Secrets to decorating on a budget

I’ve heard from a lot of people that a small budget is what’s holding them back from decorating their homes the way they want. In my experience, the top three reasons for delaying decorating are a lack of money, time, or decisiveness. Sometimes it’s a combination of all three! Don’t worry if this is the case for you as these obstacles can be overcome. I’ve done it myself and have helped numerous decor clients do the same. In this post, I share my best secrets to decorating on a budget and achieving the home of your dreams.

(1) Paint is your best friend when you’re on a budget

Nothing can make a bigger impact on a budget than paint, so it tops my list of the best secrets to decorating on a budget. Paint freshens up a space, can pull a decor scheme together, creates a mood, and can create interest or a feature wall at low cost.

Tips for painting on a budget

• You can save money by doing the painting yourself. Painting is one of the easiest DIY projects, but do your reading to make sure you properly prep the walls and use proper painting techniques. 
• Purchase a big box brand of paint on sale.
• Premium brands like Benjamin Moore offer multiple lines of paint. I almost always buy their mid-line paint, Benjamin Moore Regal Select. It is amazing quality and has great coverage (often only one coat is needed) which saves time and money. They also offer sales at certain times of the year if you plan to buy 3 or more cans of paint.
• Buy a tester can of paint or see if your local paint store has free (or inexpensive) colour consultations. This may cost a little more upfront, but it can help you choose the right colour the first time.
• For smaller spaces like hallways, feature walls and bathrooms, consider using paint you already have.
• Paint stores often have a “mistint” area. You might see the perfect colour there for a fraction of the price (pints for $5; quarts for $10).

Budget decor and colour

In my opinion, budget decor sometimes needs a little colour to add interest. I’m not talking about painting primary colours on all the walls, but don’t be afraid to choose a mid-tone grey or a rich beige for your living spaces. Or consider creating a feature wall with a pop of colour like navy, dark grey, or rich yellow. Or what about a mudroom or bathroom in a soft green shade?

(2) Secrets to finding inexpensive furniture

The least expensive furniture you can find will be second-hand furniture. The best placed to find previously-loved furniture is thrift, vintage, and antique stores, local buy and sell websites like Kijiji, and from friends, family and neighbours who are cleaning house and purging old furniture. Auctions and estate sales are other great venues to find second-hand treasures. However, these are more like events and take some advance planning. Accordingly, you’ll want to do your research about the items that will be offered and will need to arrive early for a better chance of snagging your favourite items. Finding affordable furniture is one of my secrets to decorating on a budget.

How to spot quality used furniture

• Look for and avoid pieces with breaks in the wood, either still broken or repaired.
• Find out the age and provenance of the piece. Older pieces, particularly if they qualify as antiques, will be more valuable. Antiques are often better quality and retain their resale value. If buying an antique, you can consult antique guides to determine if the seller is asking a fair price.
• Inspect and avoid chairs and tables that have uneven legs or are unbalanced.
• Carefully inspect pieces to see if any pieces are missing (e.g. drawer pulls or knobs). This may not be an issue if you plan to update the piece with new hardware.
• Look for and avoid upholstered pieces that have damaged or warped springs or supports.
• Avoid upholstered pieces that have a musty odour or heavily stained fabric.
• It is not recommended to buy used mattresses or lighting (unless you are able to hire an electrician).

My favourite items to purchase second hand

Dining table and chairs, stools, buffet table, shelves, coffee and side tables, headboard, dresser, armoire, media unit, bench, footrest, upholstered chairs with clean lines (easier to reupholster).

How to shop thrift, vintage, and antique stores

• Identify all local thrift, vintage, and antique stores and get to know which ones have good pricing, frequent new stock, and learn when new items come in and hit the shelves.
• Check in often as new stock arrives to have the best selection.
• Familiarize yourself with store sales and discount coupons. Some thrift stores offer coupons if you donate used items at their drop off locations.
• Look for furniture in good condition. Don’t worry so much about the colour or finish if you plan to paint the piece or have it refinished.
• Find out the return policy of the shop.
• You may be able to negotiate a better price if you are paying with cash.
• Many shops offer a delivery service for a fee. Know the dimensions of your vehicle’s storage space to determine if your purchases will fit.
• It’s a good idea to keep a list of items you are looking for and the minimum and maximum dimensions that will work.

How to shop buy and sell sites

• Identify all the active sites that service your area. You may even want to look to nearby cities if you don’t mind the drive.
• Check sites daily as the best items tend to come and go quickly.
• If you see something you like, contact the seller and make an appointment to see the item as soon as possible.
• Bring cash as some sellers only accept cash, or you may be able to get a discount for paying cash.
• Carefully check over the condition of the piece.
• Consider haggling over the price of the item, but be careful not to offend sellers with unreasonably low offers.
• Find out if the seller offers delivery or make other arrangements to have the piece delivered to your home.
• Be prepared to make a decision on the spot, so come with measurements and cash.

Tips for getting free furniture

• Check for local buy nothing websites and check back frequently. Consider placing a “Looking For” notice for a particular item you are interested in.
• Let friends, family, neighbours, and co-workers know you’re looking for used furniture to fix up.
• If someone you know is moving or buying new furniture, consider asking if they will be selling or giving away old furniture.
• Drive around your neighbourhood on garbage day. I once found an upholstered chair and footstool in great condition and a dining table that I cut down to coffee table size on the same day! Take your time to look over curbside finds before bringing them home.

(3) Affordable places to buy new furniture

Let’s face it, most of us don’t buy all of our furniture second hand. Therefore, finding affordable places to buy new furniture is one of my secrets to decorating on a budget.

Brick and Mortar Stores

Homesense, Homegoods, Target, Ikea, and Hobby Lobby are some of my favourites. These stores generally do not offer delivery so you’ll need to make other arrangements.

Online Stores

Overstock, Wayfair, and Amazon are great places to shop online for furniture. These online stores may offer free delivery.

Ikea

Ikea is a favourite of mine for budget decor and one of the best places to shop for affordable upholstered pieces if you want to see them in person rather than shopping online. In addition, Ikea now offers affordable delivery. I recently had a sofa delivered for $49 CAD. On a separate occasion, I had some shelves and smaller items delivered for only $10. They also offer a click and collect service, where you shop online and pick up directly at one of their pick up locations. To see my review of the Ikea Froslov sofa, click here. I also just wrote a post on my 20 Favourite New Ikea Pieces.

Other stores

Higher-end stores like Pottery Barn and Crate & Barrel often have clearance departments where items may be heavily discounted. For example, I once purchased a beautiful console table from Urban Barn for half the original price because it had a few small scratches on it. I was able to touch up the scratches with a little wood stain and they are nearly invisible now. These types of stores also have 20-30% sales every season, so check their websites often if there is a piece you are interested in but don’t want to pay full price.

We are halfway through my list of secrets to decorating on a budget. Next we’re going to look at a couple of spaces in the home that are particularly challenging to decorate on a budget. We will also examine how to tie the whole décor scheme together.

(4) Updating kitchens and bathrooms

Kitchens and bathrooms are typically the most expensive rooms in the home to update. However, I do have some great tips to update these spaces on a budget. To see how I updated our Master bath for $300, click here.

Tips for budget kitchen and bathroom renos

• Don’t change the location of the appliances or plumbing. These are costly to move.
• Paint your kitchen cabinets if they are in good condition and you like the configuration of the existing cabinets.
• When refinishing your cabinets consider some DIY updates such as removing some cabinet doors for that open cabinet look, adding crown moulding to your cabinets, extending cabinets to the ceiling, or adding trim detail.
• Inexpensive flooring options include painting your floors a solid colour or a tile-look stencil pattern or replacing them with inexpensive linoleum or ceramic tile.
• Affordable countertop options include wood and laminate. These usually need to be installed professionally. Concrete countertops can be applied over existing counters and are an inexpensive DIY option.

Painting cabinets

• There are several options for painting cabinets.
• You can have them professionally resurfaced.
• You can paint them yourself using a sprayer, or you can paint them with a roller, brush and cabinet grade paint like Benjamin Moore Advance.
• There are several steps for painting kitchen cabinets that are necessary to achieve a quality and lasting finish, but you can save a small fortune by doing it yourself.

The details

• I almost always replace or recommend replacing cabinet hardware and faucets when doing a kitchen or bathroom renovation. New hardware instantly updates a space and can be purchased inexpensively from big box hardware stores. Consider spending a little more on kitchen and bathroom faucets. Quality fixtures will last a lifetime and will not cause you trouble down the road.
• Add some character to your kitchens and baths. One of my favourite kitchen DIY’s is a wood hood fan cover. If that sounds like too much work, you can add character to the oven area by adding a piece of art above the stove. I did this in our kitchen and now the space has a more finished look. In our master bathroom, I added an X-detail to the side of the cabinet to give it a farmhouse feel.
• Layer your kitchen and bathroom with pretty towels and accessories, fresh or faux flowers, and candles.

(5) Updating furniture

Painting furniture is one of my signature secrets to decorating on a budget. You may want to update your existing furniture or your newly acquired second-hand pieces. Refinishing is a time-consuming process and fairly expensive to have done professionally. In contrast, painting furniture is very affordable and an easy DIY project. Chalk paint and Fusion Mineral Paint are two of the easiest ways to paint furniture. If you want to learn more about the various types of furniture paint and which ones I recommend, click here. That post also contains information on furniture prep and proper painting techniques. If you’d like to see how I painted my piano with a $22 CAD container of Fusion Mineral Paint, click here.

A fresh coat of paint and new hardware (or even just freshly spray-painted hardware) can completely transform a piece. Some of my favourite colours for painted pieces are white, pale grey, blue-greys, dark grey, and soft shades of blue and green.

 (6) Creating interest on a budget

Let’s say you repainted your home a fresh new colour and purchased some great new furniture pieces from Ikea and a few smaller second had pieces. You would have a lovely, fresh new space that would likely be 10 times better than what you had before. However, you’d probably feel that it was lacking a certain style and warmth, and it likely wouldn’t quite resemble the spaces you love on Pinterest or your favourite decorating magazine.

Ways to create interest and coziness

• Create a feature wall. This could be as simple as painting a wall a contrast colour or adding a wall treatment such as wallpaper, shiplap, board and batten, or wall panelling. Every room can use a feature wall. In the kitchen, it is often the wall with the oven and range hood or wall of windows or open shelving. In a living space, it could be a fireplace wall or media until. For the bedroom, it is often the wall behind the bed or the wall opposite the bed.
• Artwork is a great way to add interest to a space. You can purchase affordable wall art at stores like Homesense, Michaels, and Ikea. You can also create a gallery wall with thrift store art or with affordable frames filled with photographs. Or create your own art!
• Add a rug to the living room and family room at the very least. This is one of my best secrets to decorating on a budget. A rug can make a huge difference in the appeal and comfort of a space for a small price. You can purchase a beautiful 5′ by 7′ rug for about $100 and an 8′ by 10′ rug for $200-250 from Rugs USA or Boutique Rugs.

The details

• Add the comfort factor with throw pillows and blankets. My favourite budget pillows and blankets come from Homesense and Ikea. Many of their products look higher-end than they really are. Click to see My Top 10 Ikea Finds and my 20 Favourite New Pieces from the 2020 Ikea Catalogue. You can also easily make pillow covers with a little fabric and an inexpensive insert from Ikea. My rule of thumb is that every bed or sofa can use (at least) 5 pillows and one blanket.
• Add ambience with flowers, candles, books and keepsakes. Flowers are inexpensive or free if you pick them from the garden, or you can purchase faux flowers.
• Every household has books and keepsake items like family photos and vases. Choose small groupings of them to display, but try not to add knick-knacks over every surface. A few items grouped together on a tray may be all that’s needed.

DIY

DIY projects are a great way to add character on a budget and there are projects for all levels of expertise. Check out some of my recent DIY tutorials:

• Easiest DIY blanket ladder
• Easy DIY painted terra cotta pots
• DIY chalkboard doors
• Installing open shelves

Summary

What is one of the best secrets to decorating on a budget? Remember that decorating is an ongoing and creative process. However, you don’t need to complete everything at once. First, plan out which spaces you want to tackle first and create a schedule and budget for completing everything. If you have a very busy lifestyle, consider scheduling your renovations over a one- or two-year period. I hope you will enjoy the process as much as I have.