Whether you’re currently renting, considering a home purchase, settled in your forever home or preparing to relocate, a good book (or two) can always be a handy resource to spruce up your living space. Because rent and mortgages are still skyhigh, consider upgrading your residence with some do-it-yourself projects with guidance from these books.
Renovating your home is easier when you’ve spent a few hours browsing through “For the Love of Renovating” by Barry Brodelon & Jordan Slocum (Union Square, $49.50). From the idea, to living with it and loving it, this book takes you through the process of making your current home into a whole new living space.
There are a lot of great ideas (with pictures!) in this book, as well as step-by-step, easy-to-do instructions on DIY projects. This is a great book for new homeowners, owners of fixer-uppers, and anyone who wants a fresh new look for their forever home.
If your home has too much stuff, you’ll get help downsizing with “The Afrominimalist’s Guide to Living With Less” by Christine Platt (Simon & Schuster / Simon Element, $16.99). This book turns mainstream minimalism (which the author indicates is too “white”) and adapts it to be a life with less, but with an honor to African American life. This unique book helps readers to rid their lives of clutter, while also keeping in mind and honoring their Blackness, background and ancestry. You don’t have to live with mounds of stuff and unneeded belongings anymore. Now in paperback, this book helps you tame the mess.
Need a place for mom or want to be a landlord? Then check out “ADUs: The Perfect Housing Solution” by Sheri Koones (Gibbs Smith, $40). ADU, in case you haven’t heard, is the latest trend in housing: the letters stand for Accessory Dwelling Unit, which is shorthand for an extra home or apartment in the extra yard or lot you happen to have on or attached to your current property or even your current home.
This book offers a look at how homeowners across the nation have created new spaces for income, or to keep parents close. For sure, this book will give you a fresh look at your property and it may improve your wallet, too.
Bring on the green with “Houseplants and Succulents for Dummies” by Steven A. Frowine (For Dummies, $24.99) and you’ll never “leaf” your house. This easy-to-follow, easy-to-use book will help you have houseplants that everyone will envy. Wondering how to go from watering to transplanting, rooting to root rot? Do you need to know which plants will like which window in your home, and what plants are safe to have in your home? Don’t let the “for Dummies” part scare you; the smart plant parent will want this book on their shelf.
The young people in your home who want to put in some sweat equity will love to have “Woodworking: The Complete Step-by-Step Manual” by DK (DK Publishing, $40). Kids who want to work with wood will get a good start with this book, which features ideas, how-tos on measuring, choosing the wood, and how to safely use the right tools for the job. Once a kid knows what’s what, this book offers 25 DIY projects so they can make useful, purposeful items around the house and garden. If dad, mom, grandpa or grandma is a woodworker, this book is perfect for handy, crafty kids ages 8 to12. Bonus: you can help, too!