There are many reasons to learn how to do your own home improvements, including that it’s cost effective. If you know how to do things right, making your own improvements can save you money on things that will increase the value of your house. Here are some smart ideas for doing your own home improvement projects.

Be sure to consider the type of material you plan to use before building an addition to your home. Using wood may increase your insurance premiums because of the added risk of fire. Steel and concrete are more durable and fire-resistant, so choosing one of these options can help keep your annual insurance premiums low.

If you can afford it, go for hard wood floors and stay away from laminate. Laminate floors may look like real wood and be easier to clean, however they cannot be refinished. In another decade or two, you or another owner will find it necessary to install new flooring rather than simply refinishing.

If you are suffering the wrath of owning a small bedroom, you can create an optical illusion making it seem larger than it is. Repainting your room in light green or blue can create a feeling of more “space”. You can also incorporate colors such as off white or beige, but they won’t feel as comfortable or warm as the other colors would.

Try your best to color coordinate your rooms when you are repainting them. You don’t want to throw people off when they come visit your home with colors that don’t match. You want to show people that you know style, one of the best ways to do this is with a good color combination.

Place holes into the rim of paint cans with a nail. This helps because it will make less of a mess with the paint when the lid is replaced. Creating holes on the rim of a can of paint will reduce spillage of paint when you replace the lid by creating places where the small amounts of excess paint can drain into.

A well known rule for doing any kind of construction, repair, or renovation work is to measure twice and cut once. This age old saying still holds up today in every circumstance. Following this rule will allow you to avoid costly and time consuming mistakes associated with projects by using less materials and saving time and effort on labor.

If you don’t want to refinish your old and weathered wooden floors, you can instead, give your home a cottage style boost. Buy some oil based paint and choose some affordable stencils. Use the stencils and paint to re-design your wooden floors. Add some cute designs in varying patterns, to give a full on-cottage look to your home.

Knowing simple tips like these is half the battle of doing all the home improvement projects you have in mind. With a little time, effort and knowledge you’ll be able to do a professional-quality job at do-it-yourself prices, and that’s just one of the beautiful things about making your own home improvements.