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Decorating on a budget: 5 ways to a refresh using items you already own

Need a makeover but short on cash?
Prue Ruscoe

These 5 decorating tricks will give your home a boost by reinventing what you have in front of you – think minimum spend for maximum effect!

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1. Don’t add, take away or replace

Rethink an arrangement of furniture or change up a vignette you have in place now. We love having our favourite things nearby, as well as useful things. Streamline areas and shake things up by rotating a few items to freshen up the look – a different water glass by your bedside, together with a lamp stolen from the living room or office, perhaps. Pop a flower or potted herb on your kitchen bench or window sill and stack a pile of favourite cookbooks for inspiration nearby. Change the bowl you’re using for fruit.

Decorating on a budget: 5 ways to a refresh using items you already own | Home Beautiful Magazine Australia
(Credit: Cath Muscat)

2. Reinvent a favourite piece

If your favourite chair only gets clothes dumped on it in the bedroom, take it into the living room or kitchen. Set up a spot for repose in one of your living spaces where you can enjoy it when not relaxing in it.  Use a single bed as a day bed piled high with cushions. Declutter your bedside by moving a bookshelf into your bedroom to relieve the pile building up.

Decorating on a budget: 5 ways to a refresh using items you already own | Home Beautiful Magazine Australia
(Credit: Melissa Heath)
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3. Get out your favourites and enjoy them

Rather than languishing in your linen press or stacked in the back of your cupboard, give favourite items pride of place as a vignette or display. Push your best linen into service on a daily basis, shine up your silver or hang a stunning textile piece on your wall to be enjoyed.

Decorating on a budget: 5 ways to a refresh using items you already own | Home Beautiful Magazine Australia
(Credit: Petrina Tinslay)

4. Change your lampshades

Rather than replacing the whole lamp, simply recover or change the shade for a completely different look. Affordable shades can be bought from big retailers in every colour in the rainbow, or spend a little time on Youtube learning how to do it yourself with that favourite piece of fabric you’ve had for so long.

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Decorating on a budget: 5 ways to a refresh using items you already own | Home Beautiful Magazine Australia

5. Rearrange your furniture

Who doesn’t love to do this? It can make a world of difference to both how you use and view a space. Check your current configuration for what works and what doesn’t. Ask a friend to help and get a different perspective.

Use pieces in alternate places or group furniture together to create different zones. Re-orient your dining table, move your sofa away from the wall and put a console behind it. Bring a living room rug into the dining room… the possibilities are endless!

Decorating on a budget: 5 ways to a refresh using items you already own | Home Beautiful Magazine Australia
(Credit: Prue Ruscoe)
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9 signs you need to rethink your living room layout

Top 5 affordable ways to refresh your outdoor furniture

Seven ways to refresh your living room

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