We love our Hills homes but sometimes your home feels as if it lacks personality. Adding a cool feature can give your home the Wow! factor that impresses buyers. Rather than personal items that don’t help a buyer imagine possibilities, these features can inspire and delight.
Our top five cool additions for your Hills home
1. A DIY coffee bar
Love your coffee? You’ve no doubt succumbed to the lure of a coffee machine. They’re great but take up valuable bench space. Why not (space permitting) create your own coffee bar?
A dedicated coffee bar adds both style and function. If you’re stuck for where to start, head to somewhere like Ikea for inspiration. If you’re handy, you could repurpose an old dresser, a vintage trolley or console table, paint it and seal the top. Add your coffee machine, a jar of coffee beans, a sugar bowl and your most decorative mugs.
Bonus: Add a small chalkboard to post your daily specials like ‘Espresso Monday’.
2. Outdoor kitchen
While it doesn’t need to be elaborate, an outdoor kitchen can add huge functionality and enjoyment to your garden. You don’t need much for a basic outdoor kitchen: a workbench and a cooking surface is plenty to start with. A well-planned outdoor kitchen can be a great feature when you’re ready to sell, too. You need to consider light and shade, potential for seating nearby and whether or not you’ll incorporate a sink (which means plumbing and can get expensive). However, if you love to have family and friends over but your home is too small to accommodate large groups, adding an outdoor kitchen can not only help you to cater for larger groups, but also, you’ll avoid heating your home when you’re cooking.
3. Pull-out under-stair or under-cupboard storage
While not all our homes have stairs, if yours does, you could think about incorporating under-stair storage. Although this is admittedly inspired by watching too many ‘tiny home’ videos, we think pull-out under-stair storage is one of the most practical and cool house features you could add to your home. No stairs? No problem. Our kitchens generally have kickboards under the lower cabinets. You could install drawers there to store items you don’t use often: aluminium foil, platters and trays, baking trays and so on.
4. Kitchen herbs garden wall
When you love to cook, you want the freshest ingredients. How good would it be to talk out your back door to pick the herbs you need for your latest creation? Bring the garden indoors (and add a touch of green) with a kitchen herb wall.
You can use simple wire mesh or a dedicated vertical garden system that includes a watering system to grow herbs like basil, mint, parsley, and chives. Not only will herbs enhance your cooking, but also, the green wall has a ‘ cooling island’ effect, reducing your reliance on air conditioning during summer. If you’d like a green wall but you aren’t confident about where to start, check out Bunnings or engage a vertical garden wall expert like Vertical Gardens Australia to help. Note, however, that these types of companies work mainly with commercial buildings.
5. Backyard cinema
Hot summer nights and stuffy homes mean it’s good to be outdoors where it’s usually a bit cooler. To entertain, why not set up your own outdoor cinema? Here, you can spend balmy summer evenings and cosy autumn or winter nights around a fire pit or under gas burners to take the chill off while viewing classic family favourites. Setting up a backyard cinema isn’t that difficult. You’ll need a projector, a screen (or large white sheet), extension cords and speakers. Regarding speakers, though: unless you plan on inviting all your neighbours to your movie nights, we recommend investing in headphones, too. Add some comfortable chairs or beanbags and some blankets or throws and you’re nearly there. If you aren’t sure it’s worth investing in all the equipment, you can always hire all you need from one of the Sydney-based companies that specialise in silent outdoor entertainment.
Thinking of selling or need selling advice in The Hills?
We have buyers looking for homes in Rouse Hill, Beaumont Hills, Box Hill, Kellyville, North Kellyville and Tallawong. As established real estate agents, we’re here to help. Get in touch today by calling us on 02 8883 0777.
