5 DIY Summer Projects That Cost Under $100 but Look Like $1,000
Your favorite three letters are DIY. The lazy days of summer don’t apply to you: You want some household projects that could make you look like you mastered a $1,000 upgrade, even though you spent less than $100 to get them done.
MoneyLion loves to help creative people. So we rounded up a few cost-effective ideas to help weekend warriors and amateur designers alike add some high-class style to their homes with low-cost projects. Just be cautious, follow safety precautions and have fun.
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1. Add a Wallpaper Mural
Your kid is begging you to decorate their bedroom with more than just posters. Or perhaps you’re bored of looking at that white wall in your dining room. You’d love to add a mural that would bring color, flair and elegance to your space. But when it comes to your art abilities, well, nobody is mistaking you for Diego Rivera.
What do you do? You get a wallpaper mural for under $100. Retailers such as Wayfair offer peel-and-stick mural options priced under $100, depending on size and design. If your walls are large enough that a full-on wallpaper mural might cost more than you’d like, you can also opt for a cheaper removable wall-art decal, like a cherry blossom wall sticker from Wayfair that retails for $22.99.
2. Repurpose a Dresser
You’ve had that old dresser in your bedroom for years now. The wood is fading, and it’s seen better days. But you still like its shape, and you’d hate to just junk a good piece of furniture. If you have access to sandpaper, primer and a fresh paint color, you don’t have to.
Repainting an old piece of furniture can add new life to it — and that rejuvenation doesn’t have to cost a lot, either. At Home Depot, you can get sandpaper for $5.98, primer for $15.98 and an angled brush for $7.47, leaving you a little wiggle room to get a paint color of your choice.
3. Paint Your Front Door
Sometimes, the simplest gesture can have the biggest impact. Painting your front door lets you put a fresh face on your home for the new season and even enhance your curb appeal. And it’s not hard to do: All you need is sandpaper, exterior primer and some high-gloss exterior paint. You can find Sherwin-Williams door paint at Lowe’s for $26.98.
4. Set Up a Hammock
When you daydream about summer, you might imagine yourself swinging gently in a hammock while reading and drinking lemonade. You can make this vision of summer fun a reality by investing $74.89 in a hammock from Walmart or searching your local Buy Nothing groups for an even cheaper option. Setting up a hammock takes one afternoon’s worth of work for many afternoons’ worth of enjoyment — and it adds some chic to your yard.
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5. Create a Hanging Garden
Whether you want to have summer herbs on hand for your cooking or you’re more of a flower aficionado, creating a hanging garden in your home adds a kind of rustic glamour that your guests may envy. Little do they know it was relatively easy and inexpensive to achieve.
You can find a two-pack of 8-inch outdoor hanging planters at Walmart for $19.59. Using a drill or hammer that a weekend warrior like you might already have at home, you can hang them anywhere you like.
The Bottom Line
If you think of summer as the time to get those home upgrades done, you could be preparing yourself to pay a pretty penny. Relax. There are a number of fun and cost-effective ways to get your DIY on this summer. And only you have to know that your fancy-looking upgrades cost less than $100.
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This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.
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