How to Decorate on a Budget {Dining Room}

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Since I am all about being thrifty, I thought it would be fun to show you a few of my rooms and how I’ve decorated them on a budget.

The tag line of my blog is “Re.store ~ Re.style ~ Re.love“, after all! ;)

I totally believe in doing just that.  And I don’t think you need to spend a fortune to decorate your home…or decorate your home well.

Today, I’ll start with my Dining Room. It’s been re-invented quite a few times now. :)

How to Decorate on a Budget - artsychicksrule.com #thrifty #budgetdecorating #budgetdecor #homedecor #decor

Here it is decorated for the Holidays ….

Dining Room decorated for the holidays - Holiday Home Tour - artsychicksrule.com

It started out like this:

Styling and Decorating on a Budget - Dining Table Before - artsychicksrule.com #thriftydecor #budgetdecor

Well, not really….it actually started like this …… (not my decor, by the way…we were walking through with the realtor)

Dining Room - BEFORE - artsychicksrule.com

I removed the wallpaper & painted. My husband and I added the wainscoting a few years later.

Instead of buying new, I decided to refinish/paint my dining set and china cabinet a couple years ago to give it a fresh, new look:

Dining Table Makeover - Budget Decorating - artsychicksrule.com

You can read more about that whole process –> here.

I found the chairs on Craigslist for the latest “do-over”. The fabric for the “no-sew” curtains came from Hancock Fabrics (clearance bin!).

Styling and Decorating on a Budget - CL Chairs - artsychicksrule.com #thriftydecor #budgetdecor
I paid approx $25 for enough fabric to cover 6 chairs and make curtain panels.
You can read more about the chairs and “no-sew” curtains in this post –> here.

Styling and Decorating on a Budget - No Sew Panels with Clearance Bin Fabric - artsychicksrule.com #thriftydecor #budgetdecor

This teal colored dresser/mirror (turned chalkboard) “Coffee Bar” came from the thrift store… $35.
That was a steal….although it did look like this when I got it:

Coffee Bar Before and After - artsychicksrule.com #coffeebar #coffee

Paint and/or refinishing can easily make it beautiful again though.

My “Coffee Bar” has some thrifty finds too. You can read more about them here and here.

Styling and Decorating on a Budget -Coffee Bar Shelves - artsychicksrule.com #thriftydecor #budgetdecor

The shelves are simple, inexpensive and easy too. The brackets came from Hobby Lobby and were approx $4 each.

On the wall on the other side of the china cabinet…

Styling and Decorating on a Budget - Wall Decor - artsychicksrule.com #thriftydecor #budgetdecor

The mirror was painted with Chalk Paint®. You can see it “before” in this post –> here.
The shelf was a red stained wood and I painted it black. The pink vase…was pink! ;)
And….frames are always a bargain at the thrift store.

And then there is the “Baker’s Hutch”…..

Baker's Hutch - Before and After - Annie Sloan Chalk Paint - artsychicksrule.com #budgetdecor #homedecor #chalkpaint

A little paint along with “new” hardware from another thrifted piece…. and transformed completely.
You can read about the “Baker’s Hutch” makeover –> here.

Styling and Decorating on a Budget - Decor Items - artsychicksrule.com #thriftydecor #budgetdecor

The teal tray came from IKEA. It wasn’t much. Six dollars if I remember right.

On the other side of the room is my “bar” area.

This piece came from an estate sale….$20.

Antique Sideboard Before, During and After with Chalk Paint - artsychicksrule.com #chalkpaint

And yep, I did paint it twice. First time was….wrong.  My creative path is a little crooked sometimes. ;)
You can read more about that makeover –> here. (full tutorial for the lettering also)

The items on the top….

Styling and Decorating on a Budget - Bar Cabinet Decor - artsychicksrule.com #thriftydecor #budgetdecor

All the decanters came from garage sales/thrift stores. I got the large one in the middle from Ross or TJ Maxx though.

This came from the ReStore. I actually paid more than I normally would pay for something like this. $20.
But I needed something to house my cable modem, etc, and this was perfect.
It went through a couple paint jobs too. Oopsie. ;)
You can read more about all of that in this post –> here.

Styling and Decorating on a Budget - $20 cabinet - artsychicksrule.com #thriftydecor #budgetdecor

I’ll be sharing the rest of my rooms as I complete them.
Still a few things going on in each of them. No surprise there! ;)

But I hope this post has at least inspired you to think outside the box a little about decorating.
Everyone’s styles are different. This post isn’t really about style but more about ways you too can keep costs down decorating in your own home.

I mostly wanted to show you that it can be done by re-inventing things you already own or those you pick up inexpensively.

Stay tuned…I have a fun (also re-invented) DIY seashell/beach sign coming up later this week.  :)
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Be sure to follow me on Instagram and Facebook if you don’t already!
I always post projects and things I’m working on
long before it hits the blog…..
….plus lots of fun random daily things too. :)

 

 

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22 Comments

    1. That’s great! And thank you Crystal! :) Yes, it really saves so much! I’ve done it in every room of my home. :)
      Nancy

  1. Gosh, you really hit some good bargains..Tell me something please; did you remove the mirrow from the frame or leave it in and put painting tape around the edge so paint didn’t get on the mirrow? I’ve got to find a place that teaches classes in making over furniture and things with AS paint. I love so many of the items you made over. You are very creative and it appears thrifty too..to look for bargains that you can uses. Thanks for sharing all these inspirations.

    1. Thanks Betty! :)
      I taped around the mirror when I painted the green color around it because I originally left it as a mirror. Then I decided to make it a chalkboard and just painted right over the mirror (I didn’t tape off, just was careful around the edges) If I had been planning a chalkboard from the beginning I wouldn’t have even taped at all since the mirror would get the black for the “chalkboard” anyway. :)
      Hope that helps!
      Nancy

  2. After finally painting our living room and buying new curtains for two windows, which actually inspired the whole scheme of the room, (shabby chic/beachy/cottage) people are asking us why we’d want to fix things up. What? I am only person out of all our friends that crafts, and fixes things up in our home, I’m lucky to know how to sew. They’ve acted like it’s some strange new idea. Having hard time figuring out why it seems alien to people. Even tho we sure don’t have money to spend I’ve always done what I could to make our home nicer than we found it, even when we lived in rentals.
    I am so inspired by things you and other bloggers do, and many of you are young women with young children to take care of beside the blog businesses you all have. I’ve completely transposed our living room with paint/new curtains and things I had redone/reused and enjoyed it even more as a challenge to see how I could make do.
    After waiting almost 8 yrs. to finally get l/r painted I’m so glad we waited. I’ve been so influenced and inspired by what I’ve seen on blog land my head is going all the time, seems not enuf hours in day to do all I want to do.
    I’ve made all the art, reused other things we had in different way, repainted things, I’ve been having a great time. Made lots of work for myself but what could be more enjoyable way to spend my days? Even have hubs in on it making things for me. We have lots of pallet lumber and other lumber we’ve been given or collected, putting it all to good use.
    I’m so glad I found bloggers like yourself that are so talented and inspire me so much. It’s been quite a revelation to find so many talented people out there on blog land. You’re all doing things I’ve done as young woman with small children and little money only in many better ways. Bravo for bloggers. Happy days

    1. Hi JaneEllen,
      Thanks so much for the kind words! You sound a lot like me! :) I totally agree, what better way to spend your days. Especially if this is something you enjoy.
      You are right, there is a lot of talent out there in blog land. But I think it really just goes to show you (my hope for my blog anyway!) that anyone can do these things. There is so much inspiration out there and so many great ideas.
      Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing that with me!
      All the best! :)
      Nancy

  3. The table top looks so rich. I have an old table and I think I’ll try that same technique. I love that you’re not afraid to paint a piece of furniture.

    Also, the coffee bar… what a great idea. This will be a great space now for brunches and showers.

    1. Thanks April! It’s my favorite shade of wood! No, I’m not very afraid to paint anything…not sure if that is good or bad!! ;)
      And yes, the coffee bar has been fabulous…we use it all the time! (and it saves us valuable space in the kitchen)
      Nancy

  4. I don’t any any idea how I missed this post, but I’m so glad you mentioned it in your new post. All this awesomeness in one place!! Thanks for putting it together! I love, love so many things you do! There might be a few things even I can do! :) xo

  5. I’ve always been jealous of creative people – to come up with original ideas like these takes effort and skill… both of which I lack immensely. Thank god for the Internet or my flat would look like a total dump.

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