Nifty Thrifty Girl

A little paint and some inexpensive fabric can go a long way. My daughter is growing up and decided that her girly pink room had to go. Boo hoo. Unfortunately, I never snapped pictures of the ‘pink’ room in all it’s glory but you can get the idea from the few photos I will share with you.

When changing a room over I like to grab several paint swatches, tape them to the wall and ‘live’ with the colors for a bit before I make my decision. Well, my daughter had her own ideas and immediately fell in love with a lovely shade of blue from one of the swatches, so we went with it.

BEFORE - the PINK room

The pink gingham roman shades were removed from the windows, as well as the shutters to make way for new window treatments.

DURING - PINK to BLUE room

AFTER - the BLUE room

While shopping for paint I happened to pass by the fabric clearance rack and spotted this funky fabric that I knew my daughter would love. I grabbed all of it for $8.00, sewed two panels…and now…new window treatments:

We scoured the stores for a bedding ensemble that would match the walls. It didn’t take long for my daughter to spot this set…and it looks perfect:

So, for approximately $70 (the majority of the money was spent on the bedding) I completely changed a room - in one weekend.

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One of my favorite organizing tricks is to make use of the assorted glassware I’ve collected over the years. Most of these pieces were found at thrift stores, flea markets and estate sales. I’ve made a rule for myself to never pay more than $4 or $5 for a particular piece - most of them were actually found for under $2.

I use these pieces throughout my house for organizing; here are just a few tips/suggestions on how to use your collections to your advantage:

- Use small containers to organize bathroom supplies such as cotton balls, Q-tips, makeup brushes

- Use on your dresser top to organize earrings, jewelry, miscellaneous items

- Use on your desk to organize office supplies such as pens, scissors, paper clips

Put your collections to good use, get yourself organized and have fun!

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One of my favorite decorating tricks is to make use of the many collections I have. Whether it be ironstone, cut glass, milk glass, quilts, or enamelware; displaying collections is a great way to enhance your style. If you are like me and have a variety of collections, you can rotate them with each season for a quick decor change.

I have a large collection of transferware which includes several plates and platters. I keep plate hangers on all of these pieces so I can just grab one and switch it out as often as I like.

Ironstone and milk glass pieces are great additions to your collections. White goes with everything and makes for a calming, eye pleasing display.

Experiment with different combinations - use pieces from several collections, or focus on a single color or pattern. For vignettes on tables or shelving try mixing cut glass vases, candy dishes, and bowls. Or try arranging several kitchen items of a similar color for an interesting wall display. The possibilities are endless!

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Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

The least expensive and quickest way to change any decor is PAINT. I am constantly changing my mind about how I want a particular room to look and the first step I always take is to grab a bunch of swatches (hey, they’re free!) at my local paint store (True Value, Lowes or Home Depot).

Next, before actually making the big change, I ‘live’ with the color for a few days. I take the swatches and place them next to the molding (if you can cram a swatch in between a bit of the molding that’s great, otherwise you can use just a bit of tape to adhere it to the wall).

Once I’ve decided on a color its’ off to the paint store. You want to make sure you get the correct finish for your project. My rule of thumb is as follows:

Flat finish: ceilings and hallways with little traffic (this finish is harder to clean than those with more of a sheen - I prefer to use it only on ceilings).

Eggshell: ceilings, walls in living rooms and dining rooms.

Satin: walls; particularly in kids rooms, bedrooms (this finish is suited to light scrubbing and washing).

Semi Gloss: doors, trim, cabinets, walls in high traffic areas: kitchen and bathroom (this finish withstands water and frequent cleaning).

Glossy: trim and accent furniture (because this has such a shiny finish and magnifies surface imperfections I actually prefer not to use this finish).

Once your paint color is mixed make sure that the salesperson makes a test swatch for you to ensure the color is correct. Always purchase enough paint for your project. Each time a color is mixed it will come out differently so it is important to have enough of one color mixed at once. It’s always better to have too much paint than not enough (you can always find another use for the leftover paint). I underestimated the amount of red paint I’d need for my dining room and when I went back and had a second gallon mixed, to my surprise, when I put it on my walls the color didn’t even come close to the red I had purchased the day before! I ended up running back to the store, having two more gallons of red mixed and having to repaint the entire dining room for a third time. Ugh!

Many stores are now offering paint in small sample sizes so you can test out the color on your walls before you make a final decision.

Some of my favorite paints:

Martha Stewart Valspar

TrueValue

Behr

Don’t forget to purchase high quality brushes in a variety of sizes…and have fun!!