How I did it: I started out with painted walls and some pictures my grandfather took (he was a photographer). There were also 2 mural stickers, but everything was still pretty bare. So after deciding to tackle this goal, in one year:

• I bought some cheapo framed posters at Ikea (I was debating over this in my head for months, as I wanted to avoid the 'generic Ikea apartment look' but admitted that I loved those posters and got over myself)
• Framed some stuff I've kept over the years - pictures I clipped from travel & cooking magazines! You really can't tell and it cost me nothing. They're up in my kitchen now.
• Bought a great poster at Deyrolle during a holiday in Paris
• Bought a print of a painting I loved at the Prado museum during a holiday in Madrid
• Bought a framed butterfly somewhere in Antwerp
• Bought some prints online I had wanted for over a year ("Places I've never been")
• Bought some wire frame art at Habitat to hang over my bed
• And the masterpiece is a big mural in my living room, of a tree. I was going to add leaves but I liked it as it is so kept it bare. This actually makes it pretty versatile. I decorated it for Christmas :)

Lessons & tips:

• Buying decorations while travelling adds memories to your home.
• Only get things you really really love. Your home should be about you and your taste.
• Decorating doesn't need to cost much, frames at Ikea are cheap and the pictures I got from magazines didn't cost anything.
• Mix it up a bit. Don't stick to one media, a mix of things (photographs, prints, 3D art) is often more interesting.
• I wasn't able to find anything at the recycling centers I visited, but others are usually lucky there.

Resources: For the mural I used a beamer (borrowed from work) to project a picture I found online on my wall. I just had to trace over it (didn't even need tape, just a brush and paint)

For great prints I recommend Etsy & Supermarket HQ

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Feb 20, 2010, 08:39AM PST | 0 comments | 1 cheer