When you’ve got home improvements going on at your house, it can be a very stressful time. You don’t feel like you’re truly home, because everything seems upended. Your floor is covered in dust, there are men in muddy boots trodding inside and out, and you can’t for the life of you find a colander to have dinner!

It ain’t easy, but it’s going to make your life better in the long run - this is why we do it, right? Unfortunately it’s difficult to remember this when you’re actually having your life upended by endless construction, noise and people. It’s for the greater good! But what about the here and now?

You don’t necessarily have to grit your teeth and hope for the best when you’re undergoing big home improvement processes. There are some things you can do to help yourself as you add value to your home. Here are some ideas for the most common home improvements:

Putting in a new kitchen
This is often a very stressful time in someone’s life, since it is expensive, time-consuming and takes away a central part of the home: the kitchen. You should prepare properly to prevent your kitchen extension or improvement from truly disrupting your daily routines.

If cooking is relaxing for you and you enjoy it a lot, invest in a small toaster oven and plug-in grill so you can continue to cook meals. Depending on your situation, it might make sense to do this or just to use the same appliances that you had in your old kitchen but in a different room, while work is underway.

The kitchen is often the heart of the home so you may find yourself longing for the fun, relaxing times you had there. Propose to cook with friends at their house if you’re lacking some of this social stimulation. Alternatively, make a new nightly ritual in a different room in your house so you don’t feel discombobulated.

If it’s truly terrible and you can’t stand it (if you’ve been through a kitchen renovation before you might think “none of this is going to help”), plan a holiday while there’s work going on and avoid it completely!

Converting the loft
It can take a long (and noisy) time for your loft conversion to be finished. During this time, pets go wild, children become cranky and adults feel like they’re (almost) losing the will to live. Don’t worry! It will be over soon. Here’s how you can help you and your family deal with it.

Invest in some earplugs and noise dampeners, especially if you work from home or have small children that need naps. You don’t want noise disrupting you, even if you’re not sleeping. Other preparative purchases should include protective foam for bannisters, and sheets to put on the floor to avoid too much dirt getting into the carpet and floors.

You should do a lot to prepare for a loft conversion - talk to the builders to get a clear idea of when and how they are going to do their job. Make sure to prepare the areas that they are working in to prevent scuffs to walls or other damage. Normally, you can work with them to ensure you have a positive experience.

Redesigning the garden
If your garden isn’t giving you everything you want, you might want to redesign it. Of course, the extent of this project will depend on your needs but it can get tedious to have someone out there for a long period. Here’s how you can make sure it goes smoothly.

Try to make sure the redesign is done in the autumn. This is best as you will get far fewer unwanted weeds by uprooting the soil and replacing it before it freezes over. Many people don’t get around to doing this until spring but prepare in advance and it will pay dividends. Plus, it may be cheaper to hire a garden designer around this time as they may have less work during this time.

Here you also want to work with your gardener or garden designer to make sure you experience as few disruptions as possible. Maintaining a good relationship with the person you’re working with is essential in all of these cases, so choose carefully. A great gardener can make your garden into the haven you want. The opposite is also true!

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