While it would be wonderful to be able to change the look and feel of your home every season and keep up with the Pantone color of the year, the reality is not a lot of us have the funds, the time or inclination. So, how do you make your home look elegant on a budget using the below home decor tips?
15 Budget-Friendly Ways to Make Your Home Look Expensive
Raise your ceiling
Raise the ceiling. We don’t mean literally, instead create the illusion of height by hanging your curtains as high possible. Floor-to-ceilings immediately open the room up, making it look more elegant.
A fresh coat
A lick of fresh paint immediately creates an elegant space but the secret is to pick one of two color options – soft and understated or dramatic and bold. The colors allow you to add instant elegance quickly and affordably.
Stick to Classics
The secret to an elegant looking home is a neutral palette. Choose neutral colors for the items that are more of a cost to update, like the floors, your fixtures and furniture. Then you can add the bold colors to complete the look.
Photo by Staffan Tollgard Design Group
Light up your life
Nothing says elegant like good lighting. A fairly inexpensive way to rehaul a room is to replace the light fixtures. Visit antique stores and thrift shops or wait for seasonal sales to find the perfect light fixture.
Photo by Williams Design Studio
Add chairs
When it comes to styling your home, you will find out it’s the small things that matter, and nothing adds elegance to a timeless piece of furniture. Accent chairs are an effective and affordable way to bring a room together, tres chic.
Update the hardware
We all tend to overlook the hardware when we’re thinking about revamping a room but it’s probably one of the most inexpensive ways to add a dash of elegance. Handles, light switches, drawer knobs and pulls will add a fresh new look with the minimum amount of spend.
Photo by HOUSEworks Design/Build General Contractor
Accessorize
Accessories are a great way to revamp without breaking the bank. Think gold frames and mirrors, just don’t think you’re King Midas and turn everything you touch into gold.
Splurge a bit
While we are talking about styling on a budget we do suggest you splurge on one or two key pieces to complete your room. Things to invest in? A dining room table and chairs, a rug, a headboard for your bed or a sofa.
Less is always more
Less is more when to comes to creating an elegant look. It’s a philosophy that has stood the test of time so choose items that are as functional as they are beautiful, and if it no longer serves a purpose, ditch it.
Treasure hunt
Be a pirate and search for those hidden treasures. You can make that Barcelona chair yours if you’re patient. And who knows what else you’ll find when you’re on the hunt.
Photo by Fougeron Architecture FAIA
It’s all in the details
The only way to make your house a home is to add the details. Add layers of detail with books and photo frames, rugs, cozy cushions and throwovers. However, don’t confuse detail for clutter. You want to be featured in Glozine Lifestyle for your sense of style, not on Hoarders: Buried Alive.
Photo by SPACECUTTER
Window treatment
Like our eyes are the windows to our soul, our windows are a look into our home and leaving them untreated will make your house look cheap and unfinished. Curtains are an affordable way to complete the look and if you stick to elegant materials like linen, cotton and natural silk your home will look like a million dollars.
Welcome your guests
When we think of decorating we always focus on the interior, but the first thing every passerby or visitor sees is the pathway leading up to our front door. Keep it tidy, plant new flowers, keep the grass trimmed. Let your exterior complement your interior.
Be patient
We’re after instant gratification but staying within a budget means being patient and taking your time o get quotes and compare them, to look for good prices on building materials and other bits. The worst think you can do is rush it.
Photo by 2 Lovely Gays
Home is where your heart is
Your home is a reflection of you and if there is an item you absolutely love but it doesn’t fit in with the color scheme or the style of the room, then toss it; not the item but the rules. What makes a house truly stylish is the personal touches only you can make to it.
Photo by Gross & Daley Photography
If you have any other ideas or suggestions we would love to hear them.
Author Bio:
Kathy Mitchell is a writer and avid researcher on the subject of Beauty, nutrition and general wellness. She likes to go out with her friends, travel, swim and practice yoga. In her free time, you can find Kathy curled up reading her favorite novel, or writing in her journal. To Know more about her follow her on Google+, Facebook and Twitter.