Cheap Decorating Ideas: How To Furnish Your Home On A Budget

A fresh coat of paint can transform any room or area in an instant. Do it yourself - paint is still the cheapest update and there are an inordinate amount of incredible colors just waiting to be used. Furniture will also benefit from a new coat. Try to be a little more risky or fashion forward in your choice of hue - the worst thing that happens is that you can repaint if you don't like the color.

I've started to completely ignore the financial news every day since it is just more doom and gloom. With the new year, we all realized there was no other choice than to change some habits, but there is still nothing wrong with wanting nice things, right? Being conservative tends to keep some people at home so their surroundings need to reflect comfort as well as personality. If new furnishings are not in the cards, then I suggest a trip to the local consignment shops or used furniture stores.

We're not talking about the old throws Grandma use to toss over her furniture. Today's slipcovers are stylish and affordable. You'll feel like you bought brand new furniture just by changing the slip covers. Think about getting two sets of slipcovers so you can change them with the seasons. A warm, plush fabric cozies up a cold winter day while a cool chintz or polished cotton turns down the heat.

Slipcovers are made for all sorts of furniture in many different styles. These days you can find slipcovers for a sofa and love seat, recliner slipcovers, ottoman slipcovers, fitted slipcovers, shabby chic slipcovers, stretch slipcovers, sectional slipcovers, and the list goes on and on... You can even be creative and make your own DIY custom slipcovers.

Posters are another great way to fill a space. Forget the old dorm room look - the new cast of posters are being expertly printed on quality paper, and are being used side by side with investment pieces of art - you may not even realize it is a poster at first. Great websites, such as www.artriver.com, www.allposters.com, or www.art.com offer everything imaginable and even sometimes rare reproductions. Some of these sites will offer wonderful custom framing so that you don't have to spend more on an elaborate frame. By the time you have it shipped, you may be still under $300 for a substantial piece.

If you are just starting out or are moving into your first apartment, the following paragraphs will show you how to decorate on a budget.

My goal was to help a friend decorate a cheap chic living room for under $500. Since I needed inexpensive decorating ideas, I turned to Craigslist in search of a bargain. After a few days of looking around I had a cheap chic living room furniture set put together for him. The price and results may shock you.

Below are the results of my Craigslist Home Decorating Experiment.

In order to show you the kind of incredible decorating bargains available to you on Craigslist, a great experiment was conducted. Was it possible to decorate an entire living room for under $500 using a Craigslist community? With $500 in hand, the search began. Knowing that the main item in the living room would be seating, finding a shabby chic sofa was the first item on the agenda. After several emails and a couple of unproductive short trips, the pictured cheap chic couch and love seat were purchased for $100.

Once a sofa was purchased, the living room style was determined. It would definitely be more modern with cleaner lines. However, due to the solid neutral color, accessories would be needed to liven up the area.

An intriguing area rug in excellent condition was purchased for $65 and gave the room a dramatic effect.

Since the area rug had rich earth tones and unusual shapes, it was time to find artwork that accentuated those characteristics. For $37, the following pieces were found:

An earth tone painted canvas. So far the tally is $202. Pretty darn good for my friend's first pad in LA.

So far, so good. With a budget of $500, the major pieces had been purchased for $202.
Next came lighting since it is an essential part of room decor. The living room had a large window that provided excellent natural light, but was in need of some kind of window treatment for effect and for nighttime privacy. Additionally, the room had one, ugly overhead light.

Found these drapes, in excellent condition in the free section of Craigslist.

Looking in the free section secured a ceiling fan with a light fixture as well as a set of neutral draperies.

Having spent only $222, another large piece of furniture was possible. For only $25, a wood entertainment center became the last part of the cheap chic furniture ensemble. Although it had a few nicks, the general appearance was excellent, the construction was solid, and the style was perfect.