By Vanessa Ghantous

There’s a guarantee in my house; if we’re having any sort of gathering, I will kick off a major home improvement project just beforehand, and frantically try to wrap it up as guests are pulling in the driveway.

This year, on the day of our ninth wedding anniversary party, with a minister and fifty guests on their way over, my husband installed a sink and toilet in five hours, with just enough time for a practice flush before he got dressed. My hero.

Here are some great home improvement ideas, tried and true in my own home, ideas for sprucing up your living space, increasing its value to you and to others:

First – Lighting. Lighting can change the entire appearance of a home. It affects the way you see the colors of walls and textiles and it affects the ease of food preparation, conversation and reading. It can make a home feel warm and welcoming, clean and bright, and can add to the detail of the home design. Nothing says old and tired like a dim, generic or outdated light fixture. My friend Becky’s husband John installed new and glorious track lighting in their kitchen one week while she was away on business, as a surprise. He replaced a fluorescent ceiling panel with an s-shaped fixture with gorgeous glass shades and halogen lighting. Now their kitchen is brightly lit, and it’s much easier for them to see what they are doing when they’re cooking and cleaning. Each light points to a separate work station. It was an amazingly effective and extremely cost-efficient transformation.

Second – Paint. Again, a very inexpensive and relatively easy task can make a world of difference. Yes, nothing says clean like a fresh coat of white paint... but there are thousands of colors out there. Get creative, take a chance, try something a little brighter, or just different in tone or texture. Try a semi-gloss rather then the eggshell finish you used last time. I frequently bring a rug or cushion or scarf with me to the store to pick paint chips. Then I bring an assortment of the chips home and tape them up where the paint will be applied, so I can get a good sense of not just whether it’s the right color, but how it looks in that location, in that lighting, taking into account the surrounding furniture, appliances and cabinetry.

Third – Appliances. Appliances will eventually need to be replaced, and home buyers love new appliances. So if you’re considering putting your house on the market, this is a great place to make a statement. As you replace appliances, there are a few things to think about besides the price: color, ease of use (and of cleaning) and size. A tip I picked up from a friend is to stick with all one color, for both large and small appliances. It minimizes the appearance of clutter if the appliances on the counter are all the same color. All of the appliances in my last house were black, including my mixer, toaster oven and coffee maker. My kitchen looked better, and those black appliances were a dream to keep clean. The coffee maker wasn’t stained with coffee, for example, like my white coffee maker had been. Ease of use is a big one too. Not just choosing the direction your refrigerator door will swing open, but also whether the material the appliance is made of is easy to clean. Stainless looks great, but I will spend the rest of my days in this house trying to remove greasy fingerprints from my appliances. No easy feat, let me tell you. And size. Here’s a biggie – no pun intended. My friend Cammie bought a refrigerator based on my glowing reviews. But her kitchen was laid out totally differently than mine. Her new fridge fit in the space, technically, but overall was just too big and bulky to work in her kitchen. She replaced it with a smaller, better proportioned fridge. Bigger is not always better (true of most things in this world).

Fourth – Everything Else. From replacing rotting trim to putting in new windows to installing a solar water heating system, investing in your home is never a bad idea. It can end up saving you a lot of time and money in your day-to-day life, or when you decide to sell. Don’t shy away from a big project, either. Just make sure you have found someone reputable to assist you if needed. Check references, and request photos of past jobs if you’re hiring someone for the first time. And just because the guy did a great job tiling your bathroom, it does not mean he can also take a crack at the plumbing. And always be prepared for things to go awry. Like when my wonderful and extremely experienced and competent workmen installed a window upside down and one half of it fell out because there was no track to hold it in place... things can – and do – go wrong. Just work to make them right, and think of the end result, not the path to getting here.

I am not one to shy away from a big project, as my realtors and contractors will assure you. My girlfriends simply marvel that my marriage has withstood years of fairly major home improvements and remodeling. It takes a lot of patience, some flexibility, and most importantly, awareness about when to call in a professional if things look like they may be getting out of hand – with the job or the relationship. My husband and I are both poised at any time to call for backup as needed. And I believe my husband when he solemnly vows that he will never do any plumbing again, as I sincerely believe that it might mean the demise of our remodeling relationship.

Right now my parents are en route to Maui for a New Years visit, which means that we have a lot of work to do. The kitchen sink is looking pretty gross, and the faucet drips. You see where I’m going with this...