It’s amazing how something so simple in concept (but so often hard to actually execute well) can actually make a huge improvement in a home. We’re talking about paint. Paint has the magical ability to transform walls, furniture, and anything else to which it is applied. It literally changes the appearance of it and our perception. It has the power to affect our mood also.
Summer is winding down, and kids are preparing to go back to school. Many people (owners and renters alike) were able to use part of their vacation this summer to improve the inside or outside of their home (and in some cases, both) by applying paint.
It’s interesting that one of the first things that is done when some purchases a home (other than new construction) or rents an apartment is that they paint it before moving into it. They want to achieve a fresh, new look before any of their furniture or other possession arrive. Paint is that powerful. It personalizes a place. It covers up any trace of what was there previously. It makes the residence their own and helps to remove any traces of the previous occupants.
One very easy aging in place renovation that people can undertake themselves if they are able, or that they can have done by someone like us, is to have their home or apartment painted. Notice that rentals are included in this also. Paint livens up a place and changes one’s outlook about being in the space. We can experience this in our own homes also.
Fortunately, the exterior of the home doesn’t need to be done or addressed every year, but maybe the trim needed a touch-up or fresh coat of paint applied. Perhaps we or our clients changed our minds about the color of the trim because we (or our clients) found something we or they like better, or another house nearby used the same or a similar color and we or they want a little different look. Possibly some recent repairs have been made or are scheduled for the fascia, soffit, siding, or window trim, and that needs or will need to be painted.
It could be that something was added to the front of the home or repairs were made that suggest new paint be applied – caulking around windows, a new entry door, a new storm or screen door, improvements to the entry porch, and similar types of changes.
If it was a particularly harsh winter or spring, the trim may need to be touched up or painted to seal and weatherproof areas that have suffered from earlier rains, sleet, snow, or ice. The same would be true if it has been an unusually rainy summer that has prevented some of the painting work from getting done.
Then, there is the indoors. This is not affected much by weather conditions and can be done at any time. Whether it’s an accent wall in one room, a bedroom or other specific room in the home, the ceilings only, walls only, or the entire home, paint works wonders in transforming the look of a home and improving our attitude about it.
The method of applying the paint – brushed on, rolled, padded, or sprayed – is not important, but the end result is. Take any room or area of the home, or anyplace on the home exterior (even all of it), and once it’s painted it takes on a new look. Not unlike getting a haircut or new hair style or finding an outfit that we feel really good about wearing, paint does this for our homes and those of our clients. It updates and sets it apart. It makes us notice the homes in a fresh, new, and different way – a better, updated way.
The paint can be just a new application of the existing color to brighten and refresh the area in question, or it can dramatically change the appearance with a bolder or brighter shade of the color that was there. It could a totally new color.
Regardless, of many walls are done or what colors are used, painting is an activity that has so many positive benefits and requires no construction to complete. As such, it is a relatively inexpensive improvement.