We can get so used to seeing the walls around us that they kind of disappear. Yet for most of us they are the galleries of our lives. We may not notice them or pay them too much attention, but they are there, glaring at us or sending us signals of drabness and tiredness. These are signals of help! If you have stopped noticing what is around you then it is time to refresh your surroundings. It is time to breathe new life into old walls. It is time for a makeover tonic.
Take down everything that is hanging
It is amazing how we treat the poor old walls. We even hide them behind heavy curtains! We might line them with bookcases or shelves. There’s nothing wrong with that of course, but could we make that storage a little clearer, lighter and more uplifting? Then we bang, nail, blue tack and hang just about everything we can onto them. We drill and push in raw plugs, and cause our walls all sort of distress. Taking everything down clears the space. It gives you time to appreciate the four walls as they are. Now you can assess their potential.
Making good
It’s difficult to do the walls without taking the ceiling into consideration. If your are going to paint and redecorate, then you should consider doing the ceiling at the same time. This might induce a lot of neck aching and groaning, but if the walls are clean and fresh the ceiling could look shabby. On the other hand, a sugar soap revival might be all the ceiling needs and you are away. Check out how to use sugar soap at http://www.selleys.com/.
Make good cracks in the plaster and holes. It’s super easy to do with a skim plaster tube or even a tub of Polyfilla with a scraper. Deeper cracks can be filled with a gun. Sand everything down and prepare to choose your paint or wallpaper.
Lighter colours can be set off with a brighter feature wall. Try and avoid cool and cold colours such as blue or even lilac. It will depend on your taste and the room. As much as possible bring light and warmth into living spaces. A kitchen or study area might feel very different. There are some brilliant wallpaper ranges around. Again you don’t have to wallpaper the whole room. Doing one wall in a big bold pattern can look fabulous.
Hanging up
Do those big heavy bookshelves have to go back up? Think about ways to introduce novelty, colour and eye focus into your room. Hanging artwork is a definite plus. There are some brilliant prints out there and plenty of galleries to choose from. Many people don’t realise how easy it is to have any photo you like made into a canvas for hanging. These can look spectacular. The process is super easy and http://www.parrotprintcanvas.com/ can guide you through it.
Finally, give yourself the excuse to refresh your lighting and natural light options. Bring in some flowers of the season and congratulate yourself on a job well done and new life brought into old walls.