How to decorate your home on a budget!

I love the look of beautifully decorated homes whether they are between the pages of a glossy magazine or on television. In fact there used to be a show on cable that took viewers into the homes of celebrities.

It was always interesting to see  how those celebrities chose to decorate their home.

Affordable Options

Of course we all can’t afford decorate our home the way the rich and famous do but there are cheaper alternatives.

Where should you begin?
Well magazines, the internet and satellite home & garden programs give a wide range of ideas for decorating your home. The first thing to do is to get a a sense of what your taste is.  Why not visit home improvement stores and collect paint and material samples to start making an “idea” folder of what inspires you.

Determine your budget before you begin.  Everyone needs to set a budget to have boundaries on your wallet and your home! Once you’ve set one, buy a few major pivotal pieces to center the theme of your room around.  Then use thrift shops, second hand migrating sales and department store clearance areas to fill in with gorgeous accessories.

An alternative to buying new furniture is to maximize your existing furniture. Consider re-upholstering furniture with updated colored and styled materials. Slip covers offer a quick and easy solution for changing out furniture for different seasons and or occasions. Re-finish wood furniture or use a fresh coat of paint on headboards and mirror frames.

Moving existing furniture around in a room can create a new look. Consider bringing pieces from other rooms of your home. By removing some furniture you can get a more open space, and the room may function better.

Paint is the most affordable decorating tool you have, so go for it! Paint an accent wall in a contrasting or complementing color to your furniture.  Don’t have money to get all new cabinetry in your kitchen or bathroom?

Then install new door pulls and handles to give a new look to a previously boring or out-of-date door pull.  Do you want a pulled together look? Try matching your plumbing fixtures, lighting fixtures and door pulls with the same metal. This ties all the elements together beautifully!

Be creative when decorating, use trinkets from your last vacation or trip to the beach and re-purpose them to create accents in a room.

If you save and plan ahead your home can become a beautifully decorated masterpiece!

What’s your take? How do you decorate your home on a budget?

Teri Ann Renee Paisley

Gleaner online writer

Tags: budget, decorating