12 Fabulous Makeovers You Can Finish In One Day

This post has been updated for 2020 because we are all currently advised to stay at home. Many of us need something to do during these trying times besides watching Netflix and eating all the time. For this reason, I have updated and reposted this original post with some significant home updates you can complete in a day or just a few hours. 

If you need supplies, Home Depot and Lowe’s let you order anything online, including paint, that can be shipped directly to your home or picked up curbside. I have already done this once at Michaels and was able to pick up my items the very same day without shopping in the store.  

Good luck, stay home, and stay safe during these times!

Like me, many of you are probably Pinterest addicts and DIY enthusiasts who are always dreaming of the next upgrade to your home. But like me, you don’t always have the time to constantly work on renovations and updates. That is where mini makeovers that you can finish in one day come in handy. I have created a list of 12 easy and fabulous makeovers that you can start and finish all in one day or one afternoon.

1. Create an accent wall.

You don’t always have time to paint an entire room, but adding a pop of color just to one wall can immediately change the look and vibe of a room. Paint, wallpaper, stencils, wood trim, or even wall murals can create a unique look for any room in your house in one day.

2.  Add nailhead trim to a chair, ottoman, or even the edges of a table.

Nailhead trim is easier to install than you think. Especially if you buy the kind in a strip, you only add an actual hammer to a nailhead every fifth nail. Nailhead trim can transform a plain item into something extraordinary in one day.

3.  Update your mantel decor for the season.

Even if you decide to make a few things for the new look, including pom-pom garland or a painted sign, you can still create a new look for your fireplace mantel in one day.

One-day makeovers are motivation to complete the bigger projects you have planned.

4.  Add metallic paint to the details of a piece of furniture.

Metallic paint immediately dresses up a piece of wood furniture. With just a brush and your choice of metallic finish or paint, you can create a whole new look in one day.

5.  Hang a new light fixture.

Have you been wanting to update an old light fixture for some time—or, like me, have a new one that you just haven’t gotten around to putting up yet? I know I am not the only one who does that. Go ahead and hang up that new light fixture. You will be glad you did this makeover in one day.

You also do an easy DIY light fixture update with spray paint.

6.  Change out your kitchen cabinet hardware.

I think choosing new cabinet hardware is more complicated than installing it. However, you can update the look of your kitchen by installing new knobs and handles in one day.

7.  Update an old lamp.

Did you recently purchase a lamp at a thrift store or have one around your home that you no longer like?  You can easily change the base and the lamp shade in one day with some decorative tape, acrylic paints, or ribbon.

8.  Replace a sink faucet.

New plumbing fixtures can make a kitchen or bathroom feel like a new room. Although this may require more expertise than other suggestions, you can easily change out a faucet in one day.  

This one may be a little tough to accomplish during this time, but you can browse projects online on Pinterest and start planning an entire bath remodel in one day.

9.  Rearrange the furniture in a room

Rearranging the furniture in a room or from room to room can give a space new life without costing anything. Try moving just the artwork to another room and changing out the accessories. Even the smallest changes can have a huge impact on renewing your space.

10.  Wrap the books on your bookshelf in decorative paper.

If you have a bookshelf and want to make a statement with it, wrap the books in color-coded paper for each type of book or for each shelf. You can also do this project while watching a good movie and change the entire look of a room in one day.

11.  Paint your entrance door.

Of course, this project depends on the weather, but updating the color of your door can dramatically change the look and feel of your entire entrance to your home in one day.

I usually make a new wreath for every season or holiday. I enjoy creating something new, and wreaths are so easy to make.  If you don’t have a new wreath form, you can easily take an older wreath and either remake it or remove everything on it and start new.

New house numbers or door signs are also great ways to update your entrance and welcome new visitors after this period is over.

Extra tip:  It is finally Spring, so get outside and update landscaping.  

This is one project my husband and I have decided to tackle during this time. He is still working in the medical field, but he works in surgery and comes home early many days because non-essential surgeries have been canceled. So we are finally cleaning up a neglected yard that we both ignored for two years, and as I’m writing this, I hear the chainsaw starting up. That means I should find some trees in the yard very soon! Yikes! 

I could probably go on and on with even more ideas for one-day makeovers, but I’m sure this list can get you thinking of ideas of your own as well. Home updates don’t have to be a weekend warrior, vacation-consuming project all the time. Not that I am knocking those types of projects at all. I have several of those in process at any given time.

But while you are waiting to finish those bigger projects, take a break for a morning or a day and complete a one-day makeover. It will motivate you to finish the others, too.

“But whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst.  Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”  John 4:14

More inspirational posts to visit:

Our Garage Cleanup – Before and After

A Simple Spring Floral Mantel