7 TIPS FOR DECORATING CHEAPLY
Decorating does not have to be expensive. With a little creativity and these tips, you can create a home you love for a lot less than you think.
Today I have some great tips for decorating cheaply. Yes, you can have a beautiful home you are happy with and not bust your budget! Sometimes we feel stuck with our decor because we aren’t thinking out of the decorating box! Ready for 7 budget-friendly decorative ideas?
I have an obsession with decorating! And that often means I sometimes need to find ways to cut costs and decorate on the cheap. Here are some of my favorite thrifty decorating tips to do more in your home with a lot less money!
A FRESH COAT OF PAINT
A new coat of paint might be the one thing that will change the whole look of a room. I think this is the first decorating idea you should consider when you want to decorate inexpensively.
Yes, paint does cost a bit but you get a huge, huge decor bang for your buck! Nothing updates a room like new paint and gives it a fresh look!
I share this tip a lot and no wonder. It works better than any new piece of furniture could. If you like your wall color then move on to something else. But if you think a room could profit from a new coat of paint, do this first!
DECORATING CHEAPLY IS ALL ABOUT SHOPPING YOUR HOME
My favorite place to shop when decorating is in my own home. Walk around each room in your home and see if there is anything that might work in another room. I do this all the time when it comes to vignettes. A vase from the dining room, a basket from the kitchen… you get the idea!
The bench in the dining room came from the sunroom. This little change gave our dining room a whole new look and a place to sit to look out the window!
And pillows are another easy thing to move from one room to another!
I need to sit and spend a little time in a room without distractions to think about things in that room that might look pretty in other parts of my home. This is a creative exercise and the more you do it the easier it will become! This tip works wonderfully!
I move things around in our home constantly! And I’m still surprised by how fresh a room looks when I move something into it from another part of the house!
DECLUTTER
It’s hard to style a room when it’s cluttered or untidy!
Getting rid of trash and clutter can make such a difference when it comes to how a room looks and feels.
Decorating starts with a decluttered home!
There is no cheaper way to decorate than to declutter and organize!
Here’s a post that is an awesome way to DECLUTTER AND ORGANIZE HERE. This post is full of savvy and practical ways to have a decluttered, organized home, and to keep it that way!
REARRANGE FURNITURE
Rearranging furniture makes a room look totally different without costing a cent! You don’t need to move all the furniture around. Even the smallest rearranging will help.
Think about moving a lamp or a piece of artwork or a pillow! Or even something as small as a throw pillow can make a room feel fresh!
Now, isn’t that a no-cost home decor idea?
GO NEUTRAL
If your decorating budget is small one of the best ways to make your money stretch is to buy (or barter or get) foundational furnishings that are neutral colors.
Neutral furniture will stay in style longer and is a wonderful backdrop for almost any other color and work with almost any decor. Styles come and go but neutral furniture will last a long, long time.
It’s very economical to choose neutral colors for things like sofas and chairs and area rugs. These items cost more, but in the long run, end up having a very reasonable price tag
VISIT YARD SALES AND THRIFT SHOPS
Someone’s trash has been my treasure more times than I can count. I love thrifty decorating! Some of my very favorite home decor items have come to me secondhand. Finding a great deal is such a rush!
Here are a few secondhand places to look for nice things for you home…
You never know how many inexpensive gems are waiting to be found by you!
DECORATE WITH MULTIPLES
A single thrift store chamber pot lid would not have the same impact as a trio hanging on the wall!
I’ve bought shutters, soup tureens, light fixtures, picture frames, Amish straw hats and so many other things in duplicate that are so unique that together they create mini focal points in our home!
My home is full of thrifty and even downright dirt-cheap decor. It’s the way we elevate those thrifty items to work with the rest of our rooms so no one is the wiser that makes the difference!
CHANGE KNOBS AND OTHER HARDWARE
One little change can make a piece of furniture look like new! Think about the hardware on furniture you already have. Would different hardware (and maybe a coat of paint) make it look interesting and new to you?
Changing out hardware is an easy DIY project! And a way to create new interest in a room.
New hardware can add a luxe look to something you already have!
Decorating cheaply does not mean decor that looks cheap? It’s about looking at what you already have and thinking of ways you can upscale it. And it certainly means finding treasures in thrift stores and yard sales!
What did you use to hang the chamber pot lids? I don’t see anything evident and they look heavy.
Hi Deborah, the lids are not that heavy. Here is a post about how I hung them:https://www.stonegableblog.com/the-best-way-to-hang-plates-on-a-wall-without-wires-or-magic/
Great wisdom, as always. I like to clear off any space I’m decorating before starting. And, a friend once said, “shop everywhere”!
Great tip Jina!
I would appreciate directions as to how you hang the lids on the wall . Thank you
Hi Claudia, this is such a popular post Claudia. Here you go:https://www.stonegableblog.com/the-best-way-to-hang-plates-on-a-wall-without-wires-or-magic/
I agree about the thrift store decorating. I’ve found some amazing deals and nice items there. People get tired of the things they have. I do the same too – I donate things that others will love, but I’m just tired of.
Hi Yvonne.Thanks for the tips.I have always had to decorate on the cheap. Thrift stores and yard sales were my passion. I even would go to basement sales in winter.Yeh ,really I did.The problem there was I collected toooo much stuff,and now I have a problem parting with them. But ever so often I do.I am going to take some of your ad use and declutter. Hope it goes well.lol
That is often the problem of a decorator. LOL!
I often move furniture too and use in different ways, like a dresser in to DR for a buffet. I do also a lots of shop your home too! Good ideas.
Thanks, Linda. I hope we can get together once we get our vaccines.
Where did you get the large branches in the clear buffet jar? I love them. I know you shop for quality faux greens and flowers.
Hi Jennifer, you can find them here:https://rstyle.me/+PrRTQt0uXshyeQ9EtM6JTA
Like you,I am always shopping my home.If something doesn’t work quite well,I reinvent it with some spray paint.I think we all get bored with rooms remaining the same.Little changes can make a room feel new again.
Where is the white sideboard from?
Hi Britt, the sideboard was from Wayfair. However, I don’t see it in stock anymore. Sorry!
I have learned that when I buy a new piece of furniture, I am probably going to change the hardware! I recently finally found the sideboard I’d been searching for for a year, for my dining room. Got it all set in place, but the hardware was black. Not my style. I realized I liked the shape, etc of the knobs & pulls, just not the color. And they were hefty, seemed good quality. So I got out my gold spray paint & had at it. Wasn’t going to lose anything since I had been ready to replace them anyway, so if this didn’t work, then back to shopping! I am very happy with the whole piece now. Sometimes you just have to stand back & assess. I didn’t need “new”, just to “redo”! Also, I am the queen of moving furniture from room to room. It is much easier now that our new build is 1 floor. I used to move big pieces up or down 2 flights of stairs all by myself. Where there’s a will, there’s a way! One time, I got a piece stuck on the staircase & had to wait for help. Problem was, my dalmation was stuck on the upper side til help arrived!!!!!
What great tips, Kathleen. Thanks for sharing!
Love this post – it’s one of my favorite things to do – remove my accessories from several rooms and “start again”. I have lots of accessories from two homes we previously lived in. We now live full time in a beach community at the Jersey shore (South Jersey). GO 🦅 BIRDS! Thank you for all your inspirational pictures and suggestions.
You are welcome, God birds!