7 Tips For Designing A Space On A Budget
This pic is from a space I designed but I never shared here on the blog! You can see the full room tour on my YouTube!
PLAN A CENTER OF ATTENTION: Plan ahead to focus on one or two statement sections of the space and let the rest blend in. One thing I see many people do is choose lots of little cute pieces that feel like a little bit of personality but not too much of a splurge, and they put them all around the room and sort of hope that will be enough to tie it together. Usually, that ends up feeling like something doesn’t “gel” and then you have no budget left for the things that will really change the feel of the room.
Instead, I recommend you pick out 1 area of each room that you want to draw people’s eyes to first. Choose one really cool, statement piece to fit there and spend a large chunk of your budget for the room on that (“large chunk” might only be $50… that’s fine). Having a center of attention will make the room feel like it has a “look” and then the rest of the space can stay super minimal and boring, aka cheap.RESIST THE URGE TO FILL EVERY EMPTY SPACE: Leaving some open wall space is totally ok and might actually help your place feel a little more spacious and high end. It’s natural to line all your furniture up against each wall, but you might want to play with pulling them away from the wall, leaving the wall above your bed artwork-less, not putting a decorative something on that dresser. Sometimes a little breathing room is good!
CHOOSE CHEAP ROOM MOOD-BOOSTERS: Cheap things that really change the way a room feels are lights and light bulbs, plants, certain colors (paint), and hardware (doorknob, drawer pulls, etc). If the space is small, I like to design with a lot of white to make it feel more spacious and bounce the light around. I love finding affordable plug in sconce lights to make a room feel a little more bougie, sticking on LED strips for some easy mood lighting, or just changing boring bulbs out for cute looking Edison bulbs. Live plants can be really cheap if you can keep them alive, and second hand stores are the place for cheap fake ones! And for hardware, my favorite is the Anthropologie clearance section, or a cute Etsy find.
MAKE SURE IT’S PRACTICAL ENOUGH: I am all for the impractical flower-shaped tables and textured pillows, but you’ll never feel like the space is quite right if you’re not able to use it the way you really need to, and you’ll end up adding in some last minute ugly-but-cheap-and-fast option to take care of what you need instead of planning for it in your initial design and budget.
If you need lots of storage for clothes but don’t plan for that, you’ll end up with clothes all over the floor until you buy a last minute dresser that you hate but it was a good deal on Craigslist. Plan for what you actually need ahead of time so you can take the time and make space in the budget to get something that you like!DRAWERS & DOORS: Some things you need on a budget just aren’t going to look that great — so cover them up (haha). Try to find furniture with drawers or doors instead of open shelves, and if your closet doesn’t have a door, add a curtain or room divider in front. Baskets or bins are another great option to use as drawers if all you have are shelves.
DON’T BE AFRAID OF A GOOD DIY: DIY can be really tacky but if you find/think of the right one, it also can be really good and not that hard. My favorite DIYs in my house are this retro mini fridge ($15), this upcycled chandelier ($20), and this daisy table ($15).
TAKE YOUR TIME BEFORE YOU SETTLE: It’s so exciting to move into a new place or come up with a budget to redecorate, and it’s easy to want to just get the project done and see it come together, but I always end up loving a space more if I’ve taken my time to consider and find what I really want as much as possible. If you have a vision, before you give up and decide you can’t do it within your budget, give yourself a couple months to think on it and see if you can get creative about it, or see if the perfect thing finally shows up on Facebook Marketplace. I always wanted a 5 ft Ficus Elastica tree in my office, but my budget was $50 and most of them are $150 or more. I was about to give up when I saw one listed on Facebook Marketplace for $100, and they ended up giving it to me for $50. You never know!!