Many people don’t realize that you don’t have to spend a lot of money decorating your home. It’s easier than you thing to have a nicely decorated home that looks like you spend thousands of dollars on it, when you really only invested a few hundred. Here are some ways to find décor items for your home that fit in your budget.

Shop Garage Sales and Flea Markets
When you go to garage sales and flea markets, you don’t always find exactly what you’re looking for but you might just come across d écor items that will work just as well in your home. As you’re shopping at these types of places, you just need to keep an open mind. You may just find that there are a lot of ways that you can completely change an item to fit your needs. Those of you who are crafty or even just creative can easily take any flea market and garage sale finds and turn them into personal décor items for your home. Just be sure that any items you buy are safe and structurally sound; if they’re not, there may not be anything you can do to fix that.

Shop Seasonal Sales at Department and Discount Stores
Do you like to change your home’s décor with the different seasons? The best way to find inexpensive items for this is to shop after the season when they go on extreme clearance. For example, department and discount stores need to make room for winter and holiday items and thus will clearance out their fall décor items around October or November. You can simply shop clearance sales and then store the items away for the next year. You can even display certain seasonal items in the home year-round.

Trade Your Décor with Family and Friends
Talk to family members and friends. There may be certain items that they’re willing to trade with you so that everyone gets a fresh look in their home. This is a great way to get rid of something you may not have a use for anymore. And as a bonus, you also get a new free item for your home. Do be sure to ask if it’s okay with the family member and friend that you’re taking the décor item from them!

Reinvent Your Old Décor Items
Whether you’re simply trying to change the look of a room or you have moved and are trying to decorate your new home, be sure to go through old items before tossing them in the garbage. With a little creativity, you can change up your old items—just like with things from garage sales and flea markets. Polish or paint an old vase to look like new, or repaint a picture frame to match the color scheme of your new décor. Reinventing your old décor items is a great way to save money and will really help you stick to your decorating budget.

If you are trying to decorate your home on a budget, you have to use some creativity to be able to save money. Sometimes this means shopping wisely; other times it requires creative ideas on how to reinvent items. So don’t spend thousands of dollars on your décor. With these simple tips, you can stick to your budget and really save some money.

Rather than simply throwing your old china plates away, why not use them to decorate different rooms in your house? By reusing items you already have, you can really save money on decorating your home. When you use them creatively, old china plates can really add to the décor of your home.

Make a Mosaic Table from Old China Plates
Don’t toss those old chipped or broken plates in the garbage. Rather, break them up further so you can use them to make a mosaic table from all the broken pieces.

• Simply break the pieces of the china into smaller pieces.
• Next, arrange the piece on a flat-surfaced table, such as a coffee table or side table.
• Then glue those pieces to the table, creating a mosaic pattern.
• Use grout to seal the pieces in place and give the table a finished appearance.
• Arrange the pieces in whatever pattern you like. You might even choose to use colored grout, which will give the table some more character.

Display Old China Plates on a Shelf
Do your old china plates have some character to them? They why not display them on a shelf in your home? You don’t have to limit your use of china plates as décor items to the dining room. Depending on how they fit the style of the room, these plates can be displayed in the living room, the kitchen, and even the bedroom.

If you can, find a shelf that matches the style of the plates. A distressed wood shelf is a great option for plates that are old and look antique. You can really give the area a unique style by using all different sizes of the plates.

Hang Old China Plates on the Wall
Plate hangers are available at craft and home stores and will allow you to easily hang any plate securely on the wall. This is perhaps the most popular way to decorate with china plates, although you can hang all different types and sizes of plates in a single area to create a more unique look. To create a trendy décor space, you might want to look in consignment shops and flea markets for other plates to mix in with your old china.

Paint the Old China Plates
If your old plates are white or even a solid color, you can paint them to match the décor of your room. Be sure to use acrylic paint. You can either paint them all one color, or if you are creative, you can paint pictures or patterns on them. Paint the plates to fit the décor of your dining room or kitchen, and then hang them on the wall or put them on a shelf. By using old china plates this way, you can give your room a new look. If you like, give your kids a couple of plates to paint and then hang up this cute art project in their bedroom.

So when you decide that it’s time to buy new china plates, don’t just throw your old ones away. Instead, you can save yourself some money by using them to decorate your home.