With spring upon us, many people will be eager to freshen up their homes after the long winter, with an eye on revitalising tired spaces with new furniture and fashions. While this could soon become an expensive and daunting task for the average home improver, there are many things you can do to revitalise your home quickly and easily yourself – especially if you enjoy a DIY project.
While we typically think of them as being used for smaller craft projects, in recent years acrylic sheets have become a great way to add a stylish and personal touch to your home without having to pay out for new fittings and furnishings, allowing you to upcycle and repair rather than buying new.
In many cases, the pieces can be cut to your exact specifications, meaning you can get started as soon as you open the box.
Style
No matter what your vision is, there will be a colour and finish for you. There are almost no limitations. It doesn’t matter if you are looking for vibrant primary colours, minimalist monochrome or even a mirror finish. This versatility is a unique benefit which traditional materials like glass and wood simply cannot match.
With so many combinations, it also means that whatever you decide to do will be truly unique to you and your room.
Alternative to glass
Acrylic sheets are versatile and colourful, but their biggest benefits are their strength and durability. Their load bearing strength is around 30-times greater than a similar-sized piece of glass. As well as this, it is also shatter resistant, making it a safer alternative.
In many cases, glass is expensive to replace and cumbersome to install. Acrylic is far lighter, making it simpler to manipulate and allowing one person to fit with little difficulty.
Maintenance
Assuming they are looked after correctly, acrylic sheets can last for a decade or more. This is particularly useful when it is used in garden seating or greenhouses which may require additional durability than indoor furniture. One of the main reasons for this is that they are waterproof and so do not collect dirt or mould. Just a quick wipe with soap and water will be enough to keep it clean and make it look as good as the day it was installed.
Scratches can occur, but they are easy to polish out without the need for any special tools.
What can they be used for?
With so many different options, where should you begin? Here are just a few ideas of different projects that could help to bring some energy back into your home:
- Kitchen splashback
In most homes the kitchen is one of the most important rooms, not only for preparing food but also as a communal area for socialising and welcoming guests. Yet so many are overlooked in favour of lounges and bedrooms when it comes to redecorating. As a result, thousands of neglected kitchens around the country are still covered in the same outdated tiles as they were ten years ago.
Deciding to have the entire kitchen redesigned could be an expensive job, but installing an custom glass splashback is a quick and effective way of rejuvenating the energy of a tired space. Acrylic splashbacks can be fixed with adhesives and screws in a few minutes, saving a huge amount of time and money, while adding an instant air of modernity.
- Shower screen
Similarly, bathrooms can often be neglected. So next time you are looking to refresh the bathroom, why not consider a new shower screen? Not only does the water resistance of acrylic make it resistant to dirt and mould, but it is simple to clean. Frosted sheets will give you a level of privacy, but it is the range of colours which will bring the room to life.
As with many of its uses, acrylic is again favourable over glass due to being lightweight and easy to work with but with a wider range of colours, a new screen and a coat of paint could save you a fortune compared to hiring decorators.
- Greenhouse panes
In a few months’ time the garden will become the hub of your family and social life, so now is a great time to get it ready for those sunny days ahead. Clear some weeds, plant new bulbs and replace the glass panels in your greenhouse and shed with lighter, acrylic panels that offer increased impact resistance to keep the plants safe and stray footballs from causing any damage.
- Craft projects
Durable and versatile, acrylic is excellent for larger home improvement projects, but it is also fantastic for giving any number of small DIY and craft projects around the home that professional finish. It could be as simple as a transparent photo frame or a set of floating shelves, or as elaborate as replacing tabletops and creating garden furniture. Sheets are easy to shape with drills and saws, so no special equipment will be required. All you will be limited by is your imagination.
While it might not be the most obvious material to choose at first, the sheer number of diverse uses demonstrated here makes it clear that acrylic is here to stay and is likely to become ever more essential for anyone who loves crafts, DIY and home improvements.