Just a little diddy about decorating and design! Something I call "Topsy Turvy"!
I am and always have been crazy about decorating! I would rather watch HGTV than eat!
Well, I like to watch HGTV and eat at the same time.....you get the picture. Anyway, after watching, I want to decorate! It's not rational to go buy new furniture and accessories so I just use what I already have....thus topsy turvy! I recently did this and re-did all my rooms in 3 days for less than $60.00. I'm not counting the sofa cover, I had purchased that months before. I did buy 3 new pillows at Ross's for $6.99 each. And a new picture for above my bed at Kirkland's. It was green tag for $34.99 and I bought at the 25% off that so the picture cost me less than $30.00. ( I'm not good at math!).
Here's how to start.
1. Decide on which room you want to work on. Just one room! ( I started in the living room).
2. In the room take everything off the walls and all the accessories off the table tops, shelves, etc.
3. Place all the accessories on the dinning room table and lean all the pictures against a wall.
4. Now that you have a blank slate, re-think furniture arrangement. (if you have the luxury of the space). Just remember that balance is important! If you have a fireplace, you may want to center the sofa in front facing the fireplace, or 2 side chairs on each side. Just try to balance your larger furniture with windows, fireplace, etc. I can't re-arrange furniture because the space is small. It is what it is!
This is a great example of balance...No not my living room, but I wish it was. This is from Decorating Den!
5. Place your area rug, if you have one. I took the rug from a bedroom.
Add large pieces of furniture, sofa, chairs and so on.
If you don't like your sofa color then a cover can be a great option to consider. You can change the whole atmosphere of a room with a rug, sofa and one large art work. I bought a sofa cover at Bed Bath and Beyond to cover a floral sofa. I bought light beige since my living room was small and my living, dining, and kitchen was all open space, it was important that I used neutral colors to create a more spacious look.
5. Now add smaller tables, one at a time. Again remember balance. If you don't like your end tables, then paint them! Don't buy new, painted furniture is all the rage. If the piece is solid, then great!
If you aren't sure about colors, stay neutral, beige, light gray, white or black. Even a light blue or light green, light yellow can look fab-u-lous and be considered a neutral.
NOW FOR THE FUN! ACCESSORIZE! Remember, your adding one layer at a time here....
6. Add lamps, lighting is soooo important and can set the mood of your room. Look in your other rooms for lamps and accessories. You will have left overs to use back in these rooms.
If you lamps don't match, it's OK. But you might want to balance the height of the lamps by placing a stack of books under until they are similar in height. Or you can use a tall accessory, vase, floral arrangement, etc. I have a lamp on one end of my buffet, so I added a large pitcher (from the kitchen with floral stalks on the other end of the buffet. Again, spray paint....if you want a different look then paint them. Place lamps for reading and task lighting and also remember to highlight bookcases and shelves.
7. I would recommend using small accessories with caution. Too many smalls can create a cluttered look. Choice your larger accessories for living area and save the smalls to other rooms.You can add a few smalls after you add your larger pieces.
8. Pillows and throws....Now for this you may want to buy a few new throw pillows. Just remember that you can mix colors and patterns. Pillows can be expensive, so check Ross's, Walmart, TJ Max for pillows. Also, remember to check the outdoor department for pillows at the end of the season, they can be less expensive than the home department.
This may sound like alot..but you can do this in an afternoon. You don't have to spend money to have a great room!
