If you’re anything like most people, the chances are that your guest bedroom is used mostly as a junk room. It’s only when Aunt Ginny announces that she’s coming to spend the week that you realise just how ropey the room is and that it needs a makeover before your guest arrives. Should you find yourself in that situation don’t worry, because by using the tips below you’ll be able to quickly transform your spare room into a hotel grade bedroom for your long lost relative to enjoy.
Clear the room
The first step is to clear the room. Strangely, this task will take the most time, so make sure that you put aside at least a day to get it done. Often, it’s better to do this task at least a week before you plan to start decorating to give yourself a bit of extra time should you need it.
Equip yourself with a roll of bin bags, boxes and a way to label each one. This will stop you from accidentally sending your good bedding sets to the tip because you picked up the wrong bin bag. Be ruthless, throw away what you don’t want, give away what you can and store what you still need in the garage, loft or basement.
Clean the room
Next, give everything a good clean. Doing so will let you see whether you really do need to do any actual decorating.
Refresh the paintwork
If cleaning the room does reveal issues, take a minimalist approach to resolving the issues. For example, only touch up the marks rather than repainting the entire run of skirting or a whole wall.
Use wall stickers instead of wallpaper
Should you decide that re-touching the paintwork is not going to be adequate, consider buying some wall stickers instead of repainting the entire room. They come in a huge range of designs, and don’t cost much. Best of all, they can be put up in under an hour. Provided you buy the right kind, you can easily peel them off once you’ve finished with them.
They’re not expensive, especially if you pick them up in the sales. Often, you can find discount vouchers for wall decals on coupon websites.
Update the bedding
There’s no sense buying a brand new set of bedding for a single bed that only gets used once or twice a year. A better and less expensive approach is to buy a nice throw or bedspread instead. This will quickly give the bed a fresh new look.
Add some rugs
If the floor looks shoddy, consider using some rugs rather than going to all of the expense and hassle of laying new flooring. They don’t cost much, and are usually the quickest and easiest option. Just be careful not to create a trip hazard.
Put in a new light bulb
Sometimes, even after you have done all of this, the room can still appear to be a bit dark and dingy. Usually, you can resolve this by taking the light fixture down, giving it a thorough clean and putting in a brighter bulb. Also, try tying back the curtains so that more natural light can enter the room.
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