by KAREN COOPER
Who doesn’t love the hopefulness of spring? After a long, gray, lonely winter (especially this one), who among us isn’t ready to get out in the sunshine and make our living space more beautiful…inside and out! If your home and surroundings need a little sprucing up, there’s no time like the present to embark on a new project!
These budget-conscious ideas will have you admiring and enjoying your space for years to come. From funky garden planters and inexpensive outdoor furniture makeovers, to refreshed walls and cabinets inside, there are plenty of ways to improve your surroundings without spending a fortune.
- Find unconventional items around your house to use as garden planters—an old box spring, a wheelbarrow, a bass drum, crates, shelves, and pallets…all make wonderfully inventive planters and great conversation pieces! Design your vegetable, fruit, and herb garden using these inventive pieces.
- Make wire cloche covers to protect your vegetables/fruits or other plants from pests—use chicken wire or wood covered in chicken wire to make cloche covers that will keep the pests out! There are great DIY videos online showing a variety of designs and how to make them.
- Make window planters—you can really get creative with these! They can be as simple as a plain wooden box or one fashioned out of old pallets; you can buy an inexpensive vinyl box ready to install, or adorn your boxes with ornamental iron features you love. Paint your boxes whatever color you choose, then pick out beautiful plants and blooming flowers that make you happy to look at each time you drive up the driveway.
- Change the hardware on your kitchen or bathroom cabinets; change out handles and knobs, and while you’re at it…change towel racks and even lighting fixtures. You can get great vintage fixtures online or at antique markets, or find brand new ones anywhere they sell home goods. There are so many varieties to suit your taste! What a difference a small change can make!
- Add peel-and-stick wallpaper to an accent wall or an entire room—anything you can dream up can be found in a peel-and-stick wallpaper these days. Bring the outside in with a forest scene, an English meadow, a tropical beach panorama, a night sky, or even go to the moon! Go anywhere you want to be! Create something amazing without breaking the bank.
- Find “new to you” deck or patio furniture on Facebook Marketplace or Craigslist for a steal! Look for a giant umbrella to create comfortable shade and relax with friends over a lazy summer al fresco
- Paint your front door a color you love—make your house POP! What color would you choose? Red? Yellow? Orange? Blue? Imagine the possibilities!
- Incorporate old bricks and stones into your garden or backyard. Create a garden pathway, a small patio, a fire pit, or a place to set your café table and chairs. Wherever you need a hard surface or a focal point, use bricks or stones to make a fine-looking statement.
- Install a birdbath and bird feeder. It doesn’t have to be your standard-fare birdbath. You can get creative and make it match your decorating personality! Anything that holds water can be a birdbath…a pile of stones with a terra cotta saucer or galvanized pan, stacked bricks with a shallow bowl or pan on top, a hanging birdbath with any shallow thing that holds water.
- Tiny lights—across the yard, deck, patio, anywhere you want to make a magical atmosphere….string up tiny lights. There are so many varieties now to help you make your space beautiful.
Whatever you choose to do, enjoy your time spent making your surroundings beautiful! Then invite your favorite people to enjoy them with you.
