Not having the money to splash out should not be an excuse to have a poorly decorated home! This is why I created this guide to help you decorate on a budget.
It’s something I’ve ALWAYS had to do!
You can still have an elegant and well-decorated space, even if the purse strings are tight.
It’s not necessary to do a major revamp to get the style that you want. You can decorate your home simply by using small but effective tweaks that will improve your home’s aesthetics.
Here are a few ideas on how you can decorate on a budget…
How To Decorate On A Budget
First of all, before you decorate any space, you need to set a budget. I’ve just put that in bold AND italicised it. Do you get how important that is?!
And second, you need to stick to that budget! Every single penny needs to be accounted for.
If you’re in a position to barter for your items then DO IT!
If you’re not brave enough to that (like me), then get your mum to do it (or a brave friend).
Paint your walls
If you are looking to update a room in your home, painting it in a different colour can do wonders.
Not only is it super easy to do but it can also be relatively cheap.
You can work with patterns, designs, or just paint one wall of a room.
Tippety Top Tip: Paint a fake headboard! There are so many ways to decorate on a budget!Click To Tweet
You can complement that gorgeous bed that you got from the Divan Beds Centre by painting the wall behind it instead of using a headboard (like I plan to do with my bed!).
You can easily update the look of your home with just one tin of paint (if it’s a small room or you’re painting the furniture!).
If you don’t want to paint a whole room, you can paint trim, windowsills and skirting boards. Choose, a complimentary or contrasting colour depending on how you want the room to look.
You could even paint some empty glass jars to use as decorative items! You will need enamel paint and swirl a large amount around the jars and returned to their containers.
Decorations don’t always have to be expensive
If you want to stretch your money, it would be a good idea to visit bargain stores, sales, auction sites, and car boot sales.
You might be surprised at the things that you can find from these places. Just make sure to inspect the pieces to see if they are in good condition before you purchase. You will be able to find lots of trinkets and treasures that will be autify your home.
Repurpose old items
Upcycling is one of the ways you can decorate on a budget.
Look for old things in your home that you have no use for, and repurpose them to add a unique touch to your space. Like a dar ling coffee table drawer out of an old suitcase. Or using floral wallpaper to decorate inside a cabinet.
Move your home accessories around different rooms in your home, on rotation.
You won’t believe the difference that silk flower from your dining room can make to your guest bedroom. All without spending a penny! If you have plates that you no longer use, hang them up on the wall as décor, don’t worry I’ll remind you again in this post.
Other ideas include turning old table legs into candleholders, using an old birdcage as a hanger for pots and pans, or turning an old crib into a side table.
Mix and match items
Purchasing decorative sets may be too expensive. Also, your home may look dull if everything matches
Save some cash and make your home more interesting by mixing and matching items when decorating – fitting things together with the patterns, colours and prints you already have to hand around the home.
If you want a charming and eclectic space, this may be the best way to decorate your home on a budget. Group together small framed pictures, glass bottles; gift wrapped books and art for maximum impact.
Also, use the trick of mixing different textures to the space you’re decorating.
Look for items outside
One way to make your home décor seasonal is by picking up some items from Mother Nature.
You don’t even have to buy them. Take a walk and pick up twigs, pebbles, shells, and pinecones that you can use to decorate.
If you want to take your decorating further, you can use krylon to spray these items in any colour that you want.
Choose your lighting wisely!
Depending on the style you are aiming for, you can easily find fabulous lamps and ceiling lights at the same flea markets and second-hand shops where you can look for trinkets!
I have found some gorgeous vintage lamps on eBay, and I am currently waiting for the most stunning shabby chic wall lights to be plugged into the cavity walls.
They’re so beautiful!
Use Fabric:
Update cushions in the living room or pillows in the bedroom and for a few quid you can have an instant update to your home.
Again… I’m convinced that you will be able to find everything you could want or need by using auction sites like eBay, sites like gumtree, preloved, charity shops, car boot sales, thrift stores, etc.
Tippety Top Tip: Make your own pillowcases out of fabric & pretty trims!Click To Tweet
Related:
++How To Make Your Own Pretty Pillowcases
Tippety Top Tip: Use fabric & transform a dull window in a few simple steps!Click To Tweet
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Hello! I was interested in the turquoise/ocean color heart mirror in one of your pictures. Where did you get it? Or did you make it yourself?
hey! No it was a gift but I think it was purchased from B&M here in the UK 🙂
Great tips. And it all looks so bright and pretty.
Amalia
xo
All such beautiful ideas. I love all of your photos too – soooooo pretty. x
I love your photos. Besides budgeting another good reason for reusing, moving and refurbishing what you already have is storage, and environmental imprint. Lots of good points. Thanks
Never thought of the fabric idea! Very creative. Looking forward to more posts from you!
Hi DS, thanks for visiting! There are so many gorgeous fabrics that you can pick up very cheap too x
These are all great ideas. I love buying supplies from a dollar store and dressing them up a little, it’s cheap but looks expensive!
Hi Kyler, thanks for visiting! I love poking my nose around in our bargain shops too. I’m always really surprised at the amount of stuff from these discount shops ends up on eBay with a premium price tag! x
This is such a great post! I’ve just recently started to decorate my home office and I’m on a pretty tight budget so there’s lots of great info here. Painting was definitely the best decision in starting to decorate and I got a great deal on paint so it was very affordable.
Hi Krysta, thanks for stopping in! When I was redecorating I was super lucky to be able to draft in a few family members to strip wallpaper and paint. That really helped keep the costs down. I’d love to see your home office when it’s finished x
Great tips! I love the idea of upcycling, and it’s awesome how that seems to be the trend these days anyway!
Hi Dara, thanks for visiting. Upcycling is super on trend at the moment which is great because there are loads of ideas floating about right now although when I find freebies online they’re usually gone by the time I get around to asking for them lol x
Hello there, thank you so much for visiting. They sound delightful and that’s a great idea for a cotton bud stash! How are you getting the wax out? Our freezer is full of old candles that I’m yet to get around to cleaning out and Mister Heart Handmade is starting to ask questions x
I boiled some water and sit the candle in the water. It will melt the wax. You can just pour it out after that. There are a few Youtube videos that demonstrate how to do it. Just search for it there. It’s fairly easy!
Oh yeah, I keep forgetting about that! I normally freeze the candle holder and then you can break up the stuff left in the bottom of the containers and re-melt all the leftovers to make new candles. You just need loads of space in your freezer x
I never even thought to do that (mixing old candles to make new ones). That’s a money saver I’m sure!
This is so inspiring and neat. Thank you for sharing this!
Hey Mizuki, thank you! I think that lots of folks just assume that decorating has to be super expensive x
Lighting is definitely a game changer, even if you don’t do things on a budget a bad lighting can ruin it all <3
Hey Yag, you are so right. I come from a photography background so I’m always thinking about light! x
These are great tips anyone can implement. I love that they are within reach. There are so many posts on Pinterest that are just not reality for most people.
Hiya Kenyatta, thanks so much for visiting and thanks for the compliments. As much as I love Pinterest for inspiration a lot of projects take a lot of skill or are a bit on the expensive side too (I still love, love, love looking at them). Have you been on Pintrosity? It’s really good for a laugh too x
No I haven’t been on Pintrosity, but I’m definitely going to check it out!
I love these tips! Especially the one with painting your walls, it’s so true that it can make a huge difference. For now we are leaving our walls white because we are currently renting and don’t want to repaint when moving out. But I’m going to add color with curtains, rugs and decor items. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you. I love having loads of natural light so most of my walls are white and I add colour exactly like that! It means that you can change decor with the seasons too x
I love these ideas! Totally going to get some enamel paint and spice up some jars :). Thank you for the inspiration!
Thanks for visiting! I’d love to see the finished product x
Hi Kimberly, thank you so much. Definitely just keep at it! I also quite like when things don’t turn out exactly how I planned too x
HI Pia, thank you! I spotted someone had used an old door as a makeshift headboard that I would like to try out x