Six Simple Ways to Upgrade Your Home 

Don't settle for art that doesn't knock your socks off. Being moved every time you walk into a room is an incredible feeling.

I changed my door knobs and it made such a difference! 100% agree about using the fancy stuff every day.

Fresh flowers! I used to be one of the "they're just going to die so it's a waste of money" types but I started buying myself flowers recently and they just make rooms feel so much more bright and cheery. I have a lot of plants already but they still add something special and are fun to play around with. The major grocery store chain in my area sells one bunch of various types of flowers for $4 and they last 2-3 weeks so it's really not that expensive. Worth it as an occasional treat imo.

My one hack is lamps. Especially with harsher led lighting, lamps with shades, whether floor or table size, can warm and soften a room. They can also prevent corners from getting too spooky.

My boyfriend wanted to paint his walls dark grey and I convinced him to keep the walls a very light grey but paint the trim charcoal/black and the room looked amazing, it looked bigger but moody too

My 1 little hack is for my friends in Renter/Dorm Life. Fitted Sheets can be bought on their own and make for fantastic couch and chair covers. Especially when you're like me and still getting free/cheap stuff from the side of the road. 1) They cover stains 2) they're easily washable, 3) most single fitted sheets come in a ton of cute colors and patterns and you can easily switch them up if you want a style change. Plus its waaaay cheaper the traditional couch covers!

Anxiously watching that mug slosh and hoping it wouldn't spill made me realize that I hadn't properly listened to the first two minutes and had to rewind 😅😂

Great tips! The last one had me scratching my head a bit lol. Every sheet set I've ever bought comes with matching pillow cases. Also I was taught that the point of the flat sheet is to keep a barrier between you and the comforter. Sheets get washed weekly while comforters may only get washed seasonally as they are bulky and will get ruined if washed too much. The flat sheet keeps the comforter clean longer. This is what I've been taught 🤷‍♀️ Also when you live somewhere hot, sleeping with only the flat sheet over you actually helps you sleep cooler.

Would love a video about the health impacts of redecorating? Energy levels, the physical lifting of heavy wood etc. I'm disabled and I don't think I'll ever be well enough to do big projects, so I really enjoy your small projects like the birdhouse or the tiny wallpaper room, as they feel more doable

My one little hack is beautiful and/or large mirrors. Not only can they be practical, but they can be an art piece themselves whilst also moving light around the room. An ornate mirror across from a window is basically another window and framed art in one ❤

The flat sheet is for us sweaty sleepers so we can still have something when we throw the comforter halfway off at 3am! :D

Thank you for uploading Ariel! Yes, it doesnt have to be big renovation videos, sit down videos and chit chats are cozy too! And longer videos too pls, your voice and mannerisms always makes me so happy!❤ sending you lovee

Top Sheet. 1. It's great if it's warm and you don't need a heavier cover. 2. The more popular idea is that you are more likely to wash a top sheet more often than a heavy comforter. Bedding needs to be washed they say at least once a week because of the bacteria building up.

You mentioned light fixtures, and I want to share an even simpler tips: light bulbs. The type of light bulb can change the color, intensity and warmth of your room at night. Switching my fluorescent bulbs that emitted cold lights and twitched at a really fast speed to much warmer incandescent bulbs was a game changer.

My tip: if your fine china/fancy dish ware is dishwasher safe, use it daily. I inherited dishwasher safe china from my Grandparents and it’s so lovely to see them every day.

Always having flowers on every table or surface in general. Even just a cheap bunch of tulips from the discounter or a fancy one that you divide into several vases for different places or rooms

I'm a renter. I always buy those bathroom storage cabinets that envelop the toilet and add shelves and cabinets wherever they can fit. I'll add over the door hooks and mirrors. Nice ones. I put all my beauty supplies in unique glass jars with wood lids so I can see what's in them but they also look pretty. Some of them have metal clasps on them. It's just nicer than hiding everything away in drawers, especially when most rentals just have one space under the sink to put your stuff.

My hack, its just to simply keep an eye on the area you remove shoes and repaint it every so often. Shoes leave marks like little black ticks on painted walls. I love your vids no matter the subject. Xx

You already touched on wall decor before but my hack when you cant afford to repaint and your walls are bare and artwork is too expensive, is to thrift frames or get them at the dollar store or ikea for cheap, spray paint if necessary and use anything inside it doesnt have to be a picture or an artwork. For example I went to Michaels and they have a whole scrapbooking section with individual paper sheets that have patterns or texture on them, just cut that up inside a frame and put a few on your wall, its artsy and pretty and cool and it will make a difference.

That's funny I thought my Mom was the only one using flat sheets for something else! When I was a kid, every year I got a new "bed in a bag" set...2 pillow cases, 1 fitted sheet, 1 flat sheet, 1 comforter all of a matching character or theme. My Mom always took the flat sheet and made curtains out of it, either a pair of panel curtains or a valance and cafe curtain, that way my whole room was themed and she didn't have to worry about changing the curtains every time I got a new bed set. She was very big on curtains lol

Seeing the monochrome in your entry way inspired me to paint all of my trim in my living room and bedroom the same as the bold wall colors, and they look so good now! My go to thing is probably not new to most people in this space, but having stacks of books as filler in any room adds so much substance and joy. I like old coffee table type books but also just stacks of paperbacks too!

In addition to overhead light swaps, I would definitely say adding LAMPS as part of your decor is a great hack. You can find them pretty inexpensively secondhand (some are even being given away for free in places like Craigslist or Freecycle!) or even new, or you can swap out the shades on lamps you already have, OR you can even DIY your own lamps with sculptural pieces you have if you are handy! I am building up my collection of lamps at the moment, and it's super fun. :D

I used to keep pretty postcards that I either collected or were sent to me - often of artwork - and created a sort of collage on my Uni dorm walls. It made such a difference to have something personal and colourful on the otherwise sterile walls.

I moved around quite a bit for the first 12 years of marriage. To keep costs down I would buy a sheet set and 2 top sheets to coordinate then use the extra sheets as curtains. Then when we moved to the next place those curtains might become a duvet cover or be a roman shade or a different kind of curtain or drape.

Please plan some beautiful garden projects close to your front door in the spring or summer. That will be fun to see outside porch transformation . Also plan a nice downstairs bedroom and bathroom for your parents with a nice walk in shower for them in the future if they need it stay with you when they are older. I say this from personal experience with my late parents.😊

My hack is live plants nestled about. Makes a house feel like home. Love your channel.

For me plants have made such a big, but easy difference to a space. And when they multiply it's also very afforderable :))

For small spaces: mirrors!! It is cheap, easy to install, makes the room look bigger, and can come in a range of beautiful shapes and forms, especially if they are thrifted. Extra hack: put a mirror behind a plant, for extra greenery.

YES TO SIT DOWN VIDEOS! your chatty videos are what have inspired me to start book tube myself and I could listen to you talk for HOURS and definitely have fallen asleep to your videos as a calming thing (not because I found them boring🤣)

I’ve done two tone walls, but never painted my trim! I am so excited to try this one day, because your home looks GORGEOUS and so colorful! ❤🏡

I wish I could do so much of these tips bc they're great ideas! But alas I rent a basement apt so I have to deal with my lighting from the 70's, trim I can't alter and boring old cabinets that cover my glassware (though I have been buying pretty cups for awhile now). A tip I use, and that I think can help a room, are table runners! Like you have a boring coffee table? BAM! Table runner, it can draw the eye to the centre of the table and the various things you have on display there, same for dining tables! I have a super colourful table cloth in my dining room and it makes it so much brighter and cheerful and draws the attention to the candles etc I have in the centre! ☺️❤❤

I loved the thread through this video marked by words like "thoughtful." It's very easy to 'stop seeing' our homes.' My all time cheapest hack to freshen a room is to rearrange furniture, move pictures, or change up a shelf. (Which also becomes a good occasion for a spot of decluttering.)

I'm definitely a flat sheet user. I would much rather wash the flat top sheet than wash a comforter or a duvet. Duvets are a major hassle to fight with, flat sheets are so much easier and can be washed weekly along with the fitted bottom sheet & pillowcases. I do agree with having matching pillow cases. Having artsy beautiful mugs is a great tip and makes you feel special. I like the idea of changing out the vent and switch plate covers, most do just live with the ones provided with the house, great tip!

The useless flat sheet to pillow case idea is GENIUS omg

I always say paintings (large ones especially) make your house seem fancy even if they are mass produced prints. My other tip is to thrift glassware. Vases, trinket trays, old perfume bottles. All the clear glass is shockingly high impact in making your house feel expensive even if you thrift it all for a really cheap price!

ARIEL!!! I love your videos!! In the future can we get more “tutorial” videos for your home? Like how you lay down your floor. Your style inspires me and I want to know how you do it all, in depth! Edit: y’all was I really the first comment ❤❤❤

I love the mix out of these chatty videos and the renovation ones!😍

For our house, a 1950 ranch with multiple additions, one of the biggest impact "small" projects we did was actually just making ALL the switch plates, switches, and plugs match. I totally get this runs counter to your suggestion, but we didn't replace anything with character. Our house was just a complete mismatch of literally every color you can buy at the hardware store so just making them match really made the house feel contemporary and like someone cared a little bit.

"Snatch 'em up" got me hahah Lighting is huge, I agree! My little hack is to make sure each space has an excessive amount of lamp light in it. It's important to have task lighting in every space, but as soon as that sun goes down, it's time for cozy lamp light! I try to make sure the whole space can be lit up with lamplight. Plug in timers can help with that too :)

My hack is to change my decor around to different rooms and to arrange my furniture. Simply change pictures, paintings and wall hangings around can change the over all feeling of a room. ❤

Curved shower curtain rods and roller shower curtain rings! Easy, inexpensive, and they make showers feel spacious and welcoming. Not so much a visual impact but a luxury feeling.

Lamps!! Add lamps, statement lamps, practical lamps, pretty lamps, fairy lights, whatever! Lamps help create a nice cosy ambiance in the evenings while also distributing even lighting around the room. Loved the video!

Our duvet/flat sheet system is to buy two complimentry fitted/flat sheet sets and sew the flat sheets together to make a duvet cover.

Number 1 renter trick: change the toilet seat. It's cheap and it removes that ick feeling. There are heaps of tutorials on how to to it.

before we moved house i had painted the trims in my room a very vivid emerald on these absolutely stark white walls, everyone else hated it, but it was actually so nice, but the whole house needed to match the aesthetic to sell it properly.

The point of a flat sheet is so you don't have to launder the doona/quilt/blanket regularly. It's to save time and energy and resources and is a much more sanitary option.

You should cut some screening to put under the new vent cover so critters can’t crawl thru. Like mice, snakes, etc.

Handles and doorknobs too... its so satisfying to change out old crusty painted hinges and old ugly terrible cheap gold doorknobs from 1980s.

Just hung curtains and I hung the rods higher. Wow! What a difference! My bay windows grew up and got a makeover all in one day. 🥳

I loved this! I think the small “little” things that I found make a difference involve using the fancy things. My home is beautiful and small, so everything i own that i practical must also be beautiful, because there is not space (or time or the budget) to have what is practical and what is beautiful not intersect into the same items. Beautiful cups, old-silver plated silverware, table cloths, pens, the coffee grinder, my spice jars, my olive oil dispenser - i want it to be beautiful because I have to look at it.

THE EDGES OF SHELVES!!! Especially Standart Ikea shelves (kallax etc) I put a lenght of washitape on the front facing edges of shelves it looks so costum and special and is cheap and quick, highly recomend

Great tips! Funny anecdote about air vents- I visited my dad and his wife in Quebec one year and she and I took a trip to Home Depot where she bought new air vents. A few weeks later she called me screaming “Where are my ducks??” over and over. I was completely perplexed, even asked her if she meant “quack quack ducks”. Of course not,she meant ducts, her English is limited. I had installed the air vents when we got home from Home Depot and didn’t tell her and forgot all about them. Took me a bit to figure out why she was screaming at me about “ducks”!

I just love the way you use color. I would never feel brave enough to use colors the way you do, your house is so eclectic and charming.

Our hack : gorgeous plants. Living. Art. Color. Sculpture. Texture. Plants make a room and add love.

The two things I've enjoyed most since buying my first house have been going a bit mad with colour on the walls (purple living room, turquoise office and soon to be blue landing) and the magic of woodstain. I've had loads of fun and success taking old wooden furniture, shoe racks, coat hooks and picture frames, sanding them down and staining them pretty shades. I have nothing like the patience you do and the idea of sanding floors makes me want to cry! But these little projects have been so much fun and make such a difference!

My old bathroom had a cat and dog theme and my current room repurposed that shower curtain (also cat and dog themed) into really cool curtains

"damn....I got really excited about curtains" Kindred spirits spirits, you and I 😉

Ariel's house had AC wall vents where sturdier floor vents should have been. No wonder they were dented and bent, because they were never meant to be in floors. When I was rehabbing rental properties, my "quick trick" for making them look better was replacing the AC vent grills. From painted, globbed up cruddy ones to new ones with movable louvers! And replacing ALL the switch plates and outlet plates with new ones. Yes, plastic, but they all matched and were clean. My tenants loved me. I'm convinced Facebook Marketplace is her secret sponsor!

My hack is large mirrors to create the illusion of a wider space and to reflect the beauty of the plants.

Love these tips! I bought ceramic light switch covers and painted them (flowers, stars, etc.) and now each little switch is its own little quirky corner that makes me smile. I also love to abundantly sprinkle pillows and blankets to make each seating area cozy (I knit or crochet most of them), and also mirrors and candles to help make the light dance and feel magical rather than as fixtures adds a cozy touch. 💕

The amount of excitement that I felt when I saw that you posted😌

Buy from charity shops as much as you can! You can find so many unique items that have much more character than mass-produced homeware. We don't have large Goodwill stores over here in Scotland but we have plenty of smaller shops.

So happy when my favorite RU-vidr uploads! Other easy hacks - changing out hardware. Similar to the faceplates for light switches, door knobs and cabinet/drawer pulls can be swapped out for an easy upgrade to hallways/kitchens/bathrooms.

YES!! All great tips but I totally embrace using the "good stuff" all the time and feeling special. Don't wait for just so-called special occasions!

I bet it was those old heavy vacuums that dented up your old air vents. You had some great tips! I love the videos. Keep up the great work.

I absolutely agree that everyday is the perfect day to use your nice things! Don't wait for a special occasion - today is a special occasion!

The flat sheet pillow case hack is genius! I have so many flat sheets just sitting unused in the closet!

Love these tips! I've been buying one new Le Creuset mug a month for the past year and now I have a full rainbow and they make me so damn happy! Each day I get to pick a colour and it's such a lift

Also plants, rugs, mirrors and warm lighting! Instant coziness! Arielita 💜 I love these sit down videos, I would also not be mad about bookish content of course if you feel like it.

Painting the trim is a great idea, but when renting you should discuss this with your landlord first. Here in Germany, you are usually not allowed to paint doors or window frames yourself, since it can affect the doors ability to close properly :)

Love these tips Ariel! I commented before that you should look into Victorian tin ceiling tiles, they're amazing & will look so good in your house! And would love a video with you doing a mug cabinet tour, your coffee and tea mugs are so pretty!

I love this video. I stopped using a flat sheet a year ago and I love sleeping without it. I still keep them in my linen closet for someone who is sleeping on the couch.

Ariel I would literally watch you watch paint dry. Make whatever you're excited about and have the energy for!

Dishware that I actually like was a huge upgrade for me. I was eating off an old roommate's old roommate's picks and they just weren't my style. When I got stuff that I love? Game changer.

Plants ! I cannot stress how much plants transform space ! It makes rooms come alive, literally.

Look at that big comfy chair!

Fully agree on the overhead lights, but more - lights which _aren't_ overhead. Small table lamps. Indirect lighting, corner lamps projecting up or against walls, little clip lights that throw light onto dark areas which shouldn't be dark. Little corner lights for reading! So much comfort in it.

I know people are obsessed with house plants right now, but its for a good reason!! just a few houseplants can really make such a difference in a space for just a little bit of money and upkeep (unless they're fake). They bring in life and freshness into a space and even a little color which just makes a big impact:)

For me it's definitely vintage table lamps with nice warm light. Warm light does so much for the atmosphere of a room! Also, old wooden furniture easily painted with chalk paints (I like darker colours, reds and pinks) is SO much cheaper and better then any modern furniture, not to mention more unique.

my number one thing is mood lighting. get a floor lamp, get a side table lamp, or even just some fairy lights. it will make everything much cozier

Arranging or covering/wrapping your books... Like especially when a lot of your books are cheap paperbacks because that's what you can afford. If you have book cases, they take up so much visual area on your wall. Duvets and covers are like if you took a flat sheet and wrapped it around your comforter so that it doesn't slide away from you, and so the outside layer of your comforter can be washed. The secret is that you can sew two+ flat sheets together into a reversible duvet cover and use a comforter as a duvet. Thrifted bedding can be great for slipcovering anything. Area rugs too. Regardless of flooring type, an area rug gives you control over what your whole floor looks like, even as a renter, and it can be taken out and washed. And posters in frames. Posters tacked up look cheap, but a nice poster in the right frame looks nice, doesn't get torn up and covers a large area of the wall. It can be a great way to steer vibes. Also the colour and temperature of lighting can make a huge difference. Lamps can be a great option for cheap and for renters. Thrift a half decent lamp and shade and buy any colour of bulb you want to put in it, there are no rules, no electrical work and the whole thing comes with you when you move. As a renter, I also like furniture that fits against the wall in a way that 1. looks like built-ins if you set it up right, 2. Doesn't actually do anything to the wall, 3. Acts as storage, 4. Covers a large area of the wall, 5. Can be used back to back or with a decorated back AS a decorative wall, 6. can be any wood colour, painted colour, wallpaper or design and shape you want, and comes with you when you leave! Similarly, large free standing screens can create a huge visual impact, don't require installation or any damage, and can divide up a space however you want it. They can be painted too, or have images and patterns. And if your landlord is okay with you setting aside the doors that are already in your house, painting or making your own sets of interior doors that you can take with you is nice, if more expensive. Push come to shove they can be stood against a wall for similar visual impact, connected together as a free standing screen, or contain elements like mirrors or stained glass, painted panels, etc...

My one hack, is counter to your fancy or pretty cups. I’m all about drinking from a glass jar! ( we’ve coined the phrase “pickle crystal”). I love serving good old southern iced tea, ice water, or homemade lemonade from a jar. I also like mix and match dishes rather than full matching sets. We’ve had people over, set the table and no two settings are the same. It makes for a beautiful table, and an ice breaker for conversation, especially when people are trying to get acquainted! 😊

Faux flowers are my secret! I splurge a bit on good quality faux flowers, and they transform a corner or mantlepiece. Never need watering, never die off, always an uplifting jolt of color

Love the fancy glassware life. I mean I have basic ones but there is something about having seltzer in a champagne glass that just feels a little extra fun. And my friend gave them to me as a gift for my 21st birthday and they make me really happy and think of her every time I use them. Or my vintage-esque electric kettle. I use it every day but the fact that it's a statement piece in my kitchen just makes me so happy to see it. Eyeing the matching toaster but we'll see.

Yoooo that pillowcase idea is LIFE CHANGING! That's such a great way to use the flat sheet!

I love all your videos. From the big renovations to the smaller chit chats I just like hanging out with you.

I bought a red retro looking toaster,retro microwave , red convection oven & red coffee pot Then I found a red 3 section planter that holds hot pads & rolled towels. My coffee mug has red cherries on it. Then I got red & black plaid curtains for the window & door. Now I love working in the kitchen. I’m seriously thinking of painting ,my refrigerator red but haven’t made the leap yet. I really stepped out of my comfort zone & it makes me very happy to see all the red

A good rug for the front door is a must. It’s so much more welcoming!

Candles!! Especially as the northern hemisphere is getting darker, I have candles everywhere. Mainly un scented tea lights that I can light in the evenings to give a warm relaxing glow to the space. Makes that seasonal depression just a little less severe.

i am moving in to my own 1930s house at the end of this month and your process and use of colour is so inspiring!! i am definitely gonna paint the trim :)

It's so true with the curtains! It makes such a difference. When we used to live in a rented studio, my go to hack was putting dried flowers wherever I could (in cute glass jars, hanging them on the wall as a bouget or a as a wreath...) - it made the space look a little bit vintage-y eventhough the furniture was modern and boring. Also putting things in thrifted baskets instead of plastic boxes looks really nice (Delilah Loeppky here on youtube taught me that one 😀).

One thing I don't see many people talking about but makes a HUGE difference: painting or changing the bathroom accessories

I agree with everything you said. I've done them all in my new house except painting my trim a color. Another thing that I would add is changing cabinet handles, door knobs and hinges. 😃

Yes!! Definitely happy to see videos like these and just some vlogs about random stuff too sprinkled in with renos.. lol.

I LOVED this cozy tip video! Thank you so much, Ariel! As a viewer with only a small space of her own IN her folks' home and hoping to branch out and buy with her long-distance husband (whew--that's a sentence!), I soak up your content for both the aesthetic AND the learning curve. I admire your work ethic more than I can possibly say. But my own advice: - even if you find yourself temporarily living in your childhood bedroom, change the paint. Mine has been a soft lavender since I was 18 and I am near double that now--some friends and I plan to paint it all a soft, chalkboard-type green this autumn. - I also won't settle for mediocre art that doesn't mean much to me. I want pieces that get me right in the heart, whether that's my cozy or my fierce or my galvanized heart. - Not using the overhead lamp and instead "zoning" places in my room with their own lamps has been fantastic (and though I do have real candles, I do have fake ones too, and they're surprisingly awesome!). - wWhenever I get to have fresh flowers in, it's like a little bit of angel-breath. - Collecting medium-sized unusual mirrors in amongst the rest of the gallery wall. - honestly, for me, stacking things on stacks of books. A lantern, a candle, a little trio of pretty things.

I agree with all your points. One I would add is plants. Having greenery makes things feel so inviting. And if you don't have a green thumb, get fake!

“Damn… I got really excited about curtains .” I felt this on a spiritual level 😂😂 you crack me up Ariel! Great video!

I was so happy when you set down the cup, I was waiting for your to spill it LOL Good ideas I have a few light plates that are either painted or bought. They do add charm.

Also if you feel like your room looks a little dingy, wash the walls with hot water soap and a big sponge. And dust! It'll be a very low cost but refreshing hack

Dimmer lights!