The Trending Home
I am in luck as I am sure many of you are too! My favorite style of home is what seems to be on trend right now. A lot of people are currently appreciating vintage style homes. The old world vintage type home is, at least in my opinion, the epitome of a cozy home. While I, like many, love this style it can feel overwhelming to create a perfectly curated home. This is especially true when you have all of the internet to compare your home against. Here you will find my own personal approach to how to shop for a cozy home on a budget.
Channel Your Inner Granny
I am going to channel my Granny for this topic today. She was the queen of decorating a house on a budget, and she consistently found amazing deals on unique items. While my Granny was good at this skill I have worked to hone a similar skill myself. Decorating your home on a budget really comes down to playing the long game rather than instant gratification. I’ll break down what I mean:
The Long Game
1. Use What You Own
Your first option when decorating your home on a budget is to use what you already have. That seems so obvious but it’s a good reminder to do it. It’s so tempting to see the shiny new thing and want to buy it right away, but since we are working within a budget (especially these days, with the high cost of everything!), it’s helpful to go back to basics.
Be clever with what you own and know that even if you don’t LOVE something it can be temporary until you find or save up for that perfect item at the perfect price point. It’s also okay to move slowly with home decor. It’s easy to get caught up in seeing perfectly manicured and beautiful homes online within social media and want to emulate that, but after moving into our home the walls were bare for a REALLY long time. I wanted what we put on the walls to mean something to our family and that didn’t look like buying a print of some random artwork from a staple store down the block or even online. The goal is to find things that are handmade, vintage, or randomly come across something while on an adventure out somewhere with our family.
I want to look around my home and know that we have a hand in what’s surrounding us. I want to look around and be reminded of memories or stories from our family’s story. That is the ideal cozy home to me and I think to many others too.
2. The Practical Décor
I also think practical and functional décor is something I’ve become increasingly interested in the older I get. I don’t want to clean around a thousand little knick-knacks but I’m by no means a minimalist per se either. Bring in the functional décor! This means I can decorate like people did back in the olden days. If you have a bowl you use to proof your bread (bonus if it’s pretty or rustic looking) keep it out on a shelf as décor. The bonus with items like this is that you can actually use them so it’s not just eating up space and becoming a dust collector. Do you have a broom you use to sweep? Get one that looks rustic but also functions well and hang it on the wall and you’re well on your way to relatively inexpensive, functioning, simple, cozy décor!
3. Hold Out For a Sale
If there is a bigger furniture piece, rug, or decorative item you’ve had your eye on and you can’t find a more affordable dupe then channel my Granny! Wait for a sale. Check back to the website every day or do what my Granny did and swing by the store on your way home each evening. It’s a long-game way of getting that perfect item for a fraction of the cost.
4. DIY It
If all else fails another method I’ve begun to implement frequently is to do it yourself otherwise known as DIY. There have been so many things I’ve seen online that are ridiculously expensive that I feel I could do myself for way cheaper. It’s amazing how vast the internet is and yet I can’t seem to find the exact thing I’m looking for, especially at a reasonable price. This is where DIY comes in.
For example, after months of searching, I finally found a shelf for a space in my home that matched the style I was looking for and at a great price but the color was completely wrong. I ended up staining the shelf and now it’s perfect! I spent less on a piece that matched stylistically to what I was looking for rather than settling for something I didn’t love and was way more expensive (even if that piece had been the right color). Plus, I get to say that I played a part in creating that item because I completely changed its look and feel by simply staining it. As a bonus, no one has that exact shelf because I added my own spin to the existing item which makes it feel all the more special and unique to my home.
Take Your Time
At the end of the day, the key to decorating your home on a budget and getting that cozy feel we are all going for is simply not to overthink it. Easier said than done, I know BUT it can be done. I am still decorating and curating my home. Many of my walls are still blank or random spots in my home have empty spots yet to be filled. I keep my eye out for the perfect pieces and take it day by day.
Creating a meaningful home for me and my family that is unique to us and our story means more to me than filling the temporary void. I still love dreaming and finding inspiration online. Try to take away inspiration from online influence instead of frustration. Your home can look like the swoon-worthy homes you see online it just may take time – and that is totally okay!
If you are looking for more inspiration on how to decorate your home, especially on a budget, then check out some of my other homemaking posts. Most recently, I breakdown five easy tips to make your home feel cozy all year round and you can read it here.
