031110showercurtain.jpgThe warmer weather the past few days has us feeling like getting an early start to our spring cleaning here and there, and we're even thinking of swapping out some furniture and tackling a few small projects. Sometimes as renters we feel so transient and hesitate to put too much work into a short-term home, but there are still ways to make it your own...

Here are a few of our favorite tricks for affordable, kid-friendly, instant, refreshing:

• Change the hardware on your kitchen cabinets, or if you're more daring- take off the doors and leave them open.

• Buy a new shower curtain. Bathrooms are so small that just a bright new shower curtain has a huge impact. You'll smile every time you walk into the room.

• Add lamps and don't use overhead lighting if it's already there. Consider adding mirrors (our favorites are the ones that look like windows) in just the right places.

• Add plants. Even just a few low-maintenance plants on a table make it feel more like a "home." We're planning on adding a few succulents to our plant table.

• Paint your chairs. Even if you just buy cheap IKEA chairs, you can personalize them by painting them one or a variety of colors.

(Image: Anthropologie.com)