How to Do Interior Design on a Budget

While I definitely don't look down on people who hire interior decorators, with your own home you may want to try doing it yourself. Here is what I consider to be a good list of alternative actions a person can take to get a nice look on a budget:

1) Before you start, take the time to gather resources and information for your project.

This can include watching home and garden cable networks (which have shows hosted by professional designers), consulting design magazines for ideas, and seeing what resources you can find on the Internet. I believe just because you're doing something yourself doesn't mean you have to go into a project not knowing what you're doing. If possible, you want to have people somewhat surprised that you did it yourself.

2) Consider the look you're wanting, along with the purpose of the room.

A room can look very nice and still not make guests uncomfortable about moving a throw pillow two inches to left and "ruining" it. I've actually laughed at some covers of interior magazines I've seen after picturing a real family living in such a pristine room. There's organized, and then there's impossibly organized. I think when it comes to this we all have to find a happy medium.

3) Prior to any action, get input from everyone else who uses the room.

For example, a desk may look nicer in a certain part of the room but may be too far away from a power source for your family member to use it for their computer very long. There are little things you may not think about where you need feedback just to be considerate of other people who use the room.

4) As with anything you do yourself, give yourself room to learn and even make mistakes.

I think when it comes to our homes, it's more important that we enjoy living in them than becoming frustrated with trying to create the "perfect" look. It's really comes down to a personal decision on what you want and how much time and energy you're willing to dedicate.

More Tips:

• Many home and garden websites not only have general tips put project documents that you can print and download for free!
• Consider looking up design principles such as color theory and perspective as well. While they're mainly in the general art field, they are helpful.
• With things such as paint and wallpaper, always get samples and check to make sure you like them in different light conditions. Just tape the sample to the wall and check it throughout the day. Otherwise it may cost you extra time and money to change it again.

Resources:

HGTV's Website
HGTV Pro
DIY Network