Walking the tightrope of decor

Home style

Have you ever come across stunning interiors while flipping through a magazine and wished that your house looked akin to the gorgeous photographs? 

 

And how many times have you sighed and moved on, thinking it to be an expensive, infeasible deal?

Fret not because there are some great home embellishment tips that work on a  lean budget.

Here are some for you.

 

Pocket-friendly wall art

Wall art can be the most budget cordial accessory that homeowners can integrate into their decor. 

 

Magazines and newspapers come loaded with images that can double up as wall art. 

All you need to do is pick up the pictures you like, cut them out orderly from the magazine or newspaper and get them framed in nice chic frames. 

Vintage art and photography magazines can provide good inspirations for such wall decor. 

 

Travel postcards, old greeting cards and letters, when framed, can turn into beautiful vintage artwork and the pages from your child’s last year art book can suffice as the most modern artwork in town.

Don’t forget the old crockery that you plan to do away with. Arrange plates of different sizes on a wall and come up with fresh wall embellishments.

Waste not

There are so many items in our house that we brand as ‘rubbish’ and plan to dispose them. 

Look again with an ingenious eye, as most of the items, if treated cleverly, can be repurposed and turned into completely different entities. Let me elaborate with a few examples.

Remember that old shaky chest of drawers that you were about to discard? 

Did it occur to you that it can prove to be an inordinately fascinating plant holder? 

Open out the drawers to different degrees and seed your favourite plants or even a mini kitchen garden in the chester. 

And what about that drum set that your children implored you to buy but is now lying abandoned in your store room, accumulating dust? 

Why not get a circular glass cut to size and put it atop the drums. 

This is how you can turn such useless drums into enviable side tables. 

Besides, what happened to those old boxes of Pringles or Nachos, that you bought on some flight back home? 

Don’t discard them as yet because they can be repurposed as cutlery or pen holders. 

With a little more ingenuity you can even turn them into low wattage lamps.

And do you remember those huge steel drums used in the olden days as buckets? 

These steel drums and barrels can be turned into very smart planter boxes,  which gives an industrial touch to your decor.

Do it yourself

At home, ‘Do It Yourself’ projects or DIY projects need not be cumbersome and complicated. 

You can easily make beautiful candles, hand-paint bathroom linen and even make your own clay pots at home with ease. 

 

Creating a leaning display unit out of an old ladder can be a fun DIY project and so can creating your own stylish stencilled pillow cases.

Have you heard of Washi tapes? 

You can turn your bland pottery into designer pieces and your dull lampshades into vibrant ones using this Japanese paper. 

It’s easy to add a dash of colour by creating colourful crepe paper flowers that look gorgeous. 

Another innovative home project can be creating your own pretty light fixtures. What you need are some ornate laces or ropes and a few glass jars. 

Wrap the lace or ropes around the glass jars and add LEDs or even regular bulbs inside the jars and create a glamorous lighting exhibit.

Ingenious use of paint

Gone are the days when you had to depend on an expert who charged a bomb to paint your house, let alone if you want it to be done differently. 

Let me walk you through a few ways to use paint smartly in your house. 

Is there a wallpaper you loved but are reluctant to go for it? You will need a piece of cardboard, pencil, scissors, paint and small brushes. 

Trace the pattern on cardboard and cut out a basic stencil. Start from one corner of the wall (choose a small area for your first project) and trace out the pattern using a soft charcoal pencil. 

Do not trace too dark. All you need to do now is paint the pencil outline in your favourite paint colour. 

Use paint brushes with short bristles as it will help you achieve neater outlines.
 

Creating textures on a wall isn’t a difficult task either. 

You can buy textured paint, which is available in different consistencies and use tools like a comb, sponge, trowel or even an old rag to create patterns while it’s still wet. 

Venetian plaster is another material that can be used with ease to create textures and add depth to the decor.

Fun with fabrics

Fabrics can be used in so many interesting ways to make your home look fabulous.

A beautiful Maharashtrian nauvari sari (you don’t have to buy expensive fabric) that you can buy for about Rs 400 can be turned into gorgeous see-through curtains.

If you can hem the edges at home, then these beautiful transparent curtains will come to less than Rs 100 each. 

Not to forget the gorgeous colour options available in these saris. 

The scrap cloth or remnants of beautiful laces can be framed to form beautiful wall art.

A beautiful phulkari dupatta, that is probably torn at an end can also be trimmed and used as wall art or even as a  table cover.

A simple long piece of fabric can be secured at the edges and hung over a blank tall wall and create a good impact and so can a humble quilt displayed elegantly on a wall.

Functional furniture

One can save a lot of money and efficiently utilise a smaller space by having the furniture ensembles serve a dual purpose.

An Ottoman, for example can serve as a small coffee table, a seating and a built-in storage space, all-in-one. 

And being handsome as they are, they can only enhance the look of your living area. 

Moreover, wall-mounted shelves can take in drawers, benches can take in storage and chairs can open up into steps.

The idea is to let your creative juices flow and not for a moment be inhibited by the fact that you need to spend in order to make your home look gorgeous.