Easy and affordable DIY home improvement projects and budget friendly decorating tips to add character to your home.
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11 years ago when we moved into our second home, I didn’t really know the phrase “builder grade”. Our house was brand spanking new and was a spec home just waiting for an owner. It was big and new and had lots of storage. I had no problems with the boring and basic finishes…at the time.
After a few years of living in our new home and starting our family, I started to understand what builder grade meant and I was growing tired of those boring finishes. Our home just felt like it was missing something. So I took matters into my own hands. I always enjoyed decorating but I had never owned or touched a power tool in my life. I wasn’t a seasoned DIYer.
But with the help of Pinterest and some other amazing DIY bloggers I started slowly adding character to our home.
Even now, after we have moved out of our builder grade home and into more of a custom home, I find myself still wanting to add character to our home. If you ever feel like your house is missing something, it might just be a touch of character.
(This post contains affiliate links. You can see my disclosure policy here)
How to make a cookie cutter house look unique
Install Faux Board and Batten
This will always be, hands down, my #1 suggestion for adding character to your home. It is not hard to do, I promise you! It can be done with just a hammer, nails and a cheap mitre box and saw. This isn’t true Board and Batten by definition. It’s just some battens attached to a wall.
In our old home, I added board and batten to my son’s bedroom and then to a large wall in our family room. You can find pictures of our old home here.
That time I used MDF boards for the board and batten and while it was easy to do, I found the thick boards to be heavy and bulky looking. They also stuck out past the baseboard.
I simplified the already easy process by using lattice boards instead for a few projects I did in our new home. I used these lattice strips for the board and batten I did in my hallway.
This hallway was a little trickier since I had to make just a few weird cuts and do some math (I hate math) but it was well worth it. Otherwise it was pretty easy to do.
(Update…I recently gave our hallway another dose of character by adding faux sconces to our hallway)
I used primed lattice molding for our floor to ceiling board and batten in our master bedroom. This project is hands down the easiest board and batten project I have done. Just a few easy cuts and no crazy math. Win win!
I find all of my lumber at either Home Depot or Lowes. I just walk up and down all of the aisles until I find something that might work.
Get the beadboard look with wallpaper
When you want the look of wood, but don’t want to deal with using a saw and nails, beadboard wallpaper is the way to go. Unfortunately, I do not have a tutorial for installing beadboard wallpaper since I installed mine well before I started this blog but don’t let the word “wallpaper” scare you. You can see how Kate installed her beadboard wallpaper in this video. Some hardware stores carry beadboard wallpaper. You can also find it here.
I recently just added some beadboard wallpaper to my mudroom
Add Crown Molding To Your Cabinets
I talked more about this is my budget friendly kitchen remodel post, but crown molding can make such a big difference (see above picture). I’ve never tried them, but hardware stores carry inside and outside corner pieces which makes it so much easier when you want to add crown molding to your ceilings. No crazy cuts and math involved.
If you are not a fan of the look of the corner pieces and want to do crown molding the hard way, I highly recommend this tutorial from Sawdust Girl. The templates were a life saver for me. There is also a crown molding tool you can purchase to help with the cuts. I have this tool and to be honest, I can’t remember why I never used it. Seriously, I have no idea.
Paint your cabinets and doors
I’m not saying you need to paint your cabinets. I know it can be a hot topic with some people. And one of my favorite designers actually did a post on how to decorate with oak cabinets if you have them in your home.
But if you wanted to paint your cabinets, I highly recommend Benjamin Moore’s Advanced line. I painted our cabinets using this paint in our old home and while it took me weeks to do, I can honestly say it was well worth it. Again, I do not have a tutorial for you since I painted my cabinets before this blog was born. You can see more about my kitchen remodel here. I referenced this tutorial from Miss Mustard Seed on how to paint your cabinets.
If painting your cabinets seems too overwhelming for you, you can start small and paint a few interior doors a fun color. You also do not need to commit to painting all of the interior doors in your home. I only painted my pantry door, the door leading to our garage and our front door Nature’s Reflection by Behr. You can see how I paint my doors here.
Change Out Your Light Fixtures
If you live in a builder grade home, chances of you owing some “boob” lights are very high. Nothing screams builder grade like gold boob lights. If you have never heard that term either, it is in fact a real thing and a fierce problem in this world. Giving your house a boob reduction (ha!) can easily add some character to your home.
If the budget permits, changing out those builder grade chandeliers too will be a good thing. I changed every single one of our light fixtures in our old house. Even all of the bathroom lights. I would find a few fixtures I loved and then I would stalk them until they went on sale.
I found that if I played my cards right I was able to find a few good deals on lighting from Ballard Designs. I used these pendants for my old kitchen. My lights were hardwired but if you have a can light you desperately want a pendant to hang from, check out their can light adapters. Such a good idea and so many options to choose from.
In our current home, I removed the outdated (to me) shades from our island pendants and replaced them with inexpensive lamp shades. You can find the tutorial for that here
I have since switched out these pendant light for these new lights and I love the change.
I also just added a new chandelier to our dining room. You can see my list of affordable chandeliers on Amazon here.
Chandelier//Rug
Add character with texture
This might be the easiest way to add character to your home, simply by adding in some decorations. Comfy blankets, window treatments and throw pillows can add layers of texture to your home. Area rugs can add warmth to your home.
Don’t believe me? Let’s play a game.
See my dining room naked and right after we moved in, mess and all?
Look at the difference some texture can make..
The furniture is the same in both pics. I painted the walls Silver Drop by Behr, changed out my chandelier, added area rugs and window treatments in both rooms, threw in some real and fake plants, added pillows and throw blankets and voila! Even the blanket scarf I threw on the dining table added some texture to the room.
Add life to your room with plants
It wasn’t until recently that I jumped on the plant bandwagon and I am so glad I did! I can’t say enough about adding real plants to your home. And if you cannot handle real, then feel free to use faux plants. Just a touch of greenery in each room can add so much life to your room. I know that sounds cheesy but it is so true. If you have a black thumb check out my post on the best indoor plants for beginners.
I’ve said it before, it’s your home so decorate it any way you please!! But if you feel like you home is missing something, try one of theses projects to add some character into your home. And if you do try any of these projects, let me know!
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Easy and affordable DIY home improvement projects and budget friendly decorating tips to add character to your home.
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