8 Tips for Cost Effective Home Decor {Guest Post}

I am so excited to welcome a Jessica to Two It Yourself today.  She's our guest blogger today from 4 Interior Design - a UK-based DIY and Home Decor blog.   You guys are gonna love all the tips and tricks she has up her sleeve for decorating on a budget!  (Who doesn't love that!?) So I'll hand it over to Jessica...

Finances are tight all round as the world slowly starts to recover from the global economic meltdown of 2009, and often, it seems as though there is nothing left over to make your house into a beautiful and comfortable home. However, with a little ingenuity and few pounds in your pocket you CAN make changes to your home, step by step transforming it into the elegant haven of your dreams. The following eight tips can help you get there.

Trend Hunter

1. Make Your Own: Raw materials are almost always cheaper than the finished product, and the satisfaction you gain from making something by yourself to use in the home is priceless. Buy fabric, wool, art suppliesand pieces of equipment as and when you see them on sale or as part of a good deal. If you wait until you have a project planned you are unlikely to serendipitously find the supplies you need for a low price. Keep your supplies securely locked away, protected equally from the elements and your children! You can even make your own furniture, if you so desire, by buying offcuts and odd lengths of wood from DIY stores.

Little Collector

2. Renew the Old: Save old curtains, duvet covers, pieces of furniture and other odds and ends, storing them safely until you have a new project underway. Try to never throw away anything that you might conceivably have to pay for. Old furniture, even if it seems very frail and rickety can often be saved by taking it apart, cleaning the joints, then carefully fitting it back together again with strong new glue and sturdy nails or screws. The small outlay for glue, screws, thread, paint and other similar incidentals is always going to be a much cheaper proposition than buying the item new.

Green Upgrader

3. Frequent Car Boot Sales and Auctions: Make a habit of attending car boot sales and auctions, but be disciplined! Most household goods will be your for only a small price, but do make sure that you need and like the item before buying. Sound out furniture to make sure that it is solid and in good condition, even if the outside looks horrendous! The outside can be fixed, structural problems within the wood cannot be. Fabric items should be sturdy, in good condition with no holes or frays and in colours that agree with your chosen colour scheme. Do not be afraid to ask to see the whole item, for example if it is folded into a small bag, the vendor wants someone to buy it, and they will happily show you the entire item.

4. Add Embellishments Yourself: Buy cheap plain linens, such as tablecloths and napkins, and add applique patterns or embroidery designs yourself. This works out very much cheaper than paying for monogrammed items or even for buying pre-embroidered products off the shelf. You will gain great satisfaction and have the added advantage of being able to choose the pattern or design.

Little Jenny Wren

5. Save It All: If chevron patterned tablecloths have gone out of fashion, save the tablecloth and pack it away! Try not to throw away anything that is in good condition. Fashions come and go and your old stuff will be perfectly en vogue again in another ten or twenty years's time.

Design Manifest

6. DIY Projects: Even if you are not certain about being able to perform even basic DIY tasks, nearly everyone can use a can of spray paint to freshen up a piece of furniture. Every thrifty household should have a variety of different colored spray paints – buy them in shades that mmatch you décor – and a basic tool kit that will help them to perform basic tasks, such as changing the handles on a chest of drawer and giving a bookcase a fresh coat of paint!

Rustoleum Spray Paint

7. Books, Books, Books!: Books give a room a welcome, lived-in look. Buy them for pennies from charity shops, sales and even new from bookstores when they are clearing old stock and arrange them on your shelves. If you are so inclined you can choose the books by colour, rather than content, although the latter is important if you are looking for an additional bonus,  having something good to read!

Travel Moon Blog

8. Be inventive with your home décor. Try to think for yourself, rather than blindly following the advice offered by glossy magazines. Remember, what works in a mansion will not necessarily work in a tiny terraced house. Set a budget and stick to that, while aiming for the stars: you may not get there, but you will be closer than if you had not tried at all!

Thanks for stopping by 2IY! If you like what you see, we'd love for you to pin it...and don't forget to stop over and see Jessica at 4 Interior Designs.

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