Real Life Design: Adventurous Yet Affordable Decor Choices

Adrienne BreauxHouse Tour Director
Adrienne BreauxHouse Tour Director
For more than 10 years, I've led Apartment Therapy's real home content, producing thousands of house tours from around the world. Currently, I live in my maximalist dream home in New Orleans, Louisiana, with my partner, a perfect dog, and a cute cat.
updated Feb 19, 2019
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Living room with pink patterned sofa, glass coffee table, floral rug, and decorative pillows.
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(Image credit: Alexis Buryk)

Even if you don’t have a lot of money in your budget, you can fit a lot of bold into your home. We’ve gathered up examples of real life decor choices from our tours that prove our point; they are are wallet friendly and made a big impact on the space.

Mixing patterns can be an affordable way to get really bold in your home. Because different patterns interact with one another dynamically, you can mix high- and low-priced pieces (even all-low pieces) to create a bold composition. Sticking to the same color palette, as seen in Felicity’s Versatile & Vivacious Brooklyn Heights Studio, is one way to mix patterns without overwhelming.

→ Mixing Patterns: 2 Simple Formulas to Get it Right

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(Image credit: Bethany Nauert)

A bold graphic painted on a wall can save money and put a personal touch to a home. A tongue-in-cheek, painted-on fireplace and mantel in Eric & Patrick’s Design Playground adds a playful element to a white wall.

→ Design Inspiration: Geometric Graphic Painted Wall DIY Projects

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(Image credit: Séverine Piller)
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(Image credit: Séverine Piller)

Using fashion as decor is always an affordable idea. It shows off your stylish fashion sense and puts your favorite accessories on display. This DIY hanging hat idea is in Séverine & Gianfranco’s Urban Oasis in Milan.

→ 9 Secrets to Adding Fashion into Your Decor

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(Image credit: Marisa Vitale)

One bright, unusually colorful furniture piece—a free find you paint or a thrifted item you stumble on—can absolutely set the tone for an entire room, and doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg. The blue chair above is an Alky Chair spotted in Ben and Elise’s Vintage Wonderland in Mount Washington. Though a designer piece like this, even when found secondhand, is likely a budget-buster for many, it illustrates beautifully that pieces that combine a bright color with a fun shape are always worth keeping an eye out for when thrifting.

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(Image credit: Fabienne Ayina)

The great thing about oversized black and white wall art is that it can look chic whether you spend big bucks at a gallery or if you make it yourself. By painting an abstract black and white piece yourself or framing a big black and white engineering print or series of photographs, black and white wall art can make a big statement without huge expense. The above black and white art was spotted in Stephen’s Dramatic & Sultry Pied-à-Terre in Morocco.

  • When You Don’t Know What to Hang: Bold Black & White Art
  • Inspiration & Tips for Making Large Engineering Prints
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