Frugal Decorating | beingfrugal.net

Kyle’s Coupons: Decorate Your Home Frugally

Posted by Lynnae on July 9, 2008

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Lynnae likes to decorate with framed photos.

The following is a regular feature by Kyle of Rather-Be-Shopping. If you like this post, consider subscribing to his blog’s RSS feed.

My wife and I were at an art show recently and we really liked some of the artists on display. That was the exciting news, the bad news was the starting price on most of the pieces was $250. Yikes! I think I will stay frugal when it comes to decorating our walls and home. When we moved into our home 7 years ago, we had very little money and we had very little stuff to put on our walls, and very little furniture and decor for the rooms. But over the years, we have discovered some ways to decorate and furnish without spending a a lot of money. On the heels of Lynnae’s big announcement, here are a few of my favorite tips, followed by some related coupons.

~ Paint, Paint, and Paint. - Perhaps the cheapest way to improve the look of a room is to paint it. When it comes to learning how to paint, the learning curve is fairly small. My best tip is to take advantage of your local home improvement store, many of them offer free classes on different painting techniques and tips on how to pick your colors. Our local Home Depot has a free painting class every Saturday morning. They give great tips on how to pick out colors as well as what tools you will need to get the job done right. They also offer free classes on painting techniques like Faux painting. Best part is that they are all free!

~ Online Deals on Prints and Artwork. - My wife and I have had a lot of success buying prints from All Posters.com and Art.com. They have literally thousands of artists and prints with a neat custom framing tool that lets you see what any print or poster will look like with any type of frame or matting. Plus, they often have coupons for 25% off your online purchase. I have also heard of people buying artwork and home decor from ebay or Craig’s List. Personally, I have never done this because I like to be able to see and touch used artwork, furniture, and home decor before I buy it. Have you been able to find good deals this way?

~ Yard and Garage Sales. - I have bought a lot of the furniture and home decor from yard sales. You can score some great deals, especially if you are willing to refinish wooden furniture yourself. My best yard sale tip is to show up on the last day of the sale, in the afternoon, as people will be much more willing to negotiate a great price with you. The flip side of this strategy is that a lot of the better deals could be gone.

~ Thrift and Antique Stores. - Similar to yard sales, you can find some terrific bargains at thrift and antique stores. The hunt for deals can be addictive, so make sure you have a list of what you need. Stick to your list and stay focused. This will keep you from filling your garage with a bunch of junk you will never use. I speak from experience on this one!

What tips on frugal home decorating can you add? I look forward to your comments! Here are some online coupons that may be able to help you save even more money when decorating your home.

Art.com
Save 25% Off your entire online order
Coupon Code: YRVOTE25
Expires: 7/11/08
See All: Art.com Coupons

Home Depot.com
Get 40% Off Lighting and Ceiling Fans thru this Link
Coupon Code: None Needed
Expires: 7/19/08
See All: Home Depot Coupons

All Posters.com
Get free shipping when you spend $9.99 or more
Coupon Code: BLOWOUT
Expires: 7/14/08
See All: All Posters Coupons

Blindsgalore.com
Get 15% Off your $400+ order and get Free Shipping
Coupon Code: SUMMER15
Expires: 7/15/08
See All: BlindsGalore Coupons

Bare Walls.com
Get 10% Off all Framed Items at Bare Walls.com
Coupon Code: RTHRBFR
Expires: 7/31/08
See All: Bare Walls Coupons

JC Penney.com
Free shipping on your $75 or more online order
Coupon Code: BBFAM8E
Expires: 7/31/08
See All: JCPenney.com Coupons

Kohl’s.com
Get 10% Off your online order at Kohls.com
Coupon Code: NEW2616
Expires: 7/12/08
See All: Kohls Coupons

American Blinds and Wallpaper.com
Get an Extra 20% Off American Blinds Super Values
Coupon Code: Super20
Expires: 8/06/08
See All: American Blinds & Wallpaper Coupons

Photo by gahdjun.

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Comments

5 Responses to “Kyle’s Coupons: Decorate Your Home Frugally”

Unspending on July 9th, 2008 7:05 am

Great post! I’d like to also suggest buying student and young artists’ work. If you’re lucky enough to have lots of art schools and universities in your town, (like we do in Toronto,) you can go to graduate and student shows and find some great pieces by up-and-comers for an up-and-comer price.

Also, don’t underestimate your own creativity. A few interesting photos in a decent frame goes a long way.
Marci on July 9th, 2008 8:43 am

Blow up your own great photos and frame them - places that bring back great memories, etc.

My home is full of family pictures - all over. And framed handprints and artwork from the grandkids! It’s all I need to make me happy!
Eponine on July 9th, 2008 2:26 pm

Another good source of fun, cheap art is 20×200. They offer both photography and art prints starting at just $20. They post new pieces every week, and some of them sell out very quickly. You can check it out at http://www.20×200.com. (No, I don’t work for them. I’m just a fan!)

Idea for a frugal project: I cut out the photos from a calendar I had saved (I had it the year I lived in France, so I didn’t want to throw it away). I taped them together on the backing of a cheap poster frame, then put the collage/masterpiece in the frame. Voila… instant poster. Plus I no longer have to store the calendar.
Lisa on July 9th, 2008 5:39 pm

Book illustrations from old books make great wall art. Especially for kids rooms — the old 1950s school readers have terrific illustrations. Puzzles, again especially older ones are great framed too. I also like to make a grouping of drawings and pictures. I don’t even mat them, just fix them to colored mat paper and pop them into a frame. Greeting cards also make great frameable art. I also love to frame my kids’ drawings. And, since I am an artist myself I do stick a lot of my own stuff throughout the house.
Ashoppy on July 11th, 2008 7:11 am

I’ve started a discount coupon blog myself and I think your blog looks like one that I’d be checking out often from now on.

Thanks.