Home renovations often require a large budget, a trusted contactor or some wicked good DIY skills and wherewithal, all with a few miles worth of patience to achieve the results we’re after. However, it’s those very small yet meaningful design choices that breathe new life into a space and make it more functional and beautiful. If you’re looking to do a few upgrades before the holiday season kicks in, you’re in luck. I’m sharing 10 upgrades that you can make to your home that are high impact and cost less than $100.
10 Impactful Home Upgrades That Cost Less Than $100
1. Update your bathroom by painting the grout. This is a project that I had wanted done before the rush of the holiday season. We entertain a lot during the holidays, and I wanted our half bath to get a refresh.
I started by painting the baseboards black to help make the floor pop and to cover up unwanted scuffs. I used leftover paint from this project, which was a win.
The original grout was white at first, and then in time it turned a dingy color, as expected. No need to regrout the floor when a grout pen works serious magic. Following the fundamentals of coloring by staying in the lines, it’s really one stroke of the pen. It’s like you’re tracing tiles. I wore knee pads to protect the rickety caps and started “coloring.” I got pretty into it and ended up finding the project weirdly fun with only a tad of tedious.
2. Add a wooden toilet seat for high impact. If your bathroom has a basic run-of-the-mill toilet, then give it a lift with a wooden seat. It’s a great way to get that high impact look on a budget. There’s a lot of wooden toilet seats on the market, and the price range varies. The one I used here in our half bath was very affordable, and well under my $100 budget. Simply by changing out the toilet seat is a great interior designers tip for high end looks on a budget.
3. Install a DIY barn door for privacy. For those rooms that don’t have a door to begin with, but privacy is needed, then build a DIY barn door. Store bought barn doors are over the top expensive, but if you build one yourself, then you’ll only spend a fraction of the cost and it’s custom designed exactly how you want it. Plus, it’s much easier to build one than you think! Here’s the DIY! The barn door hardware is also less than $40!! I’ve sourced the link for you. This is the hardware we have on our DIY barn door. It looks high end and it’s held up beautifully. Great product!
4. Add lights to closets and inside cabinets. This upgrade may not affect the resale value of your home, but it sure does make a high impact when looking for those lost pots and pans deep in a cabinet, or that slippery rain jacket that slid off the hanger and kicked under some boots. This is a feel good project that creates order, organization and high function.
5. Head to the thrift stores and second hand shops. Thrift stores along with Facebook Marketplace and eBay are my favorite places to shop for lamps. I have a weakness for lamps because they bring amazing design (and necessary light) to a room. I never shy away from the tired and tattered ones either. I found this table lamp in a consignment shop in Winston Salem, NC. The black shade was old and faded. Still, it had a the exact silhouette that I wanted for our dining room, so I sprayed the inside of the shade a metallic gold, and following this amazing DIY to revive the fabric lampshade.
6. Update cabinet hardware. Cabinet hardware can get pretty expensive. However, home stores that carry a larger inventory of cabinet hardware make it easy to find high-end looking hardware that will fit right into your less than $100 budget. This is an impactful home upgrade that often slips through the cracks. Don’t be afraid to shop around because your affordable cabinet hardware is out there waiting to be on display in your kitchen.
7. Ground the room with a rug. It took us years to remodel and update our den which has now become one of my favorite rooms in our home. Of course redesigned on a budget, the tile floor is gorgeous, but it’s the rug that pulls the room together adding warmth and texture. My rule of thumb when buying rugs – if you have younger children or pets, then don’t spend a lot on a rug. I recommend a washable rug and one that you can spot-clean easily.
8. Add trim or molding to your walls. When we moved into the 1820, there was no crown molding in the dining room. It was an interior designers nightmare to begin with, but once we added molding, the room was on the upswing. Three paint colors later and we’ve landed on a beautiful dining room that we love to entertain in. And to think the design started with the addition of crown molding.
9. Install dimmable light switches. This is a room design element that I swear by. Every room in our house has dimmable overhead lights and / or sconces, the bathrooms included. Gotta let those eyes adjust first thing in the morning when taking a shower. Dimming the lights create a mood and ambiance. You can buy LED bulbs that are dimmable and cast a warm light. Absolutely perfect when enjoying a lovely dinner in the dining room.
10. Create a gallery wall. I haven’t met a gallery wall I didn’t like. And the best part about creating one is that you can shop your house and gather up artwork big and small to group together on one wall. Along with flea markets and thrift stores, online free images framed in a readymade frames make for gorgeous and very affordable works of art. Gallery walls are created over time, collecting a picture or even a beautiful postcard that you come across. I’ve lost count at how many postcards I’ve fallen in love with, placed in frames and hung on our walls. Here are some great tips when creating and hanging a gallery wall!
These are my top 10 impactful home upgrades that cost less than $100. And as I mentioned earlier, if you plan on entertaining this holiday season and want to spruce things up and keeping your budget under $100, then follow these quick and easy steps to upgrade the rooms in your home.
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Missy says
Rugs and dimmable lights are my favorite upgrades! Thanks for the other great ideas!