Room Makeovers on a Budget

At least twice a year, I get the sudden urge to gut my entire room and start anew. Unfortunately, despite working three jobs, I still fall under the category of a “broke college student.” Therefore, the money it takes to completely redesign a room is not available in my bank account.

That realization can be frustrating, especially if you’re like me and can’t stand the thought of your house being any less aesthetically pleasing than what you see on your Pinterest feed. But, through a lot of self reflection and overdue credit card bills, I had to knock enough sense into myself to have self control and not buy everything I wanted.

How can you do a room makeover if you’re not spending loads of money though? Every influencer has a feed full of videos you can use to remodel, but each item they purchase is going to be way over your budget. So, through many hours of window shopping and online research, I have found the best places to find items to make your home feel a little more luxurious without getting your credit card declined.

Clear Containers from Dollar Tree

Dollar Tree has loads of glass jars and other clear containers that can be used in any room of the house. For only $1.25 each, you can use storage containers like the ones shown to hold laundry pods, dishwasher tabs, popcorn seasoning shakers, candies, and so much more. I have these all over my apartment and I always get complimented on how modern they make it look.

Fabric Storage Bins from Five Below

Small, medium, and large fabric bins can be upwards of $30 each even at lower priced stores like Marshalls, but Five Below has all different sizes for only $5 each. Like the dollar store clear containers, these can go in any room and hold pretty much anything. Bigger ones can be used as a blanket, towel, stuffed animal, or clothing storage. The smaller ones can hold socks, underwear, hair accessories, or those pesky remotes that are always disappearing. There’s numerous colors and styles, so odds are you will find ones to hold what you need. A little organization helps upscale your home and makes you look more put-together.

Desk Accessories from Target

The Target dollar-spot is always filled with new items–that’s why we feel the need to start there every time we walk through those red doors. Some things–like baskets and clear containers–can be found for a cheaper price elsewhere, so the urge to buy it just because it’s there must be resisted. Don’t worry though, those cute accessories for your desk are totally worth it though. Target has so many desk calendars, paper holders, pencil cups, and much more. For less than $10 you can add some class to your workspace that might motivate you to actually get some work done there.

Kitchen Linens from Dollar Tree

The allure of the cute dish towels from home furnishing stores is high, and getting one or two per season won’t break your bank. From an aesthetic point, and a budget one as well, getting what I call “filler towels” from the dollar store is your best bet. They have multiple color sets that can work with any towels, oven mitts, and kitchen accessories you HAVE to get elsewhere because they’re too cute to pass up. This will also allow your kitchen supplies to stay in pristine condition longer, because you can use the more expensive ones just for displays and accents. The cheap gray, red, blue, or black sets from the dollar store can clean up spills, pick up pots full of marinara, and go through the wash dozens of times. When those get to the end of their time, you just head over and buy another set. Also, having more than one set of these items makes it seem that there’s more money in your pocket than there actually is.

Room Essentials Towels from Target

Sometimes what you need to feel better about your home space is a color-scheme switch, and Target bathroom accessories can help do that and stay in your budget. Room essential towels come in dozens of different colors and each one has washcloths, hand towels, and body towels. I don’t know about anyone else, but fresh towels make me feel so much more put together. The towels start at only $2.75 and don’t go up much higher. Make sure you read labels though, because Target also sells different brand towels for much more. They are the perfect example of how price does not always correlate to quality. Save your money, spice up that bathroom, and wrap yourself up in a brand new towel when you hop out of the shower!

Faux Plants from Five Below

Having plants in your home has many benefits, but if you’re like me and have a black thumb strong enough to kill a succulent in a week, faux plants are the way to go. Places like Target sell them in the dollar-spot for at least $10 each, not to mention Home Goods selling a faux tree for over $150. You can plant a tree for cheaper than both of those. So, Five Below is my go-to place for little accent plants to place around my apartment. They come in different containers so they can match with any room, and they also range in size for all of your faux-plant needs. These are great additions to dark bathrooms to make them look more modern, and adding them to your living room creates a more lived-in feel. Plus, you never have to worry about hiring someone to water your plants when you’re away–double savings!

These stores, and many more have lots of good deals on home accessories if you know where to look for them. Saving money also comes with self control in stores. Going all out in Target can be a lot of fun, especially when shopping for decor, but that receipt will grow quickly.

Try doing your research beforehand, and see what on your list can be bought at cheaper places. Don’t be afraid to go into stores and not buy anything either. Home furnishing stores can be great idea hubs.