40 Tips for How to Decorate With What You Have for an Easy Update (2024)

Functional Decor Is the Smartest Way to Decorate Right Now

Create a Focal Point

When deciding how to decorate with what you have, remember the focal point of a room attracts the eye and helps create order within the design. If your space lacks a natural attention-grabber, such as a fireplace or television, design one. Pair a mirror or artwork with a console table, bench, or shelves to create a point of interest on your far wall.

Pile on Pillows

If your living room doesn't feel inviting, cozy it up with a pile of pillows. Gather throw pillows from around the house and arrange them on a sofa to add comfort and color. Choose pillows with different patterns in complementary colors for a perfectly mismatched look.

Display Items in Threes

Move around objects on your mantel or shelves to create a more visually pleasing arrangement. As a general rule, odd-number groupings are more interesting than evens. Arrange frames or objects in threes or fives for an eye-catching display.

Add Comfort to Chairs

Wood dining chairs and benches look sleek, but they can be uncomfortable. To add a cozier touch to wood furniture, borrow a faux sheepskin throw from the living room to drape across the seat or backrest. This design trick adds both comfort and textural contrast to your dining space.

Prop Up a Mirror

If you can't put holes in your walls, an easy method for how to decorate with what you have is to skip the hammer and nails and prop framed mirrors against a wall. A large mirror serves many functions in a room. With a beautiful frame, it becomes impactful art. When angled against the wall, it tricks the mind into thinking the ceiling line is even higher than it is. A mirror brightens the space by reflecting light and providing the illusion of an extra window.

Hang a Thoughtful Display

Greeting cards and postcards are little pieces of artwork. Make a no-cost display from all the birthday and holiday correspondence you've collected by clipping them to a wire photo frame or hanging them across a string. As a bonus, when you're having a bad day, pull a card from the display and read for an instant boost.

Rearrange Furniture

Getting comfortable with how to decorate with what you have can give a fresh perspective and change how you look at a room. Experiment with different furniture arrangements to transform the space without swapping out any elements. Try flipping the living room sofa to face the other direction, pulling furniture away from the wall, or rotating chairs around the room until you land on the ideal placement. If you don't like the final layout, you can always move the pieces back.

Turn Objects into Wall Art

You don't need to splurge on expensive art to create a striking wall display. Gather a collection of objects you have, such as baskets or hats, and mount them on the wall to form one statement-making arrangement. Consider it a unique spin on the gallery wall.

Frame Family Pictures

Print out family photos and other favorite memories to hang on a personalized wall display. Gather up your frames and paint them the same color for a unified idea of how to decorate with what you have. Here, basic black frames with white mats give this gallery wall a polished look.

Hang Curtains Higher

If your window treatments have enough length, consider moving the curtain rod closer to the ceiling to give the room a greater sense of height. Before you make the move, measure your curtains to make sure they'll still graze the floor if you reposition the rod. If you need a little extra length, try hanging the curtain from drapery clips.

Repaint Furniture

Paint is a must-have tool for budget decorating, but this versatile medium isn't restricted to walls. It can also be used as a tool for how to decorate with what you have to give dated furniture and accessories a much-needed lift. Try repainting wood furniture in a splashy color and adding new hardware to instantly modernize an aging piece.

Recover Pillows

Pillows can be pricey, and if you're getting tired of yours, try swapping out the cover instead of buying new ones. Using the old pillow as an insert, zip or button it into a different cover for a fresh look. If you're handy with a needle and thread, consider making your own pillow covers. You can even use a sweatshirt or T-shirt for fabric.

Add Pattern to Shelves

Upgrade ho-hum shelves with a boldly patterned backdrop. Wallpaper, fabric, and wrapping paper remnants are all perfect fodder for lining the backs of bookcases or built-ins. Use peel-and-stick wallpaper if you aren't sure you'll love this method for how to decorate with what you have, and you can easily remove it.

Display Jewelry

Take your bracelets and necklaces out of hiding and hang them along a bedroom wall. Mount simple hooks or hardware knobs inside an empty frame to define the arrangement. The colorful jewelry adds visual interest to your walls and keeps items from getting tangled.

Fill Your Fireplace

Spruce up a non-working firebox with an eye-catching fireplace filler. Using books from your home library, line the inside of the firebox with a stacked arrangement. For a streamlined look, wrap the volumes first in white paper. Birch logs make a rustic farmhouse alternative.

Accessorize with Collectibles

Embrace an eclectic style of how to decorate with what you have by bringing a few family treasures out of the attic. Thoughtfully select one or two interesting pieces rather than an entire curio cabinet. Decorating with what you have on hand is great, but too many small collectibles can read as clutter. Limit yourself to a few prized pieces integrated with your existing decor, which will appear charming.

Repurpose Glass Bottles

Display a collection of bottles, vessels, or vases in a similar colorway for vintage-style appeal. Instead of sending glass bottles straight to the recycling bin, check if they have an interesting shape or color. Clean and save them until you have enough to create a pretty ensemble for a centerpiece or mantel.

Display a Poster

Skip the frame and use a wooden pants hanger to display a poster instead. This hanging technique works well with smaller posters slightly wider than the hanger. Bigger posters may flop over at the corners.

Add a No-Cost Cushion to a Bench

Try this trick for how to decorate with what you have and soften a wooden bench to add style. Fold a colorful blanket over the seat to use as a cushion. Secure belts around the seat to hold the blanket in place.

Bring Outdoor Decor In

Move outdoor pieces inside for an easy addition to your indoor decor. Garden stools work just as well indoors as they do on patios and porches for extra seats and surfaces. Bistro chairs and other outdoor seating can also be relocated inside.

Remove Cabinet Doors

Remove doors to turn basic cabinets into open shelving. Check inside first, as they may need a fresh coat of paint or a good cleaning. Remove doors, fill any holes with putty, and paint or stain to match the cabinet box. Display favorite dishes, utensils, and cookware or large jars filled with pantry staples, such as flour, pasta, and rice, inside the newly exposed cabinet.

Decorate Your Coffee Table with Books

Books are good for more than reading and a convenient way of how to decorate with what you have. Bring hardcover books off the shelf to create an interesting tablescape or mantel arrangement. Removing dust jackets can reveal a beautiful cover with eye-catching colors or designs.

Dress Up Basics

Even decorating basics can look extraordinary with a bit of embellishment. Wrap rickrack trim around a lampshade, hang picture frames with ribbon, or attach decorative veneers or trim to plain bookcases. Here, vertical stripes of rickrack dress up a simple white table lamp, and lengths of rope draw back curtains.

Display Your Finds

Incorporate mementos from vacations or special occasions into your decor. Dig out these tiny treasures to decorate with what you have and create a meaningful display that integrates your personality and life experiences into your home. Whether it's a collection of shells from a beach vacation or a framed wedding invitation, even the simplest of items become display-worthy when they recall a special memory.

Beautify Office Supplies

Turn office staples into accessories to use as display. Wrap file boxes or magazine holders with small scraps of wallpaper or wrapping paper to add a quick dose of color and pattern to your home office. This trick also works with desktop items like pencil holders.

Hang Kid's Art

Kids' finger paintings, construction paper creations, and carefully colored drawings are cherished works of art that are perfect for how to decorate with what you have. Instead of stowing away these masterpieces, put them on display in pretty frames. Change up the gallery occasionally with fresh artwork or rotate a few favorites.

Hang a Plate Display

Turn an assortment of colorful plates into a fun display. Use items from your collection in various colors and sizes (or gather inexpensive thrifted pieces). Plan out your arrangement before hanging to avoid making unnecessary holes in the wall.

Swap Out a Throw Blanket

Throw blankets can add style and a softer touch to any furnishing. Bring a blanket out of storage to add an extra layer of color to a living room or bedroom. Fold a throw over the back of a sofa or the edge of a bed, allowing any pretty edge detailing, such as trim or fringe, to be visible.

Accessorize Shelves

An easy way of how to decorate with what you have is to refresh your shelf display by incorporating objects from around the house. Whether it's a serving platter you love but never use or a horse figurine you found in the attic, anything with an attractive shape or design can be a candidate. Look for objects with commonalities, such as white finishes, to create a more unified display. And resist the urge to add "just one more" item. If you have an extensive collection, rotate objects in and out occasionally, rather than displaying everything all at once, to prevent the vignette from looking cluttered.

Add a Table Runner

Dress up a tiny space with simple decor you already own. If your dining table is too small for a lot of accents, add just a little elegance with a table runner. Use a pretty patterned fabric scrap, a retired window treatment panel, or an oversized scarf.

Color Your Mantel

Conquer a blank mantel with color. Choosing one common color, such as yellow, gives unrelated objects a unifying theme. Shop your house for items in the same color family. Pitchers, plates, magazines, and pottery come together to make this interesting grouping.

Use Fruit as Accents

A recyclable option for how to decorate with what you have is to shop your refrigerator for fun accessories. Put colorful fruit on display in glass jars or footed glass bowls. Choose the long-lasting fruits of the season for a colorful, affordable, and delicious display. Oranges, lemons, and limes add a refreshing touch to spring or summer decorating. Apples are a natural pick for fall or winter.

Turn Cookware into Art

Fill empty kitchen walls with cooking essentials that double as decor. Pots, pans, baking supplies, and utensils make great wall art when hung in multiples. Bonus: These supplies are easy to find when cooking.

Decorate with Nature

Using nature is perhaps the best way of how to decorate with what you have. Why spend lots of money on accents when you can find beautiful pieces just by stepping outside your front door? Colorful leaves become artful arrangements when placed inside vases. Also, consider decorating with birch tree limbs, driftwood branches, twigs, or grasses in vases or bowls of rocks and shells.

Hang a Quick Canopy

Let a curtain panel or an old sheet act as a makeshift canopy or tester. Find fabric in a pattern or color you like and use curtain rods or cup hooks to attach it to the wall. Hanging the panel from the ceiling accentuates the architecture of the room. If you have an existing canopy bed frame, simply drape a sheet or fabric over the top.

Dress up Chairs

Dress up neutral upholstered chairs by adding a colorful scarf or fabric runner. This is an easy way to add color to a room. You can change it on a whim or with the seasons.

Accessorize Curtains

Tie-backs add style to shower curtains and window treatments. Tame unruly decor with scarves, belts, or ribbons. Choose an item in a contrasting hue to add color and interest to your curtains.

Display Pretty Towels

Towels are a bathroom necessity but can also be an accessory with clever arranging. Choose towels in multiple colors or patterns and layer them to add interest to a powder room or primary bath. Show off decorative accents along with bathroom essentials, such as soaps and lotions, for a fun and functional method of how to decorate with what you have.

Customize Window Treatments

Customize plain white window treatments with text. Print letters in your favorite font and transfer them to the window shade by tracing the letters with a fabric marker. You could also add a custom design with adhesive vinyl if you have a Cricut machine.

Pretty Up Your Headboard

Add interest to a plain or outdated headboard by draping a panel of pretty fabric over it. Cut to size and tuck the ends under the mattress to help it stay in place. Once you tire of the fabric, or if it gets dirty, you can easily replace it with something else.