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Spring Has Sprung: 5 Ways to Bring Fresh Decor into Your
Home on a Budget
by Kathy Wilson
Description: Decorating ideas to update your home decor for spring.
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Spring is my favorite time of the year, I think because it
represents renewal. Maybe that's why at this time of year so
many of us are drawn to rebirthing our decor, so to speak!
Here are some great ideas to freshen your spaces, on a
budget!
1. Bring color into the home. You can do this by using
wonderful paint colors on the walls, painting all the
furniture in a room white or cream to tie it together and
give it a breath of fresh air, or bringing in fabrics to
make the room feel alive! Try sunny colors in the rooms you
use most, such as the kitchen. A pale yellow brightens
everyones mood without being overwhelming. Blues and greens
used together look new and calming, and remind one of
nature. Use fabrics with fruits, florals, or leaves. Coordinate
florals with stripes for a fresh look. Change out
accessories such as throw pillows for brighter, or at least
less muted colors than you would use in fall and winter. A
little paint and some new fabric goes along way to saving
your budget!
2. Add life to a room. Bring in living plants, fresh fruit
and vegetables, or even a fish tank to really create the
feeling of spring. Let nature really sing in your rooms,
just like the birds singing outside the windows! Buy
inexpensive shade annuals in six packs from your local
garden center, then pot them up inside for great flowering
plants. Bring out a simple bowl and display your fruits, and
even your vegetables. Who knows, maybe people will also
actually eat them! Use flowers, foliage, and grasses in vases,
cups, or pretty glasses. Even a single bloom tells a story.
Fill a glass dish with pretty stones, or use twigs from your
garden to create rustic drawer pulls.
3. Cut down on the clutter. It is hard for a space to feel
fresh if it feels claustrophobic. And lets face it, most of
us are guilty of letting the mail pile up, or ignoring a
stack of books we keep meaning to read. Pare down your
accessories for the warmer months for a calmer, fresher
approach. Lift up your throw rugs, take down heavy curtains,
clear the kids artwork to one side of the frig. Pack away
some of your more delicate knick knacks to make way for kids
in beach towels, and guest’s cool drinks. Use table skirts
over end tables for a place to hide the kid clutter. A
great tip? Clean your windows! A lot of light can be blocked
by dirty windows, and the sparkle of clean windows enlarges
and brightens the space. I recommend Windex Outdoor for
doing your outside windows, even second story…it really
works for me!
4. Try a new project. Spring is about the new, and creating
something new can be wonderful therapy, as well providing
great new decor for your home! Painting is a wonderful hobby
and can be learned even by us “non-artistic” folks. Check
out the Bob Ross or Donna Dewberry books from your local
library, or take a class at your local community center.
Don’t forget, you can paint on a lot more than just a
canvas! Learn to “stain” glass, with the new easy kits
available at the craft store and create one of a kind window
hangings to catch the summer sun. There are hundreds of
crafting books available now, browse in your local book
store for something that appeals to you. Do it yourself
means just that…do it!
5. Add personality to your spaces. A little whimsy, some
personal photos, or display of your hobbies all shout,
“someone LIVES here”! Find a rustic piece of wood and paint
on your favorite saying or family name, then hang it in the
kitchen. Keep small pictures of your grandkids on your
kitchen counter. Do you take photos? Make a day out of
taking shots of nature in your community…flowers in the
local park, waves washing ashore at the lake, or even that
deer who keeps eating your rose bushes. Frame them with dollar
shop frames, then hang them gallery style in a grouping on
the wall. Add your favorite inspirational quotes along the
ceiling borders or over doorways. Don’t worry about
stencils, pick up a gold paint pen and freehand! Use a
fishing rod to hang curtains, or frame seed packets to
display your love of the garden. (Check your dollar shop or
garden center for discount seeds from last year, they may
not sprout, but the packets still work!)
Use the seasons to create feeling and warmth in your home.
It doesn’t have to cost a lot of money, and the resulting
satisfaction from developing your own creativity is well
worth every moment spent!
Kathy Wilson is an author, national columnist, and editor of
The Budget Decorator. For hundreds of free ideas and to sign
up for her free newsletter, please visit her at
http://www.TheBudgetDecorator.com
