Essentials for decorating your first home

 

In Australia, renters aren’t usually allowed to change much in the apartment. It generally all depends on your deal with the landlord, but if you want to get your bond back, you need to leave the apartment the way it was when you first moved in. It’s easy when you own a house since you are in charge of what you want to change. But we prepared a list of essential décor pieces and tricks that are renter-friendly and ideal for your first home. 

Paint

Paint is the easiest thing you can do, even yourself. It is perfectly renter-friendly since you can always re-paint the wall before you move out. Nowadays, there are many options that you can choose from, but here are some tips. If you are planning to use darker wall paint, consider painting only one wall in the room, to prevent it from feeling crowded. Pick the longest wall or the one with the most natural light on it. That way, your room won’t feel smothering and you will have less work to do once you decide to move out. For the most neutral wall colour, consider painting light grey or beige, or even eggshell. Of course, match your furniture with the wall paint, and you’re set.

Get some wall art

Simply painting the wall is not enough to make a house feel like home. Bare walls give the impression that no one lives in the space and give off a sterile look that reminds of hospitals, and not someone’s home. For wall art, there are even more choices to make - you can opt for wallpapers (removable ones if you need renter-friendly option), paintings, pictures, wreaths, clocks - the list goes on. However, before going to K-Mart and buying loads of décor pieces, stop to identify your style. There are different styles and different décor pieces for every style. If you are more minimalistic, opt for black and white pieces with minimal ornaments. If you are a bit of country, get many fabrics and textures to give warmth to your space. If your style is more shabby chic, choose a neutral colour palette. Making an inspiration board is a good place to start. 

Add character

Not everything needs to be new and from the store. Character is best added with vintage pieces. You may not like hand-me-downs in clothes or shoes, but in décor pieces, you will be lucky to find anything good and worth putting into your space. No one considers the cost of decorating your home from scratch - and it can get pretty costly. So, take one day, or weekend, and go to your local vintage shops, second-hand shops, or hunt for yard and garage sales, to find the pieces that will most fit into your space. To prevent yourself from buying something you will not end up using, take a piece of paper or fabric, and paint a couple of swatches of your colour palette. Take a picture of your inspiration board, and check every piece to see where it would go before you buy it. This will save you money, and prevent cluttering. 

Flowers, flowers, flowers

There is seriously nothing better than walking into a room that has freshly cut flowers in your space. Whichever room you choose to put flowers in, the smell of the flowers will instantly bring a smile to your face. Lucky for you, flowers in Brisbane are now at the peak of their bloom, and you can choose whichever flower you want to decorate your space. And what’s best about flowers, is that they are timeless, and can go with any style. Whether it is you who is making the flower arrangements, or the person in the store, you can always customize the look according to the rest of your space. Plus, getting flowers in your space will instantly make it look and feel alive. 

DIY

There are so many projects online that you can make yourself, with little to no skills required. If you have a hot glue gun, a pair of scissors and the power of will, you are all set. DIYing any piece of décor should be easy if you follow instructions and try not to glue your fingers together. Even if you don’t succeed, that’s okay - because you’ll do it on the second try. If you found some great picture frames in the thrift store but they don’t match in colour, get a spray paint of your desired colour, and spray paint them! Just be careful to do it in a properly ventilated room, or outside if possible. You can DIY your throw pillows, too. Add pom-poms, or paint something on them, for a customized and unique look. Or you can reuse and re-purpose old jars into vases. When it comes to DIY, the possibilities are endless, and all you need is a little imagination. 

Shop sales

If you are not so keen on going to the thrift store, or shopping at a yard sale and using someone else’s stuff, you can always opt for shopping sales. Right now in Australia, it is spring, and many stores offer discounts on décor pieces. A smart thing to do would be to stock up on décor pieces now, for next winter. Or, you can buy décor now and re-purpose it, DIY it, or use it as an all-year-round decoration. No one expects you to change your entire decoration with every season, so invest where you think is necessary, like mirrors and chandeliers, and save money where you can.

Conclusion

We hope that these tips helped you get a better grasp of where to start when decorating your first home. It can be challenging and sometimes even overwhelming, but with enough patience and willpower, you can do it just as easily as a professional would.