Budget Design
There is nothing wrong with saving money (whether you need to or not). There tends to be a lot of shame around needing/wanting to spend less but I am pretty anti-shame. Think about the vacations you can take with the money you’ll save over the years. Or perhaps you can put it in a low-risk high-yield stock over many years and retire early. OR you can just be happy to have saved money and have your home looking beautiful. Whatever floats your boat. Also, I’m gonna be honest with you… some of these bullet points are much longer than others. Deal with it.
Thrifty thrifty
(be scrappy)
Use your local options to find furniture and home goods for less. BONUS - you can also use these resources to sell or donate items you have that no longer serve you.
Facebook Marketplace
Make sure your location is set correctly with the distance you’re willing to drive for items. The items you click on inform the algorithm, which you can use to your advantage. If you’re looking for a sofa, search ‘sofa’ and click on links for some. You’ll start seeing more ads for sofas in no time.
Craigslist
No algorithm here. Use this to your advantage by clicking on funny ads for your own entertainment (I recommend mirrors).
Garage Sales
Beware of crap you don’t need/love.
Habitat for Humanity
Goodwill
Estate Sales
Go early.
2. Lamps, Vases & Decor
(just paint it)
Lamps, vases, planters, statues, and picture frames can be found at local thrift shops or donation centers (Goodwill, etc - see list above). You may find a beautiful picture in a frame in an outdated wood tone. You might score a large vase in a beautiful shape but ugly color for six bucks. You could find yourself a perfect size $10 planter with a hideous color scheme. You can easily get a paint sample from your local hardware store for less than five bucks to totally transform it into something brand new. I’ve even added a little baking soda to paint to make an ugly, but large and beautifully shaped vase look hand-made. An outdated lamp with a fresh coat of paint can really transform a space. On the subject of lamps, you can sometimes find really great lamp shade at these donation centers, which saves you a LOT of money.
3. High End (looking)
Window Treatments
(hang ‘em right)
The most defining characteristic of curtains is HOW they are hung. You can spend hundreds on 100% linen curtains or custom sheer curtains only to hang them too low and make them look cheap. I’m also very anti-grommets (so cheap looking). How to get a custom, high-end look on a budget…
Prepare; I almost NEVER use the molly anchors provided with a curtain rod. I always buy a bulk pack of 50 or 100 at Lowes or Home Depot and keep them around for all of my curtain needs. I typically get the self-tapping anchors in white. You’ll need a level, measuring tape, pencil, drill, and phillips screwdriver. Plus all of the stuff purchased below (duh). Ooh and maybe you could get one of those cool tool belts and look really official.
Plan; You are going to hang these curtains HIGH AND WIDE. If you have a wide window and don’t match it with wide/full curtains, the scale will be off and it won’t look high-end. If you hang your curtains right above the top of the window, or - God forbid - ON the window trim, all of the space between the curtain rod and the ceiling will make the room feel smaller. Hang them high (around 2” below the ceiling is my recommendation) to bring your eyes up and make the room feel larger. These details have an impact on what size curtain rod you will purchase AND the curtain length. Make sure you measure for all of these details BEFORE buying the following items.
Purchase curtains; Buy cost effective curtains on Amazon, Wayfair, Facebook Marketplace, Ikea, Target, TJMAXX, or wherever. NEVER go with grommets (the curtains with the metal rings built-in)... I’m anti-grommets. They look mass-produced and cheap. Check out my product compilation blog post to see some items I recommend. I typically recommend at least two curtain panels on each side (four panels total) for a more full-looking setup.
Purchase curtain rod; Buy a curtain rod in a larger diameter (one inch minimum, unless going for a cafe-look) with simple finials (the different shaped pieces on either ends of the curtain rod). You can find simple, elegant ones on Amazon (Umbra is a good one) or through Ikea. I also love using curtain rings. You can find these on Amazon or check wherever you purchased the curtain rod. Make sure they are the correct diameter for your curtain rod.
Install; Hang your curtain rod after taking measurements and marking your screw holes and blah blah blah. I suggest installing two brackets for smaller width windows and three (one on each end and one in the middle) for wider windows. I use molly anchors so the brackets don’t loosen/pull away from the wall over time. I also install the brackets on either end two or three inches in, leaving a couple inches for the curtain rod to overhang. This way, you can hide the bracket by putting one curtain ring behind it (so it’s behind the last ruffle in your curtains). I usually steam my curtains with a steamer I bought from Costco (it’s also an iron… it’s awesome).
Enjoy your curtain glow-up.
4. Ikea Hacks
Must I say more?
Yes, I must suggest you search them on YouTube or other blog posts (I have one on picture frames).
