead to costly and very long lasting mistakes. Most major renovations are a single event that happens once in a lifetime, and should be given due care and consideration and skilled planning before, during and after the actual work.
We suggest that you choose a contractor that can steer you through the process from the initial concept to completion on time and on budget, which will give you confidence and peace of mind, and will minimize the inconvenience and family stress, and maximize your renovation experience.
The most common renovations that add value and pleasure are as follows:
• Kitchen Renovation
• Windows and Doors Replacement
• Flooring Upgrading
• An Addition to your Home
• Roof Upgrading or Replacement
• Bathroom Renovation
• Addition of a Fireplace
There are numerous incentives for considering a renovation, whether small or large, such as the thought of comfort or if you need for more space, or if you are staging your home for sale. These renovations, hopefully, will make your home eye-catching, safer, increase its market value, but can also make the your home more energy efficient and more cheaper to run.
Here are the five steps we believe you should consider when planning a renovation, regardless of its size, that will give you the confidence that your job is and will be completed as planned, and that the results that you first mulled over are realized:
• Careful planning
• Selecting a highly regarded designer and contractor
• Getting a written contract covering the entire process
• Checking and meeting on a regular basis to review the progress of the work.
• Receiving feedback in a timely manner on any concerns to avoid mistakes.
With these tips you should be able to make the most of your investment, both financially and in enjoyment!
Determining your Decoration Plans
Whether you’ve just bought a new house or are planning on renovating/changing a current room, you can use the same tools.
But, first you must ask yourself the following questions:
Who will be primarily using the space?
• Is It Yourself or Significant Other
• Your Children
• Or Your Visitors/Relatives
What is the feeling you want the space to convey?
• Should It be Casual or Formal
• May be, Cozy or Spacious
• Should It have Warm or Cool Colour Scheme
When exactly will the space be occupied?
• In the Morning, Afternoon, or Evening
• Any Lighting Concerns/Exposures
• Or, Weekends and Holidays
Where is the room located?
• Is It on a Main, Upper, or Basement Level
• Is It An Addition or Existing Area
• Any Structural Changes (Floor Plan)
And, Finally, Why am I doing this?
• Upgrading
• New Members of the Family
• Or, May be, Lifestyle Change
Of course, one of the most important questions is your budget and time constraints. How much are prepared to spend? How much will you actually spend? How much can you afford to spend? When do you need it to be completed: this week, month, or year? If you make a plan first, then you will save yourself the time and money in the long run.
When you are ready to hire a painter/contractor/decorator, always get as a minimum three quotes and referrals on your project. Talk to your friends and family to see if they have had personal experience with a professional. There will, most likely, be a difference in prices offered, this is when you need to do your homework and, to some extent, follow your instincts. You have to remember that these people will be spending anywhere from a couple of hours to many months in your home, so you must feel that you can trust them with your property. Finally, confirm that they have the proper insurance and coverage.
Once you have answered all of the questions you now know in which direction to go. Having a plan in place will make it possible to get rid of the overwhelming number of choices facing you at the beginning of your project.
Choosing Color Schemes
The color scheme that you choose for a room has the ability to generate the mood of the people that enter the space. Psychologists think that color can encourage people to action, summon memories from the past, promote intellectual thought, or even calm the human spirit.
When you prepare to select paint colors for remodelling, consider the effect that the color scheme will have on people in the space. Below are some examples of color and the mood that it inspires.
Sand, shell, coral, pearl or seaweed colors: all neutral colors that can create a sense of peace and well-being, a mood of serenity in human beings. These are excellent colors for walls and furniture, with other shades being used for accent pieces throughout the décor.
Gray, blue, red, burgundy, and cranberry: colors that inspire intellectual thought, security and freedom. Depending on the shades of these colors, they can either be used as one of the major colors in the room, or as accent colors that compliment neutrals.
Bubble gum pink, buttercup, wintergreen, all the berry colors and crayon colors: playful colors that create a mood of excitement in any room. If overdone, they can lead to an exhaustive feeling after a period of time. Used in moderation these colors lead to a mood of movement, activity, playfulness and freedom. 
Red: inspires passion and intimacy. Considered a good color for bedrooms and living rooms.
Yellow: creates joy, relates to sunshine. Yellow should be used in any space that you want to transform from dark and gloomy to bright and cheerful.
Blue: a tranquil and calm color because it is associated with water. Blue is an excellent choice for bedrooms, guest rooms and living rooms.
Green: a natural, peaceful inclusion in decorating. Green can be used in any room because it is welcoming and inviting. Many people opt for green in kitchens, either as a central color or as an accent color because, traditionally, kitchens were used as a gathering place for families and friends.
Orange: orange creates a mood of warmth and seasonal change that brings happiness in the fall season. Orange is a good color to use in living rooms or family rooms for this reason.
Violet: violet is considered the most effective color when creating calm and tranquil moods. Many modern operating rooms will paint their recovery areas in violet for this reason.
