Low-Cost Decorating Ideas
Canvas the Area
- Hang canvases painted with interior latex paint to brighten blank walls.
- Think big: The canvases should fill the wall.
Create a Side Table
- Stack modular storage units to make a stepped side table with surfaces for displays and lighting.
- Create miniature still lifes in the cubbies, or stack reading material that you’re going to get to...someday.
Hang Plates
- Plates in unexpected colors make a fresh wall arrangement.
- Vary hues (within a family), sizes, textures.
- Put the most dramatic plate toward the center (lay out the plates first to experiment); attach wire plate hangers and hang plates on picture nails.
Lighten Up With Wicker
- Inexpensive wicker that looks as if it belongs outdoors changes the mood of any room.
- Put chairs in a sunny corner of their own or mix them with your upholstered pieces.
Make Your Own Art
- Even photocopied art looks sophisticated when it floats between two pieces of glass in Umbra’s Document Frames.
- The wall color shows through the glass, creating the illusion of a custom mat.
Be Crafty
- A variation on the idea: Make use of mittens missing their mates.
- Cut felt to fit the backing of the frame, then use craft glue to adhere the felt.
- Center the mitten on the felt and glue it down; let dry overnight.
Go Natural
- Use shells and other beach bounty to warm up a kitchen, an entryway, or a stairwell by creating a rustic, relaxed display.
Think Visually
- Add interest to a store-bought lamp shade with the help of ribbon, glue, and an eye chart.
- (Print one for free online, then have it enlarged at a copy center.)
Fake a Headboard
- An easy paint project: Create a trompe l’oeil headboard.
- Cost: about $20 and zero floor space.
- For how-tos, see Paint a Faux Headboard.
Hang a Gallery of Photos
- Mine your albums for your best shots (pick a theme: weddings, birthday parties, vacations) and put them in identical frames.
- Hang in a tight grid or a long line—you can’t go wrong if you stick to a geometric arrangement.
Reflect Your Style
- Define a space—here, a foyer—with a mirror that adds both drama and light.
- This one is a hand-me-down dressed up with one coat of spray paint.
Bring in Shades of Colors
- Colored lamp shades can make a bold statement.
- Limit the colors to one per room, and select other lamp shades in neutral tones, such as parchment and white.
Stack Your Books
- Piled books draw the eye.
- If shelves aren’t high enough or deep enough to accommodate oversize books, stack them on a flat surface, such as a bench or an end table.
Cluster Candles
- Candles look best when massed, particularly on a spacious surface, like a coffee table; the larger the surface, the larger the candles should be.
- Group four or five pillars of different heights (same color) in glass containers.
Mix Patterns
- No matter the season, your bedroom will look springlike year-round with floral sheets or pillowcases paired with crisp white linens.
- Pick patterns with white backgrounds to keep florals harmonious.
- Drape bedside tables with vintage floral tablecloths or white matelassé runners.
Bring the Outdoors In
- Lend an entryway an earthy vibe with a coatrack made from found materials.
- Using polyurethane-based glue (such as Gorilla glue), attach a stone to the end of a wooden drawer knob, then screw each knob into a plank of wood.
Repurpose Furniture
- Rickety seating can be given a second life as a bedside table.
- If there’s a hole in the caning, place a tray on the chair to hold an alarm clock, a reading lamp, etc.
Pump Up the Color
- Perk up a dull room with vibrant hits of a color like green.
- Though this space is accessorized generously with the shade (starting with the big burst in the rug), even something as subtle as green blossoms can add pop.
Showcase a Collection
- In the months when your fireplace goes unlit, use it to display a collection of vases or other objects.
- Gather similar pieces, staying in a simple palette, in a variety of heights and shapes.
Amplify Your Space
- Tight spaces expand and rooms seem roomier when you prop up a large mirror (at least three-fourths as tall as the wall).
- It’s a classic interior decorator’s trick to create instant―if not real―square footage.
Keywords: Low-Cost Decorating Ideas
No comments:
Post a Comment