In 2018, 48% of homeowners planned on decorating their homes. Now, decorating can mean many things. Whether it be decorating for a particular season or holiday, for a particular celebration, or you are simply updating the look of a single room or your entire home – decorating is a major project. It’s recommended that room decorations are updated every five to 10 years, but think about just how often people update their home decor every week, month, or year. It can be a small or a large project depending on how much time you are willing to spend planning as well as how much you are willing to spend financially. With the holiday season upon us, and with people spending much more time at home these days, home decorations are certainly on people’s minds this coming winter.

Decorating your home for the winter holidays is a fun way to get in the holiday spirit. From carving pumpkins to creating paper turkeys, to decorating cookies to handmaking ornaments and holiday card displays, surely you and your family have a tradition or two you can’t wait to get started on. Before you begin, however, think about what your home needs before you decorate it. Perhaps you have been meaning to spray for pests, wash your carpets, or update your plumbing. The busyness of the holiday season will be here before you know it, and surely you want a clean, safe, and decorated home for holiday celebrations and family gatherings. Here are a few ways you can go about fixing up your home to make sure it is ready before you and your family tackle decorating it for the holiday season.

It’s Time for Some Inspections

The unfortunate thing about winter is that animals and pests like to nuzzle their way into our homes and garages to keep warm. If you have had a mice or pest issue in the past, you surely don’t want to deal with it this winter, especially since everyone will be spending more time home this upcoming holiday season. Before this situation begins or happens again, it is time to get your house inspected by obtaining services for termite control, wood destroying insects, or mice.

Fixing up your home includes making sure it is clean, so being sure you will not have a pest or animal issue this winter will keep you and your family clean and at ease. Not only this, but pests can eat at Christmas trees as well as destroy a number of decorations you may use around your house during the holiday season.

It’s Time for Some Repairs

Many people use air conditioners well into the winter months, especially those without central air. Perhaps you like to have one in your bedroom until December, and maybe you have been putting off repairing yours. Well, here is your call to action: get it repaired before next summer! Air conditioner leakage can ruin your walls and floors, and it certainly hurts to pay an electric bill for an appliance that does not work properly. Air conditioning repair can be done by calling your local HVAC or air conditioning contractor.

If other major appliances in your home are in need of repair or replacement, making an appointment to get these things done is a great idea to do now sooner than later. Fixing your appliances or buying new ones will certainly lessen your stress during the already busy holiday season. Perhaps your refrigerator’s temperature gauge is being funky or your microwave is about to bite the dust. You certainly want your holiday meals to stay cold, and you certainly want to be able to have some microwave popcorn to accompany your holiday movie marathons.

Window repairs as well as patching up any holes or dings in your walls are other ways to both repair and improve your home before the winter. You don’t want the cold winter air seeping in through a cracked window or any holes in your wall showing in a family holiday picture. Making sure your house’s doors close fully as well as lock tightly and safely are important for your family’s safety and heat bills. Take action and get to work on fixing up your home now. Many repairs around your home may have been forgotten about or simply ignored, but now is the time to make sure your home is ready for lots of family time as well as family decorating during the winter months and holiday season. You want to enjoy the holiday season, and with repairs comes joy as well as an ability to decorate your home for the holidays as you please.

It’s Time for Some Fixes

Fixing up your home before the winter and the holiday season can also include obtaining some fixes to your home’s roots, such as your electric and plumbing needs. Whether you have been meaning to contact someone or you simply want a checkup, perhaps it is time to call an electrician or one of your local plumbing services.

Leaky pipes, a toilet that refuses to flush, and flickering lights are all terrible things to deal with regularly, let alone during the holiday season when your family is spending more time at home. Surely you want to cook and bake and host family gatherings with peace of mind. What if you are cooking turkey or baking pie and the oven suddenly stops working? What if grandma is using the bathroom and the toilet overflows? You don’t want the holidays to become messier or more stressful than they have to be. Taking these steps in fixing up your home can be a lifesaver in these situations.

It’s Time for Some Updates

Perhaps you have already spent your summer or fall fixing up your home. Maybe you are ready for something bigger and better, such as home renovations or remodeling, or maybe you are ready for some simple home updates. This can include a number of things.

Are you sick of your kitchen? Maybe it could use some updating. This can include remodeling your kitchen cabinets or kitchen countertops, buying a new refrigerator or freezer, or buying new kitchenware, such as silverware, cooking utensils, and plates and bowls. The kitchen may be where your family spends a lot of time during the winter months, and it is certainly where a lot of time is spent around and on the holidays. Because of this, your kitchen should look and feel how you want. You should be able to feel both happy and proud of what your kitchen has to offer you and your family.

Family rooms and dining rooms also see a lot of action during the holidays. Fixing up your home can include revamping the furniture in these rooms, such as repainting or staining a table and set of chairs. Maybe you want to rearrange the furniture completely, and stylistic changes like these will certainly change how you will go about decorating your home afterward as well.

Besides tables and chairs, perhaps your carpets and couches could use some deep-wash cleaning. Oriental rug repair, vacuuming, and shampooing can restore older or simply beaten down furniture, carpeting, and rugs. When it comes to family gatherings, you want your furniture to appear clean for your guests. It’s also not a bad time to take pride in your work and let your loved ones enjoy your clean and decorated house just as much as you do.

It’s Time for Some Upgrades

Have you thought about purchasing new appliances, furniture, and other fun additions to your home? While some ventures can be pricey, perhaps you have been saving for this! Maybe you want to purchase a hot tub. Hot tub dealers will gladly help you find the one you are looking for, whether it be indoor or outdoor. Hot tubs are both fun and relaxing, which can make the idea of fixing up your home not sound too bad. They are also great for the cold weather and can be a way for your family to spend some time together.

Fireplaces are another great cold-weather-friendly purchase. There are different types that you can choose from as well. Mini, large, handmade, or purchased with easy installation or simply a plug-in – you name it. Not only can they look fancy, but they also keep you warm during the cold winter months and are holiday-friendly. Wouldn’t a holiday picture look great in front of a fireplace? They also make a great spot for hanging stockings and spending time with family and friends during holiday get-togethers.

Making sure your appliances are working properly is also part of fixing up your home before the colder winter months and snow make you want to stay inside. If your oven is working well before the holiday season begins then that is great, but having to buy a whole new oven because yours is dysfunctional is another story. Appliances are expensive, but being sure they are working during the winter and the holiday season is extremely important. Spending time in the kitchen allows families to spend time together while cooking, baking, decorating, and eating meals and desserts together. Therefore, make sure your oven isn’t going to break down during the busy winter months, and if it looks like that might happen, then let purchasing an oven for your home be a holiday gift to yourself.

It’s Time to Decorate

Maybe you need to obtain extermination services, maybe you need to repair your air conditioner or a window, maybe you need to call a plumber, maybe you need to update your kitchen, maybe you need to upgrade your home with a brand new hot tub, fireplace, or oven. Despite what you specifically need to do before the cold winter months and the holiday season, fixing up your home in some way is definitely a must. After these inspections, repairs, fixes, updates, and upgrades, it is finally time to decorate.

Common spaces in your home will likely be the spotlight of your decorating before and during the holiday season. Smaller means of decorating include choosing flowers or plants to decorate your mantel and buying new ornaments or lights for your Christmas tree, while bigger means of decorating during the holidays can include rearranging furniture in order to accommodate bigger decorations. Perhaps you need to hire piano movers to put your piano in a different location so your Christmas tree can fit in your living room. Perhaps a table needs to be shifted to another room so a holiday scene can be displayed where guests can see it when they enter your home. After fixing up your home and being sure your house is both clean and ready to hold decorations of any kind, decorating will be all the more fun for you and your family.

Some bigger decoration projects involve being outside. Many people like to hang extravagant and strategically placed lights outside of their homes and on trees in their front yards. Some people like to put blow-up holiday cartoon characters outside of their homes. Many families enjoy driving around neighborhoods and looking at these elaborate light and holiday displays, which can make projects like these not only fun for adults, but for the entire family.

As you can see, fixing up your home does not just include dusting, mopping, and moving around your couches to accompany family during holiday get-togethers. If you want the holiday season to be more special, then start thinking about some major changes you can make in your home and just how important they can be in making your family time this winter be all the more comfortable, fun, and happy. With spending more time at home during the holiday season this year comes ideas for projects around the house. Let your creativity soar, and allow your family to make the most of being home this winter. Surely your significant other, spouse, or children have some ideas of their own. Make these fun family projects happen so the winter months can be the most enjoyable this year for your entire family.