You know that I love to decorate my home. The only problem is my budget is usually really small or nill. That has never stopped me. Thrift stores, consignment shops, goodwill, hotel liquidators, garage sales, and Facebook marketplace are all great options. Furniture makeovers and small upholstery projects can usually transform anything that even a beginner can do. Today I thought I would share some tried and true tips for Decorating On A Budget – 5 Easy Steps to Success.
My style has been all over the board over the years. That means I have a lot of different styles of furniture and accessories that I’ve used with all these different styles. There is a lot of furniture and accessories that can transition well into multiple styles, so don’t think you have to start from scratch when you want to create a room that you will love.
If I step back and take a good look at a room that I want to change, it helps to decide what works and what isn’t working. Taking a picture also helps – it is amazing how something that is not working jumps out in a picture. Now make note of what is good about the room. Is the furniture arrangement great? Are the colors good and the ones that you love? Does the room look cluttered? Do you need accessories, or not so many? Take a GOOD look at everything. Not everything has to change, find out what you like and can stay and what needs to be replaced. If you want to change the style or update your style, look at Pinterest for rooms that you like and figure out what you like about them. What items do you have that are similar? Know what style you want or what your style is before you start making any changes.
When we moved to this new house 4 years ago, not all of my previous furniture worked the same way in this house. Even though the living room was designed with the same layout, the furniture didn’t work in the same layout. I needed to make a few changes to get the room and home that I wanted. Every house is different so it isn’t always easy to take furniture from one house and plop it down in the same spaces in a new house. I followed my tried and true plan – Decorating On A Budget – 5 Easy Steps To Success.
We all have some favorite furniture pieces that we want to use and probably a few things that we think won’t work. Take a good look at everything and I do mean everything. Unless you just hate it and can’t figure out any way to transform it, keep it. If not, sell it and make some money to put towards something you might want. Sometimes we’ve always used a piece for a certain purpose and in a certain room. Maybe that piece could work in a different room and serve a different function. It is so tempting to take the same furniture and arrange it the same way in the same room in a new house. If you like the sofa and where it is, maybe you just need to swap out chairs or tables. Maybe those curtains are all wrong and some of the accessories don’t really fit. Take out everything that you think is not working and then shop your house to see what you have that could replace those pieces. I really like to take all the accessories out and look at an empty room, then start from there.
Here is what my living room looked like in the previous house. Much more traditional and cluttered than I want my new house to be. This room was ok, but not me anymore.
This was my living room in this house when we first moved in. Trying to make what I currently had work in the new house, really didn’t work. Some pieces of furniture were just too big for the space or too heavy on the traditional side. All that dark wood seemed to drown the room.
The front window inset space was not as wide as the last house so I removed one leather chair. The huge mirror overpowered the room and the cowhide rug chopped up the floor space and made the room look busy. Trying to use the same furniture in the same room in a different house just wasn’t working. This living room had two story ceilings and huge 9 ft. windows. The architecture of this room was much more contemporary. All of my traditional style furniture and accessories weren’t working.
Now that I knew what didn’t work, how to fix it. What did I keep and what changed. The basic pieces were all good, just not mixed together for this room.
What changed. I got rid of the big mirror and found another statement mirror at AtHome for $99.00. Next came the rug from eSaleRugs – 7 x 10 for $135.00. The coffee table came from Overstock and cost $150.00. I swapped the white tufted chair I had in the bedroom with the leather chair. The cowhide rug went to the family room and I sold the coffee table. The plant was a gift. Now my room looked like me and fit the style of the house. All in all, I spent about $375. I still call that Budget Decorating.
(Notice how much more up-to-date the style of this room is. Same major furniture pieces, a new coffee table, rug, and mirror changed the entire room.) The white chair blends into the wall and doesn’t seem to take up space. Since this area is smaller than the previous house, that made the room feel more spacious. The rug defines the seating area and blends in with the beige tones of the floor. The coffee table disappears into the room and creates a more updated contemporary style. The brass compliments the brass mirror. Removing the wood coffee table made the rest of the dark wood furniture seem less heavy and gave the space some breathing room.
Where did the other furniture pieces and accessories that I kept go? Moving that cowhide rug to the family room became the grounding focal point of that room, so that move was a total win.
Way too often I see someone use small decor items and lots of them. Larger decor pieces and fewer of them can elevate a room to the next level. Large baskets, urns, candle holders, and lamps are statement pieces. That’s what you want. This coffee table arrangement only has three things, large candle holders, large tray, and a large plant. So much better than a lot of little things crowding the surface. The candle holders are glass, so they are see-thru, the tray has a lot of character and texture and the plant is unique by itself. Together they make a statement – just keep in mind how that statement compliments the room.
Make sure your lamps are large enough for the size of the room and tall enough to give you light over your shoulder when seated. If they are a little short, use a couple of books to elevate them. Replace that worn-out or too-small shade with something that is the right size, shape, and color. You can find fabulous lamps and accessories at Goodwill and Thrift Stores. Keep your eyes out for classic items that you can paint, stain, or add a little Rub’n’Buff to for some bling. A $5 thrift store lamp with a new shade can look like a $100 lamp.
Choose the style of your accessories to create and compliment the style of the room. If your room is filled with classic style furniture, then you can go modern, traditional, farmhouse, french provincial, or even transitional and a little boho. Don’t add fussy french provincial accessories to a modern room, those two don’t quite mix.
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Such a helpful post! Thanks for going through all the details about what worked for you and what didn’t — that is so instructive.
These are such great tips!!! I agree that looking at a photo can really help to put things into perspective….go figure! And being able to DIY is so helpful when on a budget. By the way, I love your headboard!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks for sharing your tips for budget decorating:)