How can I start if not with the obvious. What a crazy world we live in right now. We’ve all been advised to stay at home. And as much as I love my home and staying in it, it has suddenly become much harder for all sorts of reasons. On top of everything else staying home also means that we can’t run away from all the unfinished DIY projects that were meant to be finished a long time ago. All the dents, holes and paint chipping off the walls… So I’ve written this post to give you few ideas for decorating on a budget. In fact – without spending any money at all!
Stay at home and love your home!
While you might not be able to do a top to bottom house renovation at the moment (shops are closed, money is tight) you can still make your home look that little bit nicer. Without spending any money or in fact without a single trip to the shops you can turn your house into a relaxing place to be in. How? I call it cheating. YES – CHEATING! By drawing an eye to what’s nice in the room or creating a feature point and making things like marks on the walls disappear in the background.
My top tips for decorating on a budget!
Now, let’s get back to what I just said. That bit abut cheating. YES! I do that a lot! In fact, I do that all the time! I hide unfinished (or unsuccessful) projects, marks on the floor or stains on the sofa under yet another cushion, throw, rug or whatever I can think of. Obviously randomly placed cushion on the floor will only raise more suspicion, but they do the trick when you place them on the sofa.
Add cushions, throws and blankets
We’ve had our sofa for nearly six years now an I am desperate to change it for something slimmer, darker and less stained but let’s be honest – it is a bit low on our priority list at the moment. So I cheat! Cushions an throws not only cover all the stains but also create this mega cosy corner for watching Netflix.
Any suggestions on what I should watch next? Share them in comments, I will be forever grateful (or at least for as long as the lock-down lasts).
If you don’t have many cushions in your living room, look around the house. And bring them all down! No cushion covers? No problem. Use scarfs to wrap your cushions around. Tie the scarf at the back or make a bow as a decoration at the front of the cushion. Or if you’re a crafty person you could try sawing cushion covers yourself. I tried and failed so don’t expect any tips from. And how about trying different cushion arrangements to see which one you like most? Don’t forget the blankets too!
Remember! Cushions and throws are great for disguising stains on your old sofa! And cost less than a new sofa too!
You could even try to accessorize some of your old cushions an blankets by adding pompoms or tassels. If you don’t know how check out my old blog post here for a full tutorial on adding tassels to a blanket.
Restyle your living room
The photos above are the most recent ones. But only until about two weeks ago our living room sofa was positioned against the opposite wall. I moved all the furniture myself and it took me just couple of hours. There were no shopping trips and no money was spent for this quick room makeover. But it made a massive impact on how we use this space. Not to mention that it gave us the cosiest corner for watching TV!
Try it yourself… It is probably the easiest way of decorating on a budget and one that will make you want to stay at home! Just remember to measure the length and width of your furniture before you start dragging them around. Or even better – plan it first and draw up few different layouts on a piece of paper. That will save you some time (and weight lifting) .
And here’s a photo from last month (I still don’t know which layout I like best, but everything is short lived in our house)
Swap your bed linen for an instant bedroom makeover
How many bedding sets do you own? Are they all different? Or the same? I like to buy different bed linens so that each time I change them our bedroom looks completely different. Then I like to swap some of the accessories too to match the bed. I understand that not everyone has spare home accessories but most certainly you own few spare sets of bed linen. And now it’s the time to change them even more often and give your bedroom a refresh. It might be a small change but it’s free and without any unnecessary trips to the shops. Definitely one of the best home decorating on a budget ideas you can try now!
The white bed linen is my favourite, most luxurious, bedding set. It’s from an independent online brand called The Cotton Poet, which I had a pleasure to work with. Click here to visit their website.
Remove your kitchen cupboard doors
I have recently removed our top kitchen cupboard doors in preparation for a kitchen revamp. The plan is to install open shelves instead. But I wanted to live with the open shelves look without making any changes first to make sure I liked it. Well… I like it! But as the shops are closed now, the revamp will have to wait. But that’s not a bad thing because I actually like how it looks now. So if you have itchy feet and your desire to change something in your house can’t wait until the shops reopen, here’s an idea for you. Remove your kitchen cupboard doors and let your beautiful dinnerware and cups collection shine! But make sure that these are the items you use (and wash) on daily basis as otherwise they will quickly get covered in dust.
Use your best tableware – it counts as decorating too
I could never understand my mum why she always kept (and still does) her best tableware for guests. And it’s not even for her friends and family. It’s for big parties only that she throws maybe twice a year! In Rose from Titanic (Kate Winslet) words – “This is absurd!”
So if you’re like my mum – stop it now! Use your best plates and cups every day. When you’re with your family an when you’re alone. Cherish them, look at them, talk about them, this is why you got them at the first place. Don’t hide your best tableware in the cupboards. It’s called tableware for a reason.
Drinking tea from your best cup will surely put a smile on your face. Plus they look nice on the table too so even if you don’t clear your table straight away, it won’t look messy – it will look stylish.
Add flowers and candles
OK, I know you actually have to go out to buy flowers or candles, but it still counts as decorating on a budget, right? Especially when you pick them up while shopping for food in your local supermarket. Aldi has a really good selection of fresh flowers and you won’t have to spend more than 5 quid. When choosing candles I like to go for colour and smell to make sure they’re gonna look nice on my table as well make the house small of fresh linen or lavender (these are my favourite scents).
Rearrange your gallery wall (or start one)
Galley walls are the best ways to express yourself. And they have one more advantage. Pictures on the wall hide marks an holes and they distract an eye in case there is something else you don’t want people to see (like a leak from the ceiling in the corner of the room). So even if you’re not the biggest fan of them, they are your best shot if the walls in your room are less than perfect. Technically it isn’t a free way to decorate a house but some pictures and quotes can be printed at home (like my “Less house, more home” in the corner). As for the frames, these can also be picked up from your local supermarket while you’re out, food shopping.
When decorating on a budget it is important to think about the whole look. If most (or all) of your frames are the same (even if they are the cheapest ones) there will be nothing to compare them to. And no one will even notice it (not even you).
Become a queen (or king) of DIY and home decorating on a budget in your home
Are you new to DIY? Or maybe you’re already a pro? Go even further by using your creativity. Make something out of nothing. Without a single trip to your local DIY store and without spending any money at all. There are so many ideas on the internet. Just dig deep in your shed, storage or garage. You’ll definitely find something you can reuse or recycle. A wooden board? Make it into a shelf! Few tester pots of paint? Paint a rainbow! The only limit is your imagination… Have you seen my DIY leather belt shelf? If you’ve missed it click here for a full tutorial. Or get your garden ready and build an outdoor sofa out of pallet boards with a full tutorial here.
Or try these websites for other easy DIY tutorials:
Whatever you do just stay true to yourself, don’t fake a style that’s not you, just because others do it. Relaxed, honest and not so perfect interiors are the most stylish ones. An that’s the secret to decorating on a budget!
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