Nine Decorating Tips for When You Are on a Budget

Is your living room a little drab? Is your budget a little too tight to achieve the look you want? Then let these nine easy steps help you create the space you want for less.

Start from the base and decorate out. Every room's base is its wall and a new paint color is the fastest and cheapest way of adding life to any space. For around twenty dollars you can create a dramatic, cozy, exotic or modern atmosphere for your living spaces. Bring home several different color chips and tack them up in various places around the room. This lets you live with them for a little while, see the colors in different light throughout the day and help you decide which you color you prefer to use. Also, try different paint techniques such as texturing, skimming and sponging.

Add a border to focus the eye. With or without new paint, adding a border to your walls can draw attention to an area and add a special detail your room may need. A border can be either stenciled with paint, a pre pasted wallpaper or made out of objects and treasures. Place the border at the top your walls in order to create a crown for your room or place the border a bit above the halfway point of your wall to imitate a chair rail. If you have never done this treatment before and would like more information about the proper way first, many home improvement stores offer free instruction classes with step-by-step directions. Call your local do-it-yourself center for upcoming times and subjects for hands on demonstrations.

Cover your floor with area rugs. If you have older carpet that is threadbare and stained in spots but can't afford to replace it, utilize an area rug to hide those blemishes. A new rug not only covers flaws but also acts as a center spot for your furniture and can add many new colors to your existing pallette. The size and quality of the rug will depend entirely on how much you can invest and I would definitely recommend adding in the price of a carpet pad to be placed underneath. The pad is an extra cost but is needed to keep the area rug in place and helps cut down on wear to it. Purchasing a new rug is a rather large investment when you're on a budget but is still so much cheaper than having new wall-to-wall carpet installed.

Move your furniture around. By just rearranging the furniture you already own, you can make a major difference in how the room looks. Experiment with different layouts to create conversation areas and direct the flow of traffic throughout your home. Also, consider switching out pieces in the room with others throughout the house. A piece of furniture can look completely different when placed in a new space. This is not just the most economical tip but also the easiest to execute.

Give your furniture new life. Adding slipcovers to your furniture quickly changes the colors and patterns that are dominant in your space. Custom-made slipcovers can be rather costly though, so I recommend paying a visit to your local superstore. Your own slipcovers can be made with two king size sheets. Use one sheet to cover the back and arms of the sofa while placing the other over the cushions and apron. I would suggest using solids in homemade slipcovers since matching up the patterns of two sheets could be rather daunting. By using sheets, you now have wonderful new slipcovers for half of what that custom-made slipcover would have cost.

Redesign your window treatments. You do not need to go out and purchase new curtains to improve upon your windows, just add new elements to ones you presently have. With minimal sewing skills, which means no sewing machine needed, you can add lace, fringe, beads and tassels to the borders of your curtains. Adding accessories to your curtains will give them a designer look and will draw attention to your window treatments.

Switch up your pillows. Now that you have changed the colors of your room and revamped your curtains, start focusing on the accessories of the room. The pillows on your furniture, for instance, can bring together all the colors in your new room and help create a flow from one color to the next. Going out and purchasing a couple new pillows that have special textures or shapes would be affordable, but replacing all of them could get rather costly. Instead, slipcover your pillows also. If you know your way around a sewing machine, make a visit to the fabric store and choose among an endless selection at the remnant table. Sewing not in your repertoire? Then journey back to the bedding department at your superstore to purchase some pre-made pillowcases in your color scheme. Insert the pillow, fold over the extra material to the back, secure with a couple of stitches and you're done.

Add drama with lighting. You can either make a small investment by having an electrician come and install recessed lighting and dimmer switches or change the lighting you are already using for less. By changing the wattage of light bulbs around the room, you can draw attention to a table while making a corner chair cozier. Also, place up lights around plants and in corners. This creates shadows and a layered effect on your walls and in corners. If you are no longer happy with your current lamps, consider replacing the lampshades first. A new shade could make all the difference and will only cost you a quarter of what a new lamp might cost.

Update your art. Everyone has tons of photos laying around the house, packed into boxes and stuffed into albums. Pick out some of your favorites and showcase them on your wall. Purchase a large collage frame and turn it into a focal point. You can also re-use the frames you already have by changing what they contain. Frame mattes come in many different sizes and colors and cost much less than new frames. For a dramatic effect, take a large frame and use mattes to reduce the space available for the photo to a small space, the matte then adds more color and emphasizes your photo. As a helpful hint, lay out all the frames on a large sheet of paper before hanging. This way you will know what the arrangement will look like before hanging nails and you can then trace the frames and use the paper as a template.

Depending on your individual budget, you can use one or all of these tips for improving your surroundings. You no longer, however, have any excuse for putting up with a space you are not happy with. Remember, your imagination is your best tool and one of the only things in life that comes free of charge.