Ten Indications It's the Right Time to Renovate Your PropertyDo-It-Yourself vs. Professional Renovations: What's Smarter? 64

It was supposed to be a shelf project. Or maybe not even a shelf — more like the offhand comment of one. My flatmate said we needed “a better place for the keys,” and instead of buying a bowl, I decided I'd go big. Wall-mounted. Minimalist. Stylish. Or whatever people call it when they're about to make a mess.

I marked the spot beside the door, took one step back and thought, “Simple enough” Ten minutes later I was looking through the soul of the wall, wondering it looked like someone had stuffed an old sock next to the wiring. The shelf never happened. But somehow the situation escalated.

That's the thing about renovation — it doesn't stick to the script. You start with one thing, and the next thing you know, you're repainting. I just wanted a shelf. By the end of the week, I had new plasterboard.

There's no clear moment when it all flips. It just happens. You go to the store for one nail and come back with a bag of stuff you didn't know you needed. That's how I ended up repainting a not even that bad wall because the guy at the store said, “People are doing sage now.”

Supplies multiply. You buy a third roller because you can't remember where the other ones went. Spoiler: they're all in the laundry, behind the box labeled “misc”.

It's messy. Not just physically. One night I stayed at a friend's place because the walls were drying. I also cried over a wonky check here cabinet hinge. Real tears. Over a hook. I don't know what to tell you.

But you get through it. With YouTube tutorials. You learn things you'd rather not. Like how the bathroom window frame isn't attached to anything.

Eventually, though, things settle into place. Not perfect — nothing is. The tiles by the bin still wobble. But now, I walk into the kitchen and don't trip. That's progress.

The shelf? Never built it. We use a bowl now. Same one we always had, sitting on a chipped sideboard. But the wall's patched. Mostly.

And that's renovation, isn't it? Not polished. But it's lived-in. With all its cracks and leftover screws.