Dos and Don’ts of Decorating on a Budget - Part 2

Here are some more great tips for decorating on a budget. If you haven't read Part 1, be sure to check it out.

DO: Bring unique style to your home by decorating with garden ornaments, architectural elements and old building parts. They’re often cheap, and always distinctive. Check your phone book for salvage yards and antique stores.

DO: Place a bookcase, like the simple on shown here, in the dining area to hold china and serving pieces. Later, when you upgrade to a china cabinet or sideboard, the bookcase can easily transition to another area of your home.

DO: Create your own artwork. Add a frame to anything—a leaf from the yard or a photo from last year’s wall calendar—and voila, it’s art. For inexpensive frames, look in discount stores for framed prints. Remove the back (needle-nose pliers are terrific for pulling out large staples) and replace what they’ve framed with something of your own.

DO: Sell furnishings you don’t like at a consignment store or website, such as eBay or craigslist. Use the money you make for the furniture you really want.

DO: Choose a dining table that will give you choices later. When it’s time to redecorate or move to a larger home, you may find your smaller scale table, or table with a removable expansion leaf, is just right for the kitchen or another room.

DON’T: Limit your decorating scheme to the existing layout of electrical outlets or phone jacks. Paying to move these features to where you want them is an investment in convenience you’ll appreciate over and over again.

One final note, don’t try to make a room work too hard. Write down all of your brainstorms for a specific space, and then edit the list to one or two solid ideas. Sometimes the key to decorating is in what you remove, not what you add. And if you’re like most people, you’ll continue to fiddle with your rooms for as long as you are in your home.

Ready to start shopping? Check out the selection online at Furniture.com.