Finishing a renovation is rarely about the big decisions. By the time the walls are painted and the furniture is in place, it’s the smaller details that determine whether a space feels polished and refined or vaguely unfinished.
The light switches left over from a previous owner, the tangle of cables peeking out from behind the TV and or the plasticky uPVC window frames destined to remain as your budget dwindles – these details can make everything else feel a little temporary.
But there are solutions to every design dilemma, and these final fixes can be done swiftly and, in most cases, affordably.
Ahead, you'll find 10 small but meaningful ways to achieve a more professional finish.
1. Prettify your light switches
Plastic sockets and light switches have a way of breaking the spell of a freshly finished room. Swap them for paintable plates that blend seamlessly with your wall colour, or clear Perspex versions that allow wallpaper to continue uninterrupted beneath. Pooky’s range gets the balance right: discreet but utterly satisfying to use.
2. Elevate the window dressing
Few things make a room feel more unfinished than bare windows. Our choice of window dressing can be a touch predictable – there’s no surer sign of a Victorian terrace than the neat trio of shutters sitting in its bay window – but they can be so much more. We love whisper-thin sheers bookended by dramatic, pooling drapes – interior designer and architect Emily Pun (@doingupden) has gone lighter still with a café curtain – or blackout blinds matched to your walls, so they vanish by day.
3. Switch out the radiators
Modern radiators have an important job but rarely look good doing it. Swap them for handsome cast iron versions with sculpted columns for a little extra depth and detail. Try bestheating.com for choice, or hunt down secondhand versions on Facebook Marketplace. Check the valve spacing against your existing pipework – a good match means you can drop it straight in without ripping up floors.
4. Paint your window frames
The glaring, plasticky white of uPVC window frames can sabotage even the smartest renovation. Disguise with paint – an all-purpose primer is non-negotiable – in deep tones like olive or putty to make them sink back, or a bold colour to make them stand out. It’s a trick that House Beautiful editor Torri Mundell used in her London home to avoid the expense of new windows.
5. Add (faux) mouldings
Few features deliver as much polish and definition as architectural mouldings. Lightweight coving, architraves and ceiling roses – in MDF or even polystyrene at B&Q – can be cut and glued in place by even the most DIY-shy. Once painted, they’re indistinguishable from the real thing.
6. Install hidden LEDs
LED strips are the simplest way to add layered light without rewiring. Run them under shelves to spotlight objects, inside kitchen cabinets for proper task light, or in alcoves and niches to highlight depth – always tucked away so you see only the light, not the source. Yellowish LEDs feels softer than the clinical bite of cooler whites.
7. Customise your hardware
The smartest way to finish new cabinetry or freshly painted doors? Replace the standard-issue handles for something with a little character. A coloured enamel knob or wavy brass pull adds personality and a star-shaped backplate protects your new paintwork and hides old screw holes. Matilda Goad’s playful designs are a good place to start.
8. Consider the bathroom fittings
Bathroom fittings such as towel rails, loo-roll holders and shower shelves should be chosen with the same rigour as your hardware elsewhere. Wall-mounted caddies clear your surfaces and look more deliberate than perching your sundries on the edge of a basin. Fix everything securely before the grout dust settles; drilling through freshly tiled walls later is a battle you don't want to enter into.
9. Line cupboards & drawers
A wash of colour or strip of wallpaper inside a cupboard, dresser or drawer delivers a hit of dopamine every time you look inside. Peel-and-stick wallpaper is easy enough – no paste, no mess. A sample pot of paint covers around one square metre – more than enough for a few shelves – so it's the perfect job for leftover testers.
10. Organise those cables
Disguising stray wires is a small job with an almost disproportionate payoff. Head to Etsy for discreet cable tidies, clips, boxes, pockets and even little cable covers that look like scrunchies. Run them neatly along skirting boards or down the back of furniture and use cable ties to shorten excess lengths rather than coiling them in sight.
