The surprising five-step plan to a stylish home for (next to) nothing

Australians love to renovate. Whether it’s spending up big on a kitchen refurbishment or replacing the en suite bathroom, a fresh look and feel to the family home has universal appeal. Analysis from KPMG released a few months ago shows that renovations account for 40 per cent of total residential construction, up from 34.2 per cent in 2018 and 2019.

While some home owners are still splashing out, the cost-of-living crisis has left many hesitant about going into further debt. But that doesn’t mean you can’t create a beautiful, stylish home. Follow these five steps for a place you’ll love coming home to.

Painting your room a nurturing colour can transform the space. Credit: Lisa Cohen/Dulux

Declutter, edit, curate ...

Or whatever you prefer to call it. Often, the first response when you decide to do a style refresh is to hit the shops. Try hitting “pause” instead. Adding more to a space is unlikely to make it feel more sophisticated or welcoming. Instead, interior designer Nic Kaiko says, it is better to remove some of your possessions and focus on a few cherished items.

“If you have heaps of stuff, it can be overwhelming so choose the things you love and give them a bit more space,” he says.

Decluttering your rooms will allow space for cherished objects to shine.Credit: Kaiko Design Interiors

Removing a lot of extraneous objects and even furniture in favour of an artfully arranged collection of coffee table books and a single, beautiful bowl on a coffee table can work wonders. Best of all, it costs nothing. If storage is an issue, sell or give away what you don’t need.

Clean slate

One of the most underrated methods for making your home look more beautiful is to clean it thoroughly. Wash down walls, floors and cabinetry, polish furniture and get into corners. Clean your windows and light fittings and put any dusty glassware through the dishwasher so that it comes out sparkling.

Even if you employ a cleaner, Kaiko says it can be easy to miss the less obvious places.

“People neglect their skirting boards,” he says “It’s something I always notice – whether they have vacuumed their skirting boards. A deep clean is always a good idea.”

Brushing up on paint

Using colour is a personal choice, but repainting your home is one of the simplest ways to take your interiors from glum to glam. Dulux colour expert Andrea Lucena-Orr says most people approach repainting in a piecemeal fashion, focusing on one or two rooms at a time, which is not only easier to manage time-wise, but more affordable.

Painting one room at a time is a manageable, low-cost weekend project. For a contemporary look, go with colours reflected in the natural world.Credit: Lisa Cohen/Dulux

“Working on one or two rooms is how most people do it because you are living in it at the same time,” she says.

For a thoroughly contemporary look, Lucena-Orr says colour drenching, whereby the same colour is used on the walls, ceiling, skirting and trim, is popular. For variation, she says rooms with high ceilings can be painted in two tones above and below picture-rail height.

“If you want to make it feel larger, you do the lighter colour below the picture rail and a stronger colour above,” she says.

Warmer, natural palettes, from olive green to taupe and apricot are all in vogue right now. And if you tire of it in a couple of years, you can pick up the rollers again and start over.

Getting a handle on it

When you think about how many times you open a door or drawer, it’s perhaps not so surprising that they start to show signs of wear and tear. If you’re keen to elevate the look of your spaces, switching handles for the bathroom vanity, bedside table or wardrobe doors is an economical option, Kaiko says.

“Updating those touchpoints in the house like door hardware and cabinetry hardware where you interact with the house physically might be a really nice way to elevate and update your home,” he says. “You can buy door handles from the hardware store, and it’s a really easy thing to do as a DIY exercise.”

Alternatively, your handles might just need some TLC. Take the time to give them a thorough clean and polish to bring out their best.

Plant an idea

For practitioners of feng shui, adding living plants to interiors is a must because of the belief that they bring “positive energy” with them. For Kaiko, they’re an inexpensive, moveable alternative to a piece of furniture or artwork.

“They make a great focal point in any space, and you can fill up dead space,” he says.

If you don’t have much experience with plants, something hardy with glossy leaves, such as Devil’s Ivy, which will grow from a cutting, or the classic peace lily are good starting points. Remember to water them, though – nothing says “shabby” like a dead plant.

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