Spruce Up Your Home Without Busting Your Budget

Do-it-yourself tips for summer remodeling projectspaint retailer should have information on the rating."
(ARA) - Ah, summer. Between neighborhood softball"One problem with using a flat paint on interior walls
games and trips to the community pool, it's theis that it doesn't take kindly to scrubbing," he says.
biggest time of the year for moving and home"If you scrub it with a damp cloth, you'll remove the
remodeling.dirt or smudge, but the exposed pigment particles
While many of us turn our thoughts to upgrading ourcan ruin the finish. To avoid this, choose a high
homes, our budgets may already be tapped. Here areperformance paint (not flat), that can stand up to a
some simple do-it-yourself ideas to spruce up yourgood washing."
home, specifically the kitchen and bath, withoutExpand space with drawer organizers.
breaking your budget.Is a small-sized kitchen or bath cramping your style?
Jazz up cabinets with snappy new drawer pulls.Try adding drawer organizers to increase your
One of the simplest ways to add pizzazz to thestorage space. These days, you can find a nice range
kitchen is to install new cabinet hardware, says homeof inexpensive racks and slide-in baskets at discount
improvement expert Don Vandervort of "At yourand hardware stores. Whether you store cleaning
local hardware store you'll find a wide array ofutensils, Grandma's vintage pie pans, or your favorite
drawer pull designs - from painted ceramic or metalbath salts you can create new nooks and crannies
knobs, to whimsical designs shaped like knives andfor all of your stuff, and get the clutter off the
forks. Simply unscrew your existing cupboardcounter.
hardware, replace with the new, and presto, you'veGain a foothold on more attractive flooring.
completed a quick an inexpensive update for yourFlooring makes a huge difference in the appearance
home."of a kitchen or bath. "Oftentimes vinyl flooring is
Pour on the charm: upgrade the faucet.dated and worn," Vandervort says. "But the good
A beautifully designed faucet can change the look ofnews is that you can go ahead and lie new vinyl or
your sink area and the way you feel about yourlaminated wood material right over the old flooring.
drinking water. Simple faucet design lines can make aMany of the items available today give the look of
clean and modern addition to the kitchen orceramic tile or natural wood at a lower cost."
bathroom sink, while some faucet models can evenBrighten it up.
improve the taste of the water coming from the tap.For an easy and inexpensive way to brighten up a
"Not everyone likes the taste of their tap water,"kitchen, install under-the-counter lighting. A small
says Vandervort. "For those who choose thepurchase at the hardware store is all it takes to
filtration route, an attractive, yet practical solution iscompletely change the way the light hits the surfaces
the ClearTap Water Filtering Kitchen or Lavatoryof a room. You can also save energy dollars by
Faucet, made by American Standard. It removeschoosing the right lighting. "Switch from incandescent
contaminants, retains fluoride, and produces clean,light bulbs to highly efficient compact fluorescents,
good tasting water with the turn of a faucet handle."and you'll use about one-quarter to one-third less
Kids climbing the walls? Try scrubbable paint.energy to produce the same amount of light,"
Ketchup, food, scuff marks, mud all these things canVandervort says. Another tip: move natural light
just be wiped clean with some of the newfurther into rooms by bouncing it off the ceiling. A
high-performance paint finishes available today.window located close to the ceiling works for this, as
"Interior paints have a scrubbability rating, establisheddo louvers or operable blinds that can help direct light.
through standardized testing," Vandervort says.Make a tiny bathroom look larger.
"Though this rating may not be posted on the can, a