Clever Design Ideas that Only Look Expensive

No money? No problem.  You can still have high style with a low budget.  Change your decor frugally with these six simple tips. 

  Choose a neutral colour scheme to make it easier to add your personal flair. It’s cheaper to add splashes of colour and fun textures to a neutral colour palette than trying to match accessories to bold room colour choices.

  Scour websites such as Craiglist and Kijiji for cheap paint. There may be enough paint for a feature wall in your room. Another place to look for paint is at an Ecostation or another similar facility which provides free paint for reuse.

  Check out websites and local second hand places for feature pieces that complement your overall décor choice. Stick to your theme and be choosy or you could end up with several pieces that are nice looking, but do not look right together.

Other options for wall decorations that can be customized are special wall art pieces. A search on Ebay will show thousands of different styles of wall art pieces that are removable and inexpensive.

  Get crafty. Look for fabric in second hand stores or local websites to make pillow covers. If you can’t sew, a quick search on google for “no sew pillow wrap” will guide you through a way to wrap a pillow with your new fabric. If you’re really ambitious, you could make a throw or curtains.

  Organize a décor swap. Invite friends over to bring paint, accessories, fabric, etc. to swap with each other. Still having a difficult time imagining yourself completing this “daunting” task? Ask yourself these questions:

• What kind of rooms do I like? (calm rooms with soothing warm colours, funky rooms with artistic touches, shabby chic, etc.)
• What is the intention of this room and how does my décor fit in with this? (relaxation room, activity room, workout area, etc.)
• How much do I want to change in this room? (Do I want a whole room change or just a freshening up?) Give yourself some honest feedback about your ideas and have a get together! • Invite your friends over to help you narrow down your theme and choices of décor.
• Take what you can out of all feedback. It may be something that you don’t agree with, however there’s always a grain of information out of critical feedback that is useful.
• Ask your friends if they’d be willing to look out for you for anything that fits your theme or organize friend time around mutual thrift shopping visits.

The bottom line is really just finding a look that makes you happy! A little time searching can mean a unique and interesting theme for your room that has your flair written all over it. The most important thing to remember is to have fun!