Guest Author - Donna Coogan

When you are decorating on a budget, it’s sometimes difficult to know where to spend your money. Do you start with a specific room or a specific project? What do you do?

Well, sometimes starting with simple projects is very effective. Especially if you choose decorating ideas that are not only cheap, but that also don’t take up a lot of time.

When you see the results of your decorating efforts quickly, it is inspiring to keep working on the next project. Before you know it, your whole house will be done.

Here are quick and easy decorating ideas for your home that won’t break the bank:

Rearrange your furniture

It is surprising how just moving your furniture around in a different way can change the appearance of a space. This is something that can be done in an afternoon and doesn’t cost you a dime.

Play around with new arrangements and see what feels right to you. Just be sure to keep the traffic patterns free so that it is still easy to pass through the room.

You might even take some pieces out and bring new ones in from other areas of the house. The advantage to doing this is you don’t grow tired of your room. You also learn how to enjoy your things in new spaces and in new ways.

Paint something

Paint is relatively cheap and therefore it can be a decorator’s best friend. You can paint your whole room a new color and instantly change its atmosphere in a matter of hours. Or just paint the doors and trim a contrasting color.

Paint accent pieces like lamps or picture frames. It’s especially fun to try out a new color this way. The bolder the better – don’t be afraid to really experiment.

Paint your furniture. You can tie together mismatched pieces by painting them all one color. Or use paint to draw attention to the difference in your pieces. Like painting a dining table white or black, but painting mismatched dining chairs in several other colors.

Try creating a focal point in your room by painting the television cabinet or dining hutch or bedroom dresser a bright hue. Whether you paint it solid or highlight it with multiple colors will depend on your mood, the piece and the style of the room. But, it is only a weekend’s worth of work for a great conversational item that will really jazz up the space.

Group your collections

Grouping your collections adds personality and provides more sentimental value to your items. Rather than spreading them all over a room or even all over the house, give them one special area in your home.

Place them on a fireplace mantel, a bookshelf or display on the wall. When they are amassed together you will discover they create more impact and are also easier for anyone to study and appreciate.

These are just a few ideas you can do to add quick decorating touches to your home. As you can see, it doesn’t cost a lot of money to make new and welcoming changes to your space.