Hello friends!
One of my friends recently complimented my house as being “attainably lovely” and that struck me as such a wonderful phrase! As much as I love Pinterest home decor, it often feels unrealistic, expensive, and uncomfortable to actually live in. What if you live in a normal house without room in your budget for Anthropologie and antiques?
Here are a few tips on how to tastefully decorate your house in inexpensive and attainable ways.
“Reupholster” old or mismatched furniture with blankets and pillows. Almost all our furniture was donated or loaned by family or friends who no longer needed them, which was such a blessing! That also means we have some rather mismatched and old pieces. I love bringing it all together with blankets and pillows. I “reupholstered” most of this chair by covering it with a bright blanket I crocheted from scrap yarn.
Bring in nature to display.Bring some of the outdoors in along with a breath of fresh air for your home. Try filling a vase, jar, or recycled glass bottle with interesting nature finds. In winter, look for budding branches, evergreen or pine greenery, or interesting dried weeds (teasel, milkweed, goldenrod, cattails, holly berries, etc.). In spring, find flowering branches or wildflowers—you can even pick the tiny blooms off backyard weeds and float them in a bowl. In summer wildflowers grow by the side of the road or in your yard. And fall is good for berries like bittersweet or privet, and colored foliage.
Put plants everywhere!No decoration gives life to a home like plants, in my opinion. I recommend starting with a pothos plant. They’re one of the easiest to maintain: just put it in well-draining flower pot, water it once a week or so, and place it close to a sunny window. They’re also simple to propagate. Snip a vine off several leaves up from its end and stick it in clean water until it grows roots and can be planted. I’ve had one pothos vine for years and made like 8-10 new (free) plants from it. You can also grow your own avocado plant from seed—my sister grew this one for me!
Repaint boring wood furniture. I found this plain wooden chair at Goodwill for like $4 and painted it to be a super cute conversation piece for my living room! You can either spray paint a whole piece or do something as simple as adding small painted or stenciled details. Chairs, cabinets, stair risers, etc.
Hang fairy lights and use lamps.Fairy lights are pretty cheap and lend a magical warmth to any room, especially bedrooms. String lights and lamps are other good ways to provide cozy ambient lighting.
Go for natural materials when possible.Unfortunately most quality materials are also usually more expensive, but if you find a good sale (or a good thrift deal) of linen, cotton, wooden, or other natural materials, definitely choose them over man-made items. They’ll last longer and give a classy and beautiful look to your home. This is also a great thing to put on wishlists: I got linen bedding with some Christmas money and can already tell it was a good investment!
Thrift!Duh. 😛 I couldn’t make an “affordable decor” post without mentioning thrifting. You can find so many unique and interesting pieces for WAY less than shopping online or at brand stores with some patience. A few good decor items to thrift instead of buying new: flowerpots, candles, candlestick holders, wood furniture, rugs, dishes and glassware, baskets, organizing containers, and picture frames.
Keep small knickknacks to a minimum.This is my personal preference. I feel like even the most interesting and artistic knickknacks can easily overwhelm a house and make you feel more like you’re in a crowded antique store than a peaceful home. I think I need to go through this bookshelf display and remove a few items again. It’s still cute though.
Replace ugly useful things with pretty useful things and display them.If you’re going to use a watering can, tea pitcher, or container to hold your kitchen utensils, search for one that’s both pretty and practical. You don’t have to buy a lot of extra decorations if the things you use every day are beautiful on their own.
Clean and declutter.Another obvious but very important one. Obviously your house won’t always be clean—and the ones that look that way seem uncomfortable to live in. Still, when the urge comes to bring more peace and beauty to your home, cleaning and decluttering unnecessary belongings is a fabulous (and free!) place to start.
Organize in baskets or cloth bins.Wicker or wooden baskets, neutral fabric bins, or even ottomans/coffee tables that double as storage are much more aesthetic than plastic containers. Store toys, blankets, bathroom essentials, etc. like this. You can also hide ugly flower pots in baskets!
Make your bed the fancy way!Your bedroom will instantly look prettier if you make your bed neatly, turn back the sheets and covers, stand up the pillows at the headboard, layer in a few smaller ones, and throw a coordinating blanket over the end of the bed. It only takes a couple of minutes and makes a huge impact.
Choose and stick to a limited color palette.I like to think of this as decluttering, but with colors. It has the same effect as getting rid of extra stuff. For ultra-coziness, use natural, soft, or earthy tones. But of course go colorful and bold if that’s more you.
Swap out small things.There are a number of small, fairly inexpensive things you can swap out for a big impact. These include shower curtains, bath rugs or linens, pillow cases, artwork, blankets, hand towels/tea towels, and tablecloths or table runners. I love hanging glass prisms in my windows that scatter tiny rainbows on the walls in the afternoon. ❤
Hang art or photos on your walls.I think a house doesn’t look truly like a home until it has something on the walls. Thrift frames that go together (like gold textured frames) and even art too if you want. You can also find affordable, beautiful printables on sites like Etsy.com, keep and display pretty postcards or greeting cards you receive, hang old maps or book pages, or make your own art!
DIY decorations instead of buying them.Macrame plant hangers, painted candlesticks, crochet blankets, clay mushrooms for terrariums, paintings and drawings… the list goes on. Pinterest is full of fun tutorials. Just keep in mind the “limiting knickknacks” tip. 😉
Have patience with the process.One of the hardest but most useful tips is to not buy everything you want at once. You can start out with pieces that are merely functional, slowly replacing them with prettier and better things as you find good thrift deals, sales, donated items, etc. Contentment and patience are the ultimate key to saving money while decorating.
If you enjoyed this post and want to save the inspiration for later, feel free to pin the image below!
I had so much fun making this post and I hope you guys had fun reading it. Homemaking is one of my favorite things and I love sharing it with you on this blog!
What are some of your favorite interior decorating tips?
Thanks so much for reading, my friends, and have a lovely day!
***Allison***
P. S. Photos taken with my Nikon D7200 and a 50mm lens. Edited with Lightroom.
