Are you renting an apartment or a house? Just because you’re renting doesn’t mean it can’t be your dream home. Most rentals are decorated very simply and generically so as not to offend potential tenants and to match most tenant furnishings. So, think of your home as a blank canvas to which you can add your personal touches, personality, color and style, turning the bland and boring into inviting and exciting.
Here are seven ways you can decorate your home without spending too much or upsetting the owner.
1. Color your world. If your lease allows it, paint. Painting is the fastest and cheapest way to radically change any room. Consider simply painting your focal walls, the wall behind your bed, your sofa wall, the fireplace wall, and if you have a wall that you face directly when entering your home, an entryway wall can be very dramatic.
If painting is out of the question, there are other quick and easy ways to add temporary color. Buy a couple of large canvases, paint them your favorite color and hang them from wall to wall for a fabulous look. Buy an inexpensive room divider and replace the plain fabric with one in your color scheme. Place behind your bed, in the entrance, behind your sofa or fill a corner with color.
2. Pattern game. Since most apartment walls and floors have a neutral color palette, don’t be afraid to add a pattern with fabric. Add it to your windows, bathrooms, bedding and pillows. Bring a variety of patterns and mix and match two or three. Start with a large print, add a plaid, check or stripe, and finish with a matching small print. Since these are all items you can take with you to your next home, if you find a fabric you really love, splurge on it.
3. Light up your life. Lighting can make a big difference in how you feel in your home. In your kitchen, under cabinet lighting is great for both function and accent when the ceiling lights are off. Place small decorative lamps inside your bookcase, bakery shelf, any open shelving, or on your kitchen breakfast bar. If there isn’t an outlet nearby, buy battery-powered lights.
Add picture lighting to your artwork and use can lights to accent your floor plants and illuminate dark corners to brighten up a room.
4.Murals. In addition to painting, you can liven up your rooms with removable wall treatments. Buy inexpensive medium-weight fabric and hang it on curtain rods, affix it to the walls with small staples, or paper your walls with the fabric using liquid starch. When you move in, just peel off and wash the starch off the walls. Just double check to make sure the walls have at least a satin finish, though most will be semi-gloss. Either way, be sure to test this out before you cover a wall.
Another fun wall treatment is removable wall words and designs. You can print any saying or word in any size and color and find a design for every style of home. They rub and peel right off, even with textured walls.
5. down. Do you hate the rug? Use room sized rugs to completely change the look of any room. Buy a decorative rug, paint your own canvas for the floor, or bind up a remnant. This will make a big difference in how you feel when you walk into the room.
6. Window wear. To dress up your vertical blinds, purchase ready-made panels or valances to add color and pattern to all your rooms. Window treatments really help finish off each room.
You can buy discount fabrics and make seamless treatments with sewing tape and decorative drapery clips. This treatment is nice for both values and panels. For a quick, easy, and inexpensive ledge box, purchase foam ledge boxes at a craft store and simply cover them with your fabric.
7. Finishing touches. Accessories are those wonderful items that make up a room. Since you can take them with you no matter where you go, buy things that you love and want to keep. To give your rooms a pop or color, think big versus more, plus less to pack when you move.