Decorating for Renters: 9 Tips for Sprucing Up Your Rental Property

So you've found a great apartment at a great price. It's fantastic - except that it's boring. It doesn't really reflect your sense of style. But nobody wants to put a lot of time and money into decorating a property that doesn't belong to them. Here are 9 great ways to spruce up your rental without breaking the bank.

Decorating for Renters: Tip #1 - Floors

You just know that the landlord hasn't had the carpet replaced in at least 20 years. It's hideous brown shag, and it's faded in the middle. Yuck. While it probably isn't a good idea to go ripping up the carpet, you don't have to live with ugly flooring. Area rugs are great for covering up ugly carpet or stained flooring. Many stores such as Wal-Mart and Target have area rugs for great prices, and if you have a membership to the local wholesale club, you might find even better deals.

Small throw rugs are also wonderful for covering up small stains or concealing faded carpet in high-traffic areas. Put one at the front door, in the kitchen in front of the sink and stove, in the hallway - anywhere that the floor looks a little less than perfect, or where a little splash of color is needed.

Decorating for Renters: Tip #2 - Wallcoverings

All the walls in your new apartment are painted that nasty "rental beige." You know the color... that off-white nastiness that has you questioning whether it was supposed to be that color or it just got dingy over the years. Even if your rental agreement states that you may not paint, there are ways to spruce up your walls. You can use some nice fabric as a wallcovering. Simply stretch it taut and fasten it with staples, and cover the staples with fabric trim. Or if your fabric is lightweight, you can use a mixture of cornstarch and water to "glue" it to the walls. When you move out, simply wash the starch off the walls and you're good to go.

Decorating for Renters: Tip #3 - Furniture

Often when we move into a rental, we bring with us a mish-mash of various furniture items that have been handed down from family and friends. It doesn't always look nice, and it doesn't always match. This problem can be solved by simply tossing slipcovers over your chairs and couches. You can purchase slipcovers from your favorite retailer, or even make them from old bedsheets. Simply tuck a sheet into the cushions and fasten at the arms and corners with a decorative pin.

For tables, shelves, and other solid furniture, a coat of paint can do wonders. Pieces of furniture with varying styles can be brought together simply by painting them with the same color scheme. Make sure to sand all surfaces to be painted though, or you'll end up with a peeling mess.

Decorating for Renters: Tip #4 - Curtains

One of the best ways to introduce color and liven up a room is using window treatments. Blinds are nice, but they're not exactly stylish. Look around thrift shops and clearance sales to get nice curtains at good prices. Or if you have access to a sewing machine and minimal sewing skills, you can make your own. Again, bedsheets are great to use for inexpensive fabric. Whatever kind of window treatment you use though, be sure that the curtains can be opened enough to let natural light in during the day. You don't want feel as though you're living in the Batcave all the time.

A curtain can also be a great way to hide an ugly closet, breaker box, unused furnace vent, hole in the wall, or anything else you might want to hide from view. In my old apartment, my bedroom was small, so to save space I removed the door from the closet and replaced it with a curtain. Doing this brought color into the space and kept me from having to leave room to swing the closet door open.

Decorating for Renters: Tip #5 - Mirrors

A quick and easy way to make a small space appear larger is to hang mirrors. Large or small, it doesn't matter. The reflected light will enhance the space, making even a tiny room feel more comfortable. A decorative frame can make a mirror really stand out. If you have a flat mirror with no frame, you can simply hang it on the wall and paint a frame around it by hand. Get creative with color and design. Similarly, you can make a fabric frame by rolling quilt batting and covering it with a nice fabric. Then simply staple it to the wall, and hang the mirror inside your frame, covering the staples.

Decorating for Renters: Tip #6 - Lighting

Lighting is often an issue in apartments. There often aren't enough windows, or all the windows will be on one side of the apartment. Lamps are an easy way to bring light into a room. Floor lamps will be better for lighting the whole room, where table lamps will illuminate a smaller area. Lamps have the added benefit of bringing color and style into the room - choose a funky shape or a brightly-colored lampshade to reflect your sense of style.

Decorating for Renters: Tip #7 - Plants

If you're looking for the fastest, easiest way to bring color into your home, head to the local greenhouse. Plants are a great way to soften any room. Small plants can accent small tables. Hanging baskets are a great way to display plants without taking up storage space. A tall plant can soften a corner or hide unsightly wires. If you don't have much of a green thumb, go for hardy plants such as ivy or cactus. Talk to the greenhouse workers to find great plants that will be easy to care for.

Decorating for Renters: Tip #8 - Use storage to your advantage

Don't just get some boring shelves to stack your belongings. Find some decorative wall shelves to line up favorite books, movies, or CDs. Cube-shaped shelves are popular these days for storing small items while still bringing a decorative flair.

Decorative boxes and baskets are fantastic for storing smaller items with style. You can look for a variety of baskets of the same basic shape, or all different shapes painted in the same color, or whatever you like. Be innovative. Look for something unique.

Decorating for Renters: Tip #9 - Personal items

If you're like most people, you probably have all kinds of knick-knacks, family heirlooms, sports trophies, and the like hidden somewhere in storage. Dig them out! The best way to make your rental feel like a home is to surround yourself in things that you love. Family snapshots can be framed and hung on the wall, or used to accent a decorative shelf or end table. Old trophies make great conversation pieces. If you love something, don't keep it in storage collecting dust. Put it on display so you can see it every day.

Use these tips, and you'll have your rental property looking and feeling like home in no time.