Having a champagne taste on a beer budget most recent grads can relate with. Struggling with making your home decor look more expensive and not like you pillaged your parents basement is difficult. Although it can be done. Here are a few tips and tricks I’ve discovered since moving beyond dorm life.
Now this may sound easy but it actually makes a world of difference. If someone opens up your cabinets and sees 5 different shades of plates it can look cheap and disorganized. This doesn’t necessarily mean to own only white dishes. Actually creating an almost ombre affect of dishes can make your kitchenware look chic. If you decided to do this stick to one similar color, all grays or all blues. Considering that plates are constantly used and can easily break don’t feel pressured in buying expensive ones, just ones that match.
Putting things like four, sugar, pasta in other containers can take your pantry from scary to #goals in a matter of minutes. Hit up your local Goodwill or Arc to find clear glass containers. Even repurposing old candle holders or pasta jars to hold rice or tea bags work.
Considering that most students and recent graduates won’t be living in a property they own sprucing up rentals can be hard. For the most part you can’t paint (although there is no harm in asking) or put in new kitchen hardware contact paper is the next best thing. Unlike wallpaper contact paper is removable and if taken down properly won’t damage the surface it was covering. Contact paper makes for great home decor because it can cover your counters, appliances and even the wall.
Do you have an old stack of Vogue magazines that you just can’t seem to part with? Instead of hiding them under your bed show them off in your living room as your own art. Stacking a few of them on top of each other and placing a candle or a nicknack can make your magazine addiction look purposeful. Or better yet you can take pages of photoshoots you like or covers and frame them. If you have other items that you’ve found yourself collecting over the year find an interesting way of organizing them in a communal space.
Putting a glass tray on a coffee table will instantly make your living room Town & Country worthy. You can find reasonably priced trays on Amazon or Target. If you have any spare mirrors you can simply apply a felt back and voila you have yourself a highly sought after home decor item.
Speaking of mirrors, they aren’t just used to make sure you don’t have smudged lipstick before walking out the door. Mirrors are also great sources of light, of opening up a space and can be pieces of art. Large mirrors can give an illusion of having more windows and smaller mismatched mirrors can be used as a gallery wall.
I can’t express this enough when I say that thrifting for home decor is a saving grace. It may be intimidating and an unappealing idea of owning something someone else it did but it really isn’t something to avoid. Knowing where to thrift is definitely helpful. If you live in the city I recommend traveling to the Goodwill in a local suburb. The items there won’t be as picked over as and will tend to be in better condition. If you aren’t comfortable thrifting kitchen items that’s fine but Goodwill has great options for frames, mirrors, and a plethora of other items you can repurpose.
Simple ways to make your home decor look more expensive!
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