HOME renovations don't have to cost an arm and leg, but even if you're willing to drop the cash on a fancy new kitchen, there are some clever ways to make it work financially.
Just ask Natalie from Poulton Le Fylde, who spent four years saving for her dream kitchen and finally swapped out her dingy space for a bright and dreamy pink room.
The 30-year-old shares her beautiful pink home on Instagram @thepinkterrace, where she documents ‘the never-ending renovation’ of her North West victorian terrace.
Her old space has nowhere to eat as a family so she was desperate for an upgrade.
"We saved up for 4 years to be able to get it done exactly how we wanted it. In order to save, we cut down on our spending massively, we were having to fork out a lot of money for childcare, but this was a priority, so we had to get clever with saving in other areas of our lives," Natalie told UK Radiators.
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Firstly, the mum said they became "more frugal" with their supermarket shops by choosing "more budget supermarkets or shopping local."
The family also skimmed on holidays and set smaller budgets on Christmas and birthday presents which Natalie said "really helped us save".
These small changes allowed Natalie to make a start on her dream kitchen but the cost-cutting methods continued even throughout the renovation.
“We were able to save money by doing as much work as possible ourselves. My dad is a joiner so he fitted the kitchen for us and my husband is an electrician so he was able to rewire everything. He also taught himself how to tile so we could save money there too!” she explained.
“I got stuck in ripping the kitchen out which was quite fun and I also did most of the painting myself.”
“We made the foliage wall ourselves, I’d seen really expensive ones online for about £280 but found some foliage from IKEA and was able to create a similar look for around £90!”
What's more, the thrifty mum is "always on the lookout for bargains and will wait to buy something until there is a promotion or voucher code."
With this in mind, she was able to save 40% on her radiator, which was about £250,by ordering direct from the supplier rather than through the plumbers.
"Then we saved a further £400 by using leftover wood to build the side table ourselves,” she added.
Despite being savvy with her build, Natalie said they "did have lots of unexpected issues along the way" which hiked the overall spend up to £9,000 thanks to a series of leaks.
Natalie’s top tips for renovating on a budget are to "spend some time living in your home before you decide how you want to decorate it".
She said: "We’ve ended up decorating rooms twice because we had rushed it the first time around!"
And added: "If you can do any of the work yourself then definitely give it a go! If it’s unskilled work like ripping out stuff or stripping wallpaper, it can really save on labour costs!"
Elsewhere, this woman turned her rental property into a multicoloured pad on the cheap.
For more renovation stories, woman totally transforms her outdated kitchen in just ONE DAY – and people can’t tell it’s the same room.
Plus, one savvy DIY fan saves £800 by transforming bathroom herself with eBay bargains & YouTube tutorials – and it looks amazing.
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