Since purchasing our first home, my husband and I have spent countless of evenings looking through inspiration pictures dreaming about how we would like to make our new house into our home. It's easy to get a little carried away as you dream of the decor that you would like to have in your home. 

This happens to me ALL. THE. TIME. 

As I look through Pinterest to get ideas, I can quickly get fixated on what I want to do. Being the inpatient person that I am, I quickly rush to try to put my plan into action, but the hubby is always there to reel me back in! We unfortunately don't have a money tree in the back yard, so we've had to get creative when trying to update our home. 

Paint

Using paint to add pops of color and update your home can by one of the quickest and easiest updates that can have a big impact. When we first bought our home, the walls were beige, the floors were beige, the bathrooms were beige, everything was beige! I felt like I was living in a beige box so after living in the home for a few months, my husband and I began to get adventurous with paint. And it made ALL the difference! 

Another great example of the power of paint is this beautiful kitchen by my friend Melissa, the blogger behind Brown Dog Vintage. Last year for the $100 Room Challenge she transformed her kitchen with just paint! It looks SO good and brightened up her kitchen so much that it looks like a completely different space. 

Do it Yourself

Want to change the look of your laundry room? Need inexpensive wall art to fill a large wall? Need furniture but are on a budget? DIY projects can by major money savers. With a little preparation and research you can just about tackle any project. Whether you are tackling a small or large project, it can be a little intimating to tackle some projects on your own, so I always make sure to research, research, research before I start. 

Wall art can get super expensive if you are trying to fill up a large wall. Check out how Natalie from Neli Design distressed a map to give it a vintage look. A framed vintage map this size could easily cost you several hundred dollars, but Natalie made hers for less than ten dollars! Want to learn how to make one yourself? Check out her post here with all the details.

Looking for an inexpensive way to add little life to your room? Shiplap is an easy way to add character to any space. It doesn't have to cost you an arm and a leg either! See how Wendy from At Lane and High updated her laundry room with shiplap for less than $100! I would definitely like to do laundry in this space! Head on over to her blog to read all about just how she was able to create this beautiful space.

As we all know, furnishing your home can be quite an expensive process. That is, if you buy all new. If you search in places like Goodwill, local Facebook groups, Craiglist, garage sales, etc. you'll find amazing pieces that with just a little TLC you can totally make your own. Like Marly, from A Brick Home who found this amazing hutch for just $80! With a little elbow grease she was able to completely transform it into a beautiful piece for her dining room.

Purge, Organize, Clean 

An easy way to instantly update a home is to get rid of the clutter. It's amazing what a little de-cluttering can do to a space. It can instantly make a room appear larger and brighter by simply removing the clutter. I recently went through my entire kitchen: drawers, cabinets, pantry and appliances and removed all items that I haven't used for over a year. I got rid of so much stuff that I ended up having a whole cabinet free! Big score in a small house with limited storage. 

Think Outside the Box

We live in a small home where we've had to get very creative with how we use our space. Needing to make our home work for us by using rooms and even closets in different ways than what they were intended are ways we are making our home work for us. We turned a bedroom into a Home Office for my husband that doubles as library with a scotch bar for after work hours drinks. Most recently, we turned the closet in our playroom into my office/craft room. It's so nice having a place to store and organize all my stuff so it's ready for me whenever creativity strikes.

Sell your Old Stuff

Selling my old stuff is how I begin most of decorating projects. Gotta make some money to make my decorating dreams come true so I turn to Facebook, Craigslist, and my local neighborhood app to sell all my unwanted home decor. I can usually get a decent amount to put it towards a new piece. Last year, I really wanted new area rugs for our family and dining room. The ones I had were nice, but they were from my old apartment before my husband and I got married and not really our style. So at a garage sale, I was able to sell both rugs and got my two new rugs with only putting $50 of our own money. Not bad for two 8x10 area rugs! 

I hope this post encourages to make your own home decor updates and helps you dream up your best space without spending a lot of time or money! Leave me a comment below and let me know your favorite way to update your home.

Happy Decorating!

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