Welcome to My Five Favorites today! This month, we've combed the archives and chosen our five favorite budget friendly home projects that give the biggest bang for your buck. I think all of us hosting today are relatively budget conscious when we're working on a space, and I'm excited to see some great inspiration today for attaining beautiful design on a dime!
My co-hosts are such pros at this!
Pam from Simple Details
Lisa from Shine Your Light
Kris from Driven by Decor
We're so happy that Brooke from Nesting with Grace is joining us as our guest host today. She's created a home full of character and charm in spite of limited square footage. Every inch is loaded with style and functionality! I can't get enough of her daughters' shared bedroom, but her kitchen and deck are close runners up for my favorite spaces in her home.
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BOTANICAL GALLERY WALL
Hands down, my Botanical Gallery Wall is my favorite budget friendly project. With a few supplies, a little bit of time, and some careful hanging skills I have a timeless focal point that fills a large space. And all for less than $100! Read here for all of the supplies and details for how I put this wall together.
And as a bonus, it does double duty at Christmas when I switch out the usual artwork for festive holiday prints.
PAINTED PATTERNED WALLS
Coming in a close second, the painted gingham walls in my Powder Bath make a huge impact for only a few dollars spent on paint and tape (and priceless mathematical measuring direction from my Dad!). Oh. And about a week of my life.... but it was worth it! ;)
A little bit of accent paint and a pattern to trace made this panel in our office a nice focal point too.
And while we're at it, painted anything is a huge bang for your buck. Paint is relatively cheap and nothing transforms a space faster. Proof: Our kitchen before and after-
OVERSIZED SILHOUETTES
I don't show these often on the blog because they're in a spot that doesn't get photographed often (and it hard to get a good shot of them!), but these silhouettes that I made of the kids years ago were such an economical project. Like the botanical gallery wall, they take up a good amount of space if you're needing to fill a wall for not much money. Read more about them here but they're basically piece of plywood that I had cut to the size I wanted, then I painted them and stapled wide ribbon to make stripes before adding a framed DIY silhouette of each child.
I have a friend who was inspired by mine to make her own, and she covered her board with fabric rather than painting it. Great idea, it looked so good!
FURNITURE MAKEOVERS
I know I've said it many times on here before, but I'd much rather buy a quality piece of second hand furniture that might need a bit of love that walk into a furniture store and purchase something new. It's one of my favorite ways to save money while furnishing my home, not to mention the thrill of the hunt! A few of my favorite pieces:
Of course, the vintage china cabinet that I painted green is an all time favorite secondhand piece. By the time I bought it, supplies, new glass, and hardware I had a couple of hundred dollars in it. Money well spent I'd say for such a staple piece, and I couldn't touch a new, solid wood piece for that price.
This bamboo console table is one of my best finds ever, and after some touch up work on the finish and new upholstery on the stools it's a show stopper!
I also love this pair of vintage Ethan Allen wingback chairs that I had reupholstered for my Master Bedroom. I stripped them down myself to save a bit more money, shopped around online for the best price on the fabric I wanted, and used a reasonable upholsterer. Now their life has been extended and they're ready for many more years of use!
Lastly for the furniture, I still love this huge mirror that I found for $80 on Craigslist. It had a really bad wood toned shiny finish on the frame, but that wasn't anything my trusty favorite gold spray paint couldn't fix!
CUSTOM TRIM AND MOULDING
Another project in my Powder Bath Makeover, upgrading a plain wall with a bit of moulding makes all. the. difference. I love how adding the chair rail trim and moulding boxes below give the illusion of wainscoting on a plain wall and completely elevate the space.
and in our Master Bedroom I added trim to the doors that lead into the Master Bath. When I couldn't find the curved moulding that I would have liked to use, I got creative and used some ceiling medallions to make the design a little more special.
What's your favorite "bang for your buck" project that you've done? I can't wait to see our co-hosts' best budget friendly projects today, be sure to stop by and check them out as well!
Missed any previous My 5 Favorites posts? Catch up here!
My 5 Favorite Paint Colors
My 5 Favorite Quick and Easy Holiday Decorating Ideas
My 5 Favorite Tips for Organizing Your Home
My 5 Favorite Home Decor Accessories
My 5 Favorite Ways to Decorate for Spring
My 5 Favorite Pillows
My 5 Favorite Ways to Decorate an Outdoor Space
My 5 Favorite Fabrics
My 5 Favorite DIY Projects
My 5 Favorite Ways to Use Mixed Metals
My 5 Favorite DIY Artwork Projects
My 5 Favorite Tabletop Accessories
My 5 Favorite Recipes for the Holidays
My 15 Favorite- Holiday Wish List
My 5 Favorite Organizing Tools
My 5 Favorite Ways to Celebrate Valentine's Day
My 5 Favorite Thrifted Finds
My 5 Favorite Ikea Products
My 5 Favorite Paint Projects
My 5 Favorite Home Gadgets
My 5 Favorite Summer Accessories
My 5 Favorite Before and After Projects
My 5 Favorite Beauty and Hair Products
My 5 Favorite Ideas for Decorating Kids' Rooms
My 5 Favorite Tips to Tame the Holiday Crazy
My 15 Favorites- Holiday Gift Guide
My 5 Favorite Ways to Organize Room by Room
Jennifer, your home is so colorful and beautiful! You really have done so many things that were creative, brave, and unique all to make your house become a showplace of gorgeousness!!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Stacey. Things eventually come together, it's always a process and never really finished! ;)
DeleteYou inspire me so much with all your projects! That gallery wall is so beautiful and I have always been in love with that bamboo console! I always keep my eyes open for something similar. It's just perfect! Love your style!
ReplyDeleteShelley
Thanks Shelley! That was definitely a great find. Keep your eyes open, I bet you'll come across something sooner or later!
DeleteDo you happen to remember where you bought the pretty green cable knit throw that is shown in a few photos? Thanks!!
ReplyDeleteI do! It was from Homegoods about 4 years ago. I've searched online and never really found it, I'm sure it's no longer available. It is Lauren by Ralph Lauren if you want to look around a bit!
DeleteWhoops typing so fast I just deleted my (very long) comment. You have so many great "bangs" Jennifer, but that bathroom with the gingham walls and trimwork take the cake!! Love love love all your creativity and how much you've made your house your own!
ReplyDeleteLoved the BOTANICALS so much I did my own wall and its a great conversation piece!
ReplyDeleteJennifer:
ReplyDeleteYour projects are absolutely amazing! Love those silhouettes and your beautiful painted furniture! I think that bamboo console is my favorite though!! 💫🙌🏻💫
Fabulous budget friendly projects my friend! I don't think I've ever seen that before of your kitchen - oh my, what a transformation!! Gotta love white paint! And your botanicals are such a great statement!
ReplyDeleteJennifer I love each and every one of these projects. I've never seen those silhouettes - love that and wish I had done it when my girls were littler! And I'll forever be jealous of your console and benches - absolutely love them!
ReplyDelete