White Pages® News

Make your rental your own

March 26, 2012

Image: 

Forget the struggling student styling and mismatched furniture, a rental home doesn’t have to look temporary thanks to these budget-busting tips using White Pages®.

The willingness to put up with an unattractive house because you believe you are moving soon is known as rental inertia. The biggest symptoms? Milk crate bookshelves, sheets on the windows and mismatched dining chairs.

Banish the wonky bookshelves to the street and follow these top five tips for making over your home. If you’ve been inspired by home decorating magazines or home renovation shows and know exactly which retailers have the look you want, find their contact details using White Pages® Online.

Paint your place your own

A new hue can change your mood, as well as your apartment. First, check with your landlord that you can paint. Then simply click White Pages® Home Renovation Shortcut for a quick link to leading home renovation firms that can help you pick a colour that calms or inspires you, or enter the details of your local hardware store into White Pages® Online to get its address.

Accessorise with art

If painting isn’t an option, add colour to your walls with art. Save money by purchasing pieces from local up-and-coming artists from markets and online, or just purchase inexpensive frames for your favourite holiday snaps. Find the address of your local hardware store on White Pages® Online and head down to learn about clever hanging solutions that won’t leave a mark once you move out.

Reinvent with rugs

Durability is more important than design to most landlords, which is why renters often have to deal with wall-to-wall carpeting and uninspiring flooring. Rugs can transform a room by adding colour, texture and defining conversational spaces. Best of all – you can take them with you! Measure up your lounge, then search your local rug retailer’s contacts on White Pages® Online to see if they have a rug to fit the bill.

Discover drapes

From the street you can often spot a rental by its venetian blinds. Is one of the venetians missing? Then it’s definitely a rental. With windows often the largest structure in a room, nice window treatments can have a transformative effect. Get your tape measure out and find your local curtain retailer on White Pages® Online to get a quote for some flowing drapes or blackout blinds for the bedroom. Or consider doing it yourself, by stopping by a fabric store and running up some drapes at home.

Light it up

Great lighting can completely change a room, adding drama, charm or romance. However, lighting in rentals is usually pretty cheap, unflattering and generic. Flick the switch on your overhead lights forever by purchasing some cheap lamps that cast a more flattering glow. Find out how changing the wattage of the globes you use can save you money by calling your energy provider. Simply enter its details into White Pages® Online to get the contact information.

With a little bit of effort, turning your temporary rental into a luxurious, cosy home that reflects your personality doesn’t have to be hard with White Pages®. You never know, you might like your made-over place so much, you won’t want to leave!