Decorating Tips - When You Have No Money

Interior Design on a SMALL Budget

By
Relationship Advice Expert April Masini

Q: Dear April Masini,

I just moved into my first apartment and was so excited! But the wind has been taken out of my sails by bare walls and a teensy-tiny checking account. I want to make my house cute and cozy, but I can't just go traipsing off to Pier 1 and buying out the store. Is there any way to decorate on the cheap?

Sincerely,

Short on Cash, Not on Taste 

A:

Dear Short on Cash, Not on Taste,

Do your decorating gradually and as your budget allows. To get you started, here are some ways to decorate for little or no money: 

1. Fill a bowl (think clear glass, although any will do) with a single fruit or vegetable. A bowl full of lemons or a bowl full of apples gives a monochromatic, festive look to your coffee table or dining room table. And it’s just as good if not better than a floral arrangement from the local shop.

2. Clip branches from your yard. They don’t have to be flowers, in fact beautiful pussy willows, fir tree branches or holly that grows in the winter are all beautiful decorative pieces that you can use in one place, or draped along the mantel.

3. Nothing says home and festive like candles. Arrange your stash of votives or any other kind of candles around the mantel piece, kitchen table or window sills for a beautiful, warm and decorative boost.

4. If it smells good, it might as well look good! Take advantage of cinnamon, cloves and allspice by making a pot of tea with these spices in them, and your home will smell delicious for hours after.

Check out my tips for creating your own unique holiday traditions as well. Since you're now in your own place, you'll want traditions that say "you!" 

 

April Masini -- nicknamed "the new millennium's Dear Abby" by the media, is author of the best-selling books Date Out Of Your League and Think & Date Like A Man, the two (just released) step-by-step dating and relationship manuals, Ideas for a Fun Date and Romantic Date Ideas, and the critically acclaimed dating and relationship online magazine www.AskApril.com.

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