Four Simple Ways To Refresh and Update Your Home

 

Screen Shot 2014-01-06 at 7.11.48 PM

With smoke pouring from the inside of the wall the electrician explained his procedure for rewiring the house and asked, “What color of socket colors would you like?” After listening to the choices I said, “Let’s go with antique white.” “Good,” said one of the kids standing near me, “anything but beige!” “Um, antique white is beige,” the repairman explained. The heartfelt sigh I heard made me realize I was in a decorating rut. If you are in a decorating rut too, here are four tips to help you break out without breaking the bank.

1. Paint. While I am a fan of antique white, adding a new color to the wall can give the room a completely different character. My sunny yellow bedroom feels light and airy no matter what season of the year it is.

2. Reduce clutter. Get rid of things you no longer want or need and remove extra items from countertops. Dump those papers you’ve saved for ten years. You’ll be amazed at the amount of space available. This happens often with my kitchen countertops. I remove clutter and think, “Wow! I have room to cook again!”

3. Choosing a new piece of furniture is a great way to bring a room up to the modern era. Can’t decide which color to choose? Find color inspiration from a favorite wall color or painting. Tip: When shopping for the living room, don’t overstuff the room; plan for ample walking room between furniture pieces. If you want to forget the pricey interior designer, Sears’ Furniture Collection can help turn your living room from drab to style magazine-worthy in no time. From traditional to modern, Sears’ furniture collection has something for everyone. You have the option to mix and match pieces from each collection to suit your taste or shop the entire collection for a matching look. Plus you can upgrade your room in small payments using FREE Sears Layaway (no service fee) through March 24th. This offer is valid on new Layaway contracts only.

4. Tie the room together with matching pillows, a rug and other accessories. Updating throw pillows to ones with a color that pops can add drama to a room, although if you have children you might already have enough drama. In that case, think of it as “enlivening your space” or “freshening up your décor.”

Try these tips and your friends just might be begging for you designer’s phone number!

58 Comments

  1. great tips. sometimes the smallest change can make such a big impact!

  2. Thank you so much for the ways to refresh and update your home.

  3. I would love to give my house a fresh coat of paint. Some new furniture would be good too!

  4. With the new year it is time for a new look in the living room. I like your tip #1 it is time to paint the living room and reduce a little of the clutter. Thanks for sharing this great post.

  5. Decluttering and painting are great way to refresh and update! Thanks for the great tips

  6. I think reducing clutter is a great way to freshen any home. I recently got rid of a lot of clutter on my kitchen table and it looks fabulous! I added a nice wisteria centerpiece and even added lights to it. Such a BIG difference.

  7. Painting and reducing the clutter really does help when updating my living room. I will be doing this soon!

  8. WELL I WILL BE DOWNSIZING DUE TO RETIREMENT & THEY KID WILL BE TAKING OVER THE BIG HOUSE. IT IS FILLED TO THE BRIM WHICH SHE BLAMES ALL ON ME WILL I TAKE HER TO THE ROOMS & SHOW HER WHAT IS HERS (ALOT) & WHAT BELONGED TO HER GRANDPARENTS GREAT GRANDMOTHER, AUNT, & GREAT AUNTS & GREAT GREAT AUNTS. SO ITS NOT ALL MINE. DUE TO AN ILLNESS I HAVE BE ORDERED TO REST ALOT. I KNOW THERE IS ALOT THAT NEDDS TO BE THROWN OUT & I KNOW I HAVE TO GET TO IT. THE MINDSET AFTER SO SOON AFTER LOSING A LOVED ONE IS NOT EASY. ITSS HARD TO EVEN DO THE LAUNDRY. BUT I WILL FILL THOSE TRASH BAGS.

  9. These are some great ways to refresh and brighten up the home. Sometimes you just need a new look and a good ambiance.

  10. Those are some great ways to refresh a room. I need to apply some of your tips to a few rooms in my house. We need some changes.

  11. You make some really valid points – I really think one central thing being changed up with a few accents can make a huge impact.

  12. we have been trying to decorate our family room-we have had 3 rugs so far! when we do the living room I am totally going to check out the sears collection-sounds right up my alley!

  13. Wonderful tips! It’s amazing what a fresh coat of paint can do. I’ve only been in my new home for five years and want to change the paint color and furniture (hee-hee). Since that won’t be happening, maybe I’ll have to switch out my neutral pillows and throws for bright colored ones to change the look of the rooms.

  14. I do love a freshly painted house, it does make it look new again. It is lot of work, but well worth it after so many years. Getting rid of clutter makes me happy too.

  15. These are great tips for people who are trying to redecorate and make a beautiful home.

  16. Great tips, thank you! I am really craving a fresh new coat of paint for our walls.

  17. I love Sears. I definitely need to update my home. Thanks for the info.

  18. I think clearing up clutter can make such a big difference in how a room looks. I love to shop at Sears for my furniture. They have such great things.

  19. lol to the comment about extra drama. My current furniture was sized beautifully for my last house but in this cracker jack box, it’s dwarfing everything. I need to shop there!

  20. Pam these are really great ideas. I love home decor but sometimes I just don’t know where to start. Thanks for sharing!

  21. I like the traditional look most.

  22. Reduce clutter! YES! That makes the biggest difference…now if I could just figure out how to do it!

  23. I love the transitional but I think my husband would go for the modern one. Our dining room’s wall paint is yellow, my favorite color to see in the house.

  24. I am more of the type that looks for durability and functionality – with 5 kids things get destryoed! I personally like modern!

  25. It has been a long time since I have been in a Sears stores. The last time was for a freezer. What great furniture! I need to go back and look at Sears.

  26. Between paper and clutter (and the paper Baby swats onto the floor) I sometimes feel like I will never quite have it under control–I really just have to get some large garbage bags and get to it.

  27. Painting is easy until you have those 12 foot ceilings, I would love to paint some of our rooms to freshen things up and give it a new look but we would have to pay people. I will try some of the other suggestions.

  28. Love the tips. We are actually thinking of repainting but we can’t decide on a color. Painting is really an easy way to refresh. 🙂

  29. Great tips! Adding some colorful pillows is an inexpensive way to change up a room.

  30. these are great tips for refreshing your home

  31. I need to work on reducing clutter in my living room. I have so many nic nacs.

  32. Thanks for sharing useful tips! I really like their Modern Furniture Collection!

  33. I really need to reduce clutter 🙁 I’m awful I try and get it sorted then more comes to take its place 🙁 x

  34. Great tips! We really need some new living room furniture!

  35. super ideas, pam. seems like so many of us forget to look at the simple ways to update

  36. I love their line, I am a mix between all three, I love them all!! When we are ready for another room makeover I will for sure check them out!

  37. This furniture looks great! I love the traditional line!

  38. Those are surely helpful tips! I like and need the reducing clutter. We have to work on that. Thanks!

  39. I think tying the room together with matching pieces is a must. Especially, the rug. I have found that changing the rug alone, can help transform your living room!

  40. We have also been getting rid of all our clutter. It makes our home feel so tiny! We also could use a fresh coat of paint! Thanks for sharing!

  41. Helene Cohen Bludman

    I also love the look of antique white. It gives a whole new look to a room. I also like the look on furniture. Great tips.

  42. Thank you for the great tips! I must say that all three looks look good to me. But I love the red/dark fucsia color in the middle one. It just is such a beautiful color.

  43. I am in desperate need of new couches!! I would love to get some new one’s from Sears! Love their layaway program!

  44. Reducing clutter is my biggest challnge.

  45. I just moved into my new home Jan. 1st and I thought I threw away a lot of clutter but looking around not not so much!

  46. Great tips! I’m a big fan of using colored pain to spruce things up. Unfortuantely, we currently live in a rental house, so painting’s a no-no. Instead, I’ve got some neat wall art going on. 🙂

  47. Good tips on decorating. Painting and accessories can make a room look brand new. I was thinking of getting a new red rug and throw pillows, I might be visiting Sears very soon : )

  48. These are great tips! I seriously need a huge declutter task! With us moving in a few months…it will happen one way or another. But I would rather be motivated and get it done NOW instead right before the move. lol.

  49. These are great tips. We have been working to reduce clutter and it’s making our home much nicer. I like the idea of fresh paint. That would be perfect for our living room.

  50. Good tips and advice. Very useful!

  51. I a currently cleaning out each room….I plan to start my painting in March when I can open windows. Just cleaning out the clutter has made a HUGE difference!

  52. I wish my house was clutter free! With 3 boys, I think I have a ways to go before I can get my house back the way I want it.

  53. I love the tip to reduce clutter. I’m a clutter-free lover. Can you please pass the benefits therein on to my husband? hehehe

  54. I’m working on reducing clutter here. Great suggestions.

  55. we did a big cleaning spree earlier this month felt so good to get things in order

  56. I love the reduce clutter tip! Some peoples homes are like mazes!!

  57. we’ve been working on reducing clutter ALL over the house lately. it’s helping