Ways To Save Money On Budget Decorating

Good morning, I wanted to take the time this morning to talk about some ways that we have been able to achieve some designer looks on our shoe string budget that you can use when styling your home.

1) Keep, Sell, Give. Take inventory of your home. What are you planning to keep, what are you planning to get rid of? Are there pieces that can be re purposed or updated? Sell what you don't need. We downsized from a huge home and have so much "stuff". I have been able to redecorate and get my new pieces almost solely from the things that I sold. Use Craigslist, ebay, consignment, or just a good old fashion yard sale and add your new mulah$ to your furniture budget. Remember, one man's trash is another man's treasure. We've sold our old kitchen cabinets, old lighting fixtures, even old tired things that we maybe would have donated otherwise.

2) Don't be afraid to DIY. Remember the post I did on painting the door knobs black? Well after a trip to Home Depot I found even the ugliest of door handles to be around $20.00 ea multiplied by the number of rooms you have and it adds up. We painted ours yesterday for the cost of the $2.50 spray paint and they look amazing. Remember the post I did on the drift wood mirror for the guest bathroom? Well, I bought a mirror for $20.00 at Ikea and am waiting for the wood to arrive that I purchased on the super cheap from Etsy. A little glue and nails later and I'll have my designer look. We also painted 2 old chandeliers for our little girls's room and the guest room. They turned out amazing. We've saved big bucks on our floor boards by using raw wood that we purchased for $.60/sf and have someone cutting it and installing it for us. A little primer and paint and a ton of savings. Here are some pictures of the DIY painting projects:

  I'll be sure to show you the completely finished results.

3) Know where to shop. I have found amazing things on the cheap at stores such as Ross, Target, Marshals, Home Goods (my personal favorite), and Ikea. I've also saves a ton by shopping online at Overstock.com, ebay, Amazon, Etsy, and Craigslist. Here are some of my nifty finds.

 Home Goods:

 Home Goods:

 Home Goods:

 Ikea: will become this:

Overstock.com

 Homegoods pillow fabric:

 Ikea: (will be a bathroom vanity)

Overstock.com

 

Fabric.com

 Fabric.com:

Home Goods: they sell the exact same one at Pottery barn for $69.99 it is for my teen daughter's room

It was only $20 at Home Goods! It is 31" diameter and so much more amazing in person.

There is my short list of some quick ways to save cash on your budget decor. I can 't wait to get the house construction finished so that I can actually show you how this all comes together. Beautifully I might add. What are some things that you've done that cost little and saved big in your own home? Do share ~