I believe I’ve perfected the art of creating aesthetic decor on a student budget. I’ve discovered all kinds of tips and tricks when it comes to upgrading the little things in your life, whether that be your style, your room, or even your hobbies. Creating or collecting decor doesn’t have to be hard, or even expensive. It’s all about finding inspiration and using what you have! Here’s what I’ve learned.
To get inspired, I’ll often look on my trusty app Pinterest, and make a board of what I want to create or collect. A lot of my room decor includes thrifted or self-made projects that I’ve envisioned with the help of other’s creative ideas. Researching different aesthetics that I want incorporated into my decor gives me lots of inspiration, that I end up using and adding my own special touches to. Most of the time, you can use that inspiration to create or purchase something similar for less money.
Clothes are a commonly thrifted item if you’re looking to spice up your wardrobe on a budget, however, your thrifting possibilities are endless. I have thrifted my guitar, more than half of my books, and many little trinkets to decorate my room. You’d be surprised by how much some cleaning and paint can do to thrifted items such as jars, picture frames, jewelry boxes, etc. The key is to keep an open mind and try to envision how you can style or repurpose something—again, this takes lots of finding inspiration and your own creativity!
In terms of using what you have, you’d be shocked by how many times I go to buy something only to discover that there’s something I have at home that I can repurpose. A super easy and cool thing that I like to do with my old candles once they’re finished, is to put the jar in the freezer for a couple of hours and let the wax pop right out along with the wicks. I then clean the jar and either keep the label or run it under hot water to take it off and then I’m left with a perfectly good jar to use for organization or aesthetic purposes. This gives the candle two uses and saves you from having to buy a new jar for makeup brushes, pens, hair clips, or lip products.
As for decor on my walls, instead of purchasing expensive posters, or wall paper, I’ve collected vintage post cards from used bookstores and farmers markets for less than a dollar and taped them onto my wall to take up wall space and to give a retro feel to my room. I’ve also used polaroid pictures, old movie tickets, and letters that people have written me to add my own personal life into my decor. You can also simply look up posters on Pinterest, maybe of your favourite music artists or media, and print them out on paper to use as posters. I’ve done this several times and I swear you can barely tell the difference.
As someone who loves to craft, I’ve made and personalized lots of my room decor myself. Don’t be fooled, I don’t have amazing artistic abilities, I more so just enjoy crafting as a screenless hobby. You don’t have to be perfect at drawing or painting to make your own decor, it’s just a fun thing to do to practice your creativity and keep you off your phone. Plus, it’s often far less expensive than purchasing something that has already been made. I decided to attempt origami as a free hands-on project, using a YouTube tutorial and paper I had lying around, and I was able to make some cool flowers that sit happily on my shelf as decor. I recommend purchasing your materials from Dollarama if you decide to craft. They provide a wide range of craft supplies at a far lower price than Michaels.
Hopefully these suggestions inspire you to get creative, practice your DIY skills, and save some money on décor!