Everyone wants to have a stylish, good looking home or apartment, but making your living quarters look great when money is tight can be quite a task.
The truth is that interior design doesn’t have to cost a lot to look good. With a little creativity and imagination, you can turn almost any room into an inviting retreat that you are proud to invite friends to.
Whether you want to save money, or you don’t have much to begin with, we’ve come up with a few tips that can turn any room from drab to fab for not much cash.
Invest in a Showstopping Feature
Simply by adding one large item that really stands out can transform a room. A very tall or large plant in a corner is always a good choice, as is one large and unique looking overhead ceiling light. Think large and invest in one feature that you can’t help but notice when you walk into a room.
Turn Trash into Treasure
Vintage items are always in fashion, so don’t hesitate to use items from garage sales, thrift stores or even your own attic. Many people today are taking furniture items that were left for the trash and restoring them with nothing more than a can of paint and new knobs.
Repurpose What You Have
Sometimes, you already have great items, but you want to make the room look fresh and up-to-date. People are doing amazing things by repainting or repurposing items. Old cooking pots are being covered with twine and used as towel holders, while drawers from a bureau are painted and stacked together to create a bookshelf. Think outside the box and watch your interior design ideas come to life!
Work with What You Have
Don’t buy anything until you look at what you have. Can any of your pieces work together? Perhaps you have two side tables and a coffee table but all 3 are different types of wood? Strip them and stain them or paint them all in the same colour. You can usually find “oops” paint (paint that was mixed but was the wrong colour) at your hardware store for only a few dollars. Swap knobs from the bathroom cabinets and kitchen cabinets to create a new look.
Build Around a Focal Point
Almost every room as a focal point. Usually, this is the rooms largest feature. This could be a fireplace, a built-in bookcase, or a large piece of furniture, like a lounge. The focal point is the first thing you notice when you enter a room, so build around it. Arrange furniture so it faces the focal point.
One of the biggest trends of 2019 is to place a focal piece of furniture, such as a lounge or wardrobe against a wall, and paint the wall a contrasting colour. This will help it stand out more.
Use Your Walls
Wall hooks are cheaper than shelves or paint so don’t be afraid to use them to decorate those blank walls. Hang functional items in groups, such as purses, kitchen pots, or bathroom towels, and create a new look. Your walls can also be used for storage purposes as well as design.
Go Natural
Bring the great outdoors indoors by bringing in seasonal items. This can be cut wildflowers you put in glass containers, pine cones you can stack in baskets and pretty branches in tall vases or pots. Put river rocks or even plain old interesting coloured rocks in a glass vase and set it on a shelf. Hanging and potted plants can bring life into your home. Nothing looks fresher than items from mother nature.
Mirror It
Mirrors add space to any room. This is one of the oldest tricks of interior design – If you have a large mirror, move it out of the bedroom and put it on the floor in the living room, preferably across from a window to add light to your space. If you have smaller mirrors, group them together on one wall or rest them on a mantel. You can’t go wrong with mirrors, so use one or use several, the impact will be dramatic.
Use Those Photos
An inexpensive interior design idea uses photos in set inside clear glasses. Bend the photo just enough so that it fits inside the glass. Put several of these glass-framed photos on a table, shelf or mantel. You could also hang them up in a pattern on a wall, like a collage, for a bohemian look.
Go Fruity
Don’t leave those apples and oranges in the fridge, put them in bowls or glasses or even on a pretty plate for an instant burst of colour. Change the fruit as seasons change. You might want to decorate your fruit with bits of nature, such as some pinecones or nuts. When your display is eaten, don’t fret, just rearrange what’s left!
You don’t have to spend a fortune to make your home look fresh and inviting. Interior design ideas start in your own imagination. Let your creative, artistic juices flow and you will amaze your friends and family with your ingenuity. Who knows? They might start asking you for interior design ideas!
Ready to refresh your home?
Here’s some more 2019 trends to style your home:
- 7 Tips for making the most of a small kitchen design
- How paint colours affect mood
- 5 Interior design tips to liven up your home
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