Before & After: From Blank Slate to Simply Stunning

Written by

Jennifer Hunter
Jennifer Hunter
Jennifer spends her days writing and thinking about decor, food and fashion in NYC. Not too shabby.
published Nov 5, 2013
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Post Image
(Image credit: Diana Mui)

When she moved in, Diana had a lot of books but little else. Considering her tight budget and completely empty room, she faced quite the challenge.

(Image credit: Diana Mui)

From Diana:

$4500 sounds like a decent amount of money, but we started with no furniture, no linens, not even a rug liner. To shop wisely, we hunted for the largest pieces of furniture first. The sofa was the biggest challenge — we finally found a red sofabed for $500. We wanted the rug to make an impact so we found one from Urban Outfitters. It was only 4′ x 6′ so we layered it over an affordable, larger jute rug. To the wall we applied Kendall Gray from Benjamin Moore. We also decided to create a defined “dining area” by stenciling a panel on the wall.

We managed to stay on budget by mixing travel finds, thrift store buys and a few splurges with cheaper items. We didn’t have enough left for accessories so our books are now displayed as art. Now, every object has a personalty.

Thank you Diana!

Re-edited from a post originally published 11.5.13 – NT