Simple Home Improvement | Family Economics

By Renee

My husband and I purchased our home five days before I gave birth to our now two-and-a-half-year-old son. The first couple of years in our home have flown by, and as we near the third year of occupancy, I think it is about time for me to add my "personal" touch to our home.

We've purchased some furniture and I have art that I've collected over the years, but sadly our walls remain bare, and they are still the same beige that was used by the builder. Granted, the color is pretty nice but it is time for a change.

After all of this time the only room in the house that is completed is my son's nursery. The vibrant colors in his room really brighten up the place and that has given me an idea for the rest of the house.

Although I don't have a lot of money to invest in an interior designer, adding color to the walls is a practical and relatively inexpensive way to enhance my home. In my opinion, springtime is perfect for painting, it isn't too hot and the mild temperatures will also cut down on the fumes.

I will check in hardware stores for paint colors that tickle my fancy and will be sure not to miss perusing the "oops" paint. These are paints that have been pre-mixed and for whatever reason the customer decided against purchasing the paint. Their loss can be my gain because buying cans of "oops" paint is considerably cheaper than having my own paint mixed for me. Of course there is no guarantee that I will find a color that I like, but it is worth looking.

Another way to save money is to do the painting myself. I enlist the help of my friends for painting - one of my closest friends just moved into a new home and we are going to "trade" our painting services with each other. Over the course of the spring we plan on painting several rooms in both of our homes together.

Not only will our homes look beautiful but we will also use this as valuable girlfriend time. This spring certainly means renewal for me, I can't wait until I accomplish my goal of painting the house!