Five Easy Ways To Update Your Home Decor On A Budget
There comes a time in every home, where you take a step back and decide something needs to change. Looking at the same walls, the same floor, and the same decorations can make you feel like you are in a rut. For some, this is fine, while for others like myself, change is good. And the good news is that there are easy ways to update your home decor on a budget.
No need to break the bank! I promise!
I’m not an interior designer. However, I believe that everybody can decorate their home in a way that’s pleasing to the eye and the soul. We did some major updates to our home when we moved in, but over the past 6 years, it’s been pretty much stuck in the same look and feel.
Recently, during a particularly rainy stretch of days, I got the redecorating fever. It was bad. Since I got the bug to do a bit of a makeover in our home, I’ve pulled together some of my research, tips, and experience to share with you, dear reader.
Now on to updating and redecorating!
What To Consider When Looking At Ways To Update Your Home
First things first. I choose one room where we spend most of our time. For us, it’s the living room, which is also what people first see when they walk into our home. We have a semi-open concept with the kitchen partially hidden in the back of the house. If we want to make a good first impression, this is the room to spruce up.
Secondly, I like to take stock of what we have that can be easily updated on a budget. Big furniture pieces are usually too expensive, so I bypass these if I’m looking for a cheap, inexpensive update to my home decor.
Finally, I make a list of retailers that carry what I need at a reasonable price. Any loyalty points or promotions that I have on hand come in handy at this time.
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Five Easy Ways To Update Your Home Decor On A Budget
Whatever room you choose, there are some key home decor elements that are easily changed or upgraded to make it look fresh and like a new room.
Pillows – $15 – $100+
The easiest way to update your home decor on a budget is with new pillows. Whether you are going for a luxe look with on-trend velvety pillow covers, or a world nomad look with fringes and rich, warm palettes, pillows make a room pop. I love Ikea’s selection of interchangeable pillow covers because you can update the look easily on a dime.
Carpeting – $100 – $300+
Carpet is the easiest thing to update. We had an ancient (40+ year old) Persian-style rug that I inherited from my parents, who inherited it from my paternal grandmother. It was chewed up by a puppy, peed on by our baby and just plain worn out. It was also a dark red with dingy ocher yellow highlights. As well, it didn’t suit our fairly dark flooring and light walls, which is a shame, as they are apparently super-trendy right now.
Instead, we purchased this Hillested low-pile rug from Ikea for CAD $269. I love the modern, clean look. It brightens up the room and feels nice to walk on. Not to mention, it helps me train my toddler from eating in the living room. We don’t want to mess up the nice carpet!. Aside from Ikea, you can look into home improvement stores for reasonably priced carpets that won’t break the bank. Both Lowes and Home Depot have a good selection to choose from.
Minimize & Organize $0 -$20+
One of the ongoing trends in home decor right now is minimalism. Simple lines, fewer knick-knacks and clean design with some plants. Organize shelves and cabinets by removing decorations that have been there forever.
Keep it simple with a candle or little lantern that makes it cozy. Try using clear glass bottles to house a few sprigs of greenery in water for a fresh look. If you have too many pillows and blankets, scale them back to just a few. Put away anything that makes the room look cluttered. Less is more!
This is tough to do if you have little kids around, and they use the room as their personal playroom. But it’s doable! Remember to have bins, boxes, and cupboards that are specifically for them to store their toys at the end of the day.
Images on Walls – $0 – $100+
Photos, prints, and paintings are the easiest way to update your home decor and your walls. Switching with pictures from different rooms is the least expensive option to update your home decor on a budget. Another cost-effective solution is putting new photos in existing frames. Alternately, purchase a few new prints to grace your walls.
Even something as simple as a new frame can make a big change. Or try a consistent colour scheme, such as black and white photos, or images with one bright or muted colour throughout them all.
If you want to go vintage, hit up flea markets and antique stores to find the perfect old painting that will make your walls look new to your eyes. Changing images on walls is as cheap as $0 to whatever your budget limit is.
Make It Green – $15+
Makeover home decor with indoor plants! This is the healthiest and probably the most cost-effective way to update your home decor on a budget.
Play on the popular Bohemian trend that includes hanging plants, trailing vines, and potted plants. For people like myself, plants that require minimal fussing over and constant watering are perfect. Consider these plants:
- Snake plant – it produces huge amounts of oxygen and makes for a great potted plant
- Succulents – they are easy to maintain and pretty when displayed in unusual pots (recycle old, fancy teacups!)
- Devil’s Ivy – also known as Pothos, is very good for helping eliminate formaldehyde
- Spider Plant – the easiest to grow and the most adaptable
- English Ivy – it looks so pretty and you can make clippings to create new plants for yourself, or re-pot as gifts for friends and family
- Rubber Tree – it fills up empty spaces with large leaves and is perfect for tall rooms as it can grow to 8 ft tall (prune it to keep it shorter)
Trends To Emulate
Home decor trends such as Nordic or Scandinavian design, with its focus on clean and minimal design, are easy to adopt (look at the popular lifestyle Lagom for inspiration which is all about doing more with less). On the opposite end, the Boho look, with layers of carpets, velvet furnishings, a multitude of plants and rich colours (easily accomplished through pillows and throws) give you a casual yet exotic look.
Whatever your design choice, there’s so much that you can do with home decor on a small budget to make a room look different and fresh!
So How Did I Update Our Home Decor?
Spending a maximum of $275, we updated our carpet and splurged on a couple of gourds to add to our platter. Without spending another dime, I switched out some pictures on the walls, moved around some plants and changed out the pillows on the sofa.
TA-DA! A simple way to makeover your home decor that makes the room look fresh and different.
The next thing I have to tackle is all of the items stuffed into our wall cabinets. There are many things that we’ve moved up and beyond glass doors so that they are out of reach of our little guy.
I’m trying to practice a bit of the Lagom lifestyle and go with less is more!
But with a toddler, we’ll see how this goes. After all, we’re entering the LEGO stage. Keep us and our feet in your prayers. :)
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I love the idea of adding plants! They are cost-effective, natural air purifiers and I find it calming to take care of them.
Great tips! I love updating with pillows, but you have to make sure to sell your old ones or make sure you’re getting just new pillow covers. It can add up real quick!
I definitely needed these tips for updating my decor. I’ve been in a rut.
These are awesome ideas. I’ve been wanting to change up my house, but couldn’t figure out how to do it with such a little budget. I’m going to go out and pick up some new pillows, wall images, and some greenery ASAP. Oh, and donate about 50 percent of my kids toys.
Yes to all! I’ve made a point to get more for our home too. We need a bit of greenery for the winter period!
Agree! I try to just get new pillow covers. My house doesn’t have enough storage space for more pillows!
Glad to inspire! I have to donate most of my son’s toys too. They are getting out of hand. I anticipate he’ll get more for Christmas. Time to do a purge!