If there’s one thing that the super rich love doing, it’s pimping their mega-mansions. It’s almost a rite of passage for them – something they feel they have to do in order to feel a part of their exclusive club. The good news is that a lot of what they end up doing can be replicated in our own homes, sometimes at a tiny fraction of the cost. Here are some of the ways that the rich and famous have pimped out their homes.

Install A Waterfall

Water features are an essential part of pimping up any home. But now a home in Tiburon, California has taken the concept a step further by including a 10-foot waterfall on the inside of the house. The home itself looks more like a temple and has been dubbed “The Nirvana House” which is in keeping with the state’s new age vibes. The future owner of the house will be able to turn the waterfall up or down, from peaceful stream to raging torrent, depending on his or her mood.

[Photo courtesy of Alistair McMillan/wikipedia.org]

The house itself is listed for sale at more than $11 million on a San Francisco brokerage site. That’s pretty steep for most folks, but there’s no reason why you couldn’t include your own waterfall feature in your front garden.

Bullet-Proof Windows

When you’ve got an expensive home, there’s a lot of stuff you need to protect, including the occupants. Bulletproof windows not only stop bullets, but they also prevent the windows being smashed in and thieves entering your home. Bullet-proof glass comes in different grades. The weakest grades will stop a bullet, but repeated assault with a blunt instrument can still smash them. Companies, however, have developed glass hybrids which reflect impact energy and transfer it back into the person hitting the window, preventing breakage.

[Photo courtesy of GregoryButler/pixabay.com]

Heavy-duty glass is, understandably, expensive. However, it’s not necessarily out of the range of many well-to-do homeowners looking for an extra little bit of protection. A house near Central Park in New York recently sold for more than $25 million, complete with a triple layer of bullet-proof glass.

Indoor-Outdoor Pools

[Photo courtesy of Dylan Tweney/flickr.com]

Those who live in temperate climes have a dilemma on their hands when it comes to swimming pools. Should they be built indoors or outdoors? Well, why not both. The owners of a mansion in Snowmass, Colorado have decided to build a swimming pool with half of it inside their home and the other half outside, surrounded by a patio area overlooking the mountains. The exterior painting is designed to complement the outdoor part of the pool, while the indoor section is plain masonry. Will your new pool be as uncompromising?

Home Theatre

Home theaters are all the rage among the rich and famous, especially among actors who can enjoy spending hours watching themselves on the big screen. It’s not unusual for the super-rich to spend upwards of $2.5 million on a home theater, just to watch a DVD that cost $8. The most famous example of a home theater inside a mega-mansion is the theater in the Ziegfeld mansion.

If you feel like it is time to give your home a new lease on life, then there are plenty of things you can do. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be a huge mission. With just a few simple changes and additions, you can make your home a little more lively and liveable in no time at all. What’s more, with the right approach, it doesn’t even need to cost you that much. In reality, this is a good time of year to get started with a project like this. The days are long, the sun is shining, and it is likely that you find yourself with plenty of energy, even well into the evening. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the simple things you can do to spruce up your home. Easily, quickly, and without any of the fuss – or cost.

[Photo courtesy of Binyamin Mellish/pexels.com]

Spring Cleaning

It is never a bad time for a touch of spring cleaning – even if spring has been left far behind. If you want your home to take on a new life in no time at all, then this is one way to achieve just that. A lot of the time, people don’t particularly want to do this – for one reason or another. However, if you can pluck up the energy to get it done, you will be glad that you did. Really, all that you need to do to notice immediate results is give the main living areas a bit of a touch up. Go through the living room, and probably the kitchen and bathrooms, first. Just doing this will make a considerable difference to how you feel in the home.

[Photo courtesy of mikadago/pixabay.com]

Gardening

All too often, people forget about just how important the garden is to the overall feel of the house. The truth is, it is vital. If you want your home to look as good as possible as soon as possible, you need to spend some time in the garden. One of the most important aspects of looking after your garden is the lawn care. Done right, looking after your lawn can mean the difference between a happy and beautiful garden and one which you would rather not look at. With it being the time of year it is, you really don’t want to leave this one any longer than necessary. Otherwise it might be overgrown before you even know it.

[Photo courtesy of unsplash.com/pexels.com]

Furniture

One great way of making a place seem like new in moments is to refresh the furniture. Don’t worry, this doesn’t necessarily mean buying new furniture. Most people can’t afford to do that very often, so it would not be a viable option. However, simply changing the furniture around can make a world of difference to how the living room and bedrooms feel when you step into them. Considering rearranging things once in a while, just to see how it looks. It’s not the end of the world if you don’t like it – you can always switch it all back.