My daughter bought a HUD house this last spring. Oh, my. The projects she has completed and the projects yet to be tackled! Everything from roofing to doors to patching walls and coaxing grass from a backyard weed patch. Wow, could it ever be expensive! She thought she would have to live with a mess in most of it while slowly fixing it up. The house needed interior doors, a shower stall, kitchen sink, den floor... enter the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store.
I went with her on the first visit. We were awed. Besides wonderful dining room tables, dishes, lighting, doors, nuts and bolts and living room furniture, there was the proverbial kitchen sink. Several of them, as a matter of fact. And for $10?? Sure beat the big box store price.
The house had a den with a nice fireplace and that's all you could say about it. It had been panelled that awful 60s brown and the floor was cracked and broken tile. Some of the panelling was falling down - well, you get the idea. It was a mess. She pulled up the tile and painted the floor white, adding speckles of metallic gold and turquoise then putting a top coat on that. I helped her paint the walls white with pale blue trim.
Then we went to the ReStore. Lo and behold, there was an overstuffed black, gold and turquoise love seat and chair! It looked perfect. A fake bear rug is all it needs now to be the coziest (and cheapest) den in town.
Moral of this story: Shopping second hand for home projects can save tons of money and allow you to do things you never thought you could afford.
Another person discovers the Habitat Restore
Habitat for Humanity Restores
Another source: estate sales
Best deals for living room furniture
