4 Home Renovations to Keep Busy While at Home

You're spending more time at home these days, so make the time productive. Here are four home renovations you can do while staying at home.

Your home is your castle. It’s your sanctuary from the world, your safe space, your harbor from stormy seas. And these days, you’re probably spending a lot of time enjoying it. But there’s only so much Netflix you can watch, only so many naps you can take and only so many board games you can play before you start to get antsy.

With plenty of free time on your hands, why not tackle one of those home renovation projects you’ve been putting off? You might be a seasoned DIYer, ready to redo your home from foundation to shingles. Or, you might be looking for a more foolproof project to occupy your time and beautify your surroundings. Here are four home improvement projects that don’t require a lot of know-how. And if you get the supplies delivered, you don’t even need to go out.

1. Put in a Vegetable Garden

If you’re looking for things to do at home, putting in a vegetable garden could be just what you need to get fresh air and relieve stress. Growing your own food has become more popular these days, as more and more people look for environmentally sustainable ways to feed themselves and their communities. And planting a vegetable garden will give you an excuse to get out in the fresh air. You might even be surprised at how much tastier vegetables are when you grow them yourself.

You can order the supplies to put in raised beds, or you can till the soil and grow your 

vegetables directly in the ground. Don’t have a yard? You can still grow many vegetables in containers on your porch, patio or balcony. If you’ve never grown vegetables before, do some research on which are easiest to grow and what it takes to cultivate your favorites. If you’re looking for a source of free, fresh veggies sooner rather than later, choose some plantings that reach maturity quickly, like greens and lettuces, turnips, and radishes.

2. Put in a Patio

You might be spending more time at home, but that doesn’t mean you don’t need to get outside for some fresh air and sunshine. Now’s the perfect time to spruce up your outdoor space and put in a patio. You don’t need a great deal of skill to install a paver patio — just a lot of sweat equity. You can have the pavers, sand, gravel and other tools delivered from your local hardware store. You’re just a few days’ work away from having a lovely sitting area in your backyard. 

3. Freshen Up that Tired Old Paint

If you’re looking for things to do at home, maybe your interior walls could use a fresh coat of paint. Use a painting app to help you choose new paint colors and get the whole family involved!

Don’t want to go out? You can have your paint and supplies delivered. You have plenty of time to move all your furniture to the center of the room, cover it in drop cloths and completely change the look of your rooms with a couple fresh coats of paint. Don’t skimp on tools and supplies — grab the same ones the pros use. You’ll get the job done faster and easier.

4. Install Smart Stuff

Smart lights, smart thermostat, smart locks, smart speakers — the smart home market is booming, and what better time to upgrade your home with all the smart stuff you’ve been dreaming of? Smart home devices are easy to install, and you can order the best the industry has to offer from Amazon, or your preferred retailer of choice. 

Installing a smart thermostat can help you track your energy usage and minimize heating and cooling costs. Swapping out your old-fashioned lights for smart LED bulbs can save you money and help you create whatever ambiance you crave. Forgot to turn off the lights before heading to bed? No problem — you can shut them off with a voice command. Some smart lights also let you adjust the color of the light across a spectrum of hundreds of options, so you can get that low, soothing, warm glow you crave or create a discotheque ambiance for your family dance parties.

Smart locks are a worthwhile investment, too. You can open and close your door locks via your smartphone, invite someone in through the app or give someone a one-time-use code they can use to access your home. With smart locks that recognize you via your phone, you don’t even have to put down your 17 bags of groceries to unlock the front door.

With some extra time at home, you can knock out a few of those renovations you’ve been planning and give your space the upgrade you’ve been dreaming of.