Beautify Your Home on a Budget
Forgo boring, mass produced “decor art” and tap an existing collection of mementos, personal items and objects from nature to beautify your home — while saving you a bunch of money. Here are five things you probably already have on hand to inexpensively infuse your space with personality and meaning. And a bonus is that by incorporating reminders of all you have to be grateful for, your home might make you happier and even more productive.
1. Old letters. Back in the days before email, they were all the rage. And hopefully you still have a few special ones stashed away in a drawer or closet. Why not take a meaningful letter from someone you care about and frame it the same way you would a photograph? It’s a beautiful way to honor that relationship and add understated character to your space.
2. Items from nature. Pressed flower petals, fall leaves, or even feathers collected from your backyard bring the outdoors to beautify your home while adding a living touch to your surroundings. And a tall freestanding vase with a collection of bare branches and an uplight creates a sculptural statement and casts beautiful shadows on the walls and ceiling. Collect acorns, stones or pinecones in a pottery bowl. And if you live on the coast, you can seek out driftwood, seaglass, and found shells or coral. However, never purchase shells or coral as they might be harvested in a way that causes damage to marine ecosystems).
3. Your own photography. It goes without saying that photos add a lovely personal touch to any home. But why not try something a little more interesting than just sticking them in frames, Avoid adding visual clutter to your tabletops by making a big, gutsy statement with your personal photography to decorate your walls. These days, it’s easier than ever to transform a picture into an over-scale gallery wrapped canvas that’s more personal and more interesting than most artwork you’ll find an any home center. Consider using software or a smartphone app to apply a black and white or sepia effect to the image for nostalgic charm — or if you’re a modernist, create a colorful Warhol effect and turn Fido into an object d’art.
4. Travel or childhood mementos.The key here is to avoid cluttered collections crowding shelves and surfaces. Instead curate a small display along a theme, whether that’s sports, a particular decade in your life, or a special event and create a shadowbox to contain and spotlight those memories. A shadowbox is a dimensional box-style frame that allows you to hang small items that otherwise wouldn’t fit in a traditional frame. You can use an old newspaper clipping, photo, fabric, or other paper epherma as a backdrop to highlight your collection.
5. Children’s Art. Instead of relegating your little one’s latest masterpiece to the refrigerator, give it the props it deserves by putting it in a proper frame and displaying on a wall. Children’s drawings are often very expressive and can have a folk, pop or modern art feel that works beautifully with many interior design styles … and they’ll be so proud to see it treated like “real art” in your home.
Beautify your home in a way that connects you with nature and what’s meaningful in your life and it’ll be better than anything you’ll find at the decor store.
