Revamping your home’s decor doesn’t have to be expensive. It’s all about making small changes that can have a big impact.
Painting kitchen cabinets is a budget-friendly way to give a room a fresh look. Displaying art is also an easy way to make a room feel luxurious and personal.
1. Paint Your Walls
Paint is a relatively inexpensive way to give a room a high-end look. Choose a neutral shade for the majority of your walls and add pops of color or trendy hues with home decor accents like area rugs and curtains.
If your budget is tight, paint half of a room a different color for an eye-catching accent. This trick is a great idea for rooms that get lots of natural light. The lighter color will reflect the sunlight and make a space feel brighter and more open.
Upgrading cabinet hardware, doorknobs, and light fixture fixtures is another cheap but effective way to instantly upgrade your home. And if you’re a renter, try this hack to fake the look of built-in shelving.
2. Add Trimwork
Adding trim, such as crown molding or chair railing, can make your space look custom and therefore more expensive. This can be an easy DIY project for homeowners and renters alike. The best place to get inspiration for this is to visit high-end furniture stores, such as Restoration Hardware or McGee and Co, and take note of how they frame their spaces and add trim.
Another great way to make your home look more high-end is to hang floor-to-ceiling drapery. This trick helps to draw the eye up and makes your ceilings feel more vaulted. Add sheer curtains to further soften the light coming in and give your space a luxury feel.
3. Add a Feature Wall
One of the easiest ways to give your room a designer flair is with a feature wall. This can be as subtle or bold as you like, but it’s a great way to tie a colour palette together. The key is to carefully select the room and accessorize appropriately – remembering that the rest of your furniture should be in the same neutral tone so the feature wall doesn’t overwhelm the space.
Bold patterns are a popular choice, and big blousy floral mural panels create a dramatic look, but don’t be afraid to try something more unusual, such as stripe walls. Using a stripe pattern that mutates from dark to light can make your room feel bigger and add depth.
A smart budget living room idea is to line a wall with picture ledges and fill them with framed artwork, decorative plates or rattan baskets. You could even paint the shelves to match the wall colour for a cohesive look.
4. Use Wallpaper
If painting walls isn’t an option, you can still get a high-end look with wallpaper or floor tiles. Both are relatively easy to install and affordable upgrades for homeowners and renters alike.
If you don’t want to invest in a whole new paint job, try adding a small accent wall with patterned wallpaper or stencils to add interest and texture to your space. Wallpaper also works well for hiding stains on walls, cabinets and more.
Clutter doesn’t say upscale at all, so be sure to declutter and organize your home. Hide cords under the sofa with a pretty bin and put a cute paper lining on storage containers to freshen up the look. Decorative paper can also help you upgrade items such as serving trays, flower pots and candle snuffers by mimicking the look of more expensive materials like marble.
5. Add Accessories
It’s often the smaller details that make a space feel high-end, and while some of these accessories may seem like dust catchers on the surface, they have more power than you might think. Home decor items like cushions, throws, vases, flowers and trays can instantly freshen up a room, give an updated look to existing furniture and add an element of luxury for a fraction of the cost of painting or buying new pieces altogether.
Another simple way to level up a room is to hang your curtains higher than the window frame, as many luxury hotels and restaurants do. This trick creates the illusion of a taller ceiling, and will help to soften the lighting in the space. It’s also a great way to show off your personal style!
