Saturday, October 9, 2010

Dollar Store Makeover

Looking for a cheap way to change up your kids bedroom, or even your own? You might not think of the local $ store as an option for inspiration or even décor. But with a little imagination you can change up simple items to make a big change.


When we first moved onto our house we started with a blank slate of builders white every where. Those who know me will tell you I love to paint & paint & paint! So white had to go! My youngest daughters room is the smallest so I wanted to keep the illusion of a larger space plus paint the raspberry color she chose. I decided to paint only about 5 ½ feet up the wall leaving the top white. This kept the room airy yet colorful. Here’s were the $ store came in. I needed some kind of border to top off the paint. Since I hate commitment on color ( I have literally painted the same room several times in one year!) I found a cute wall paper border for just a DOLLAR! I needed at least 2 to be sure it I had enough.  Rather then actually gluing it I used double stick tape. Its held it for 3 years now & will come off so much easier then wallpaper glue.

To add a matching accent, I found removable wall stickers that coordinated with the border & 2 rolls of ribbon. I glued the ribbon around the lamp shade using a glue gun. The bottom ribbon I decided to give it a little fold for more interest. Next I placed the stickers around the shade & DONE!

With the left over ribbon I made curtain ties & tied them to the white shower curtain rings I also purchased for $1. All said & done I spent $6 total. Not to mention the curtains were only a whole $5 ! They are actually a table cloth bought on clearance in another store. I just cut it in half & seemed up the ruff edge.


 
I was also able to pick up a few accents for older daughters room as well. For her shade I used ribbon ($1) and an utility knife. After making 2 small cuts every several inches, I thread the ribbon through it. I then joined the to ends together to make a bow.
For her curtains I also used white shower curtain rings. To go with her star theme I found heavy card stock stars that that I added pink construction paper stars to the middle of. I then tied them to her curtain rings.

So for a grand total of $8 I was able make great impact on their rooms & not a dent in my wallet. Plus when its time to redecorate it won’t hurt so much! Its not always that easy to find what your looking for so cheap, but if you think out side the box it sometimes works out!

6 comments:

SkippyMom said...

I bow to your awesomeness. WOW. I love to sew but in a pinch I use the heat and seal tape to seam fabric for curtains, but never something as imaginative as a table cloth. LOVE!

And the lamps? Dang! Too cute.

I just don't have this kind of vision [much to my kids' chagrin] but you have [once again] inspired me. I need to hit the dollar store more often.

Barb said...

Great ideas Trisha! I bet the girls are thrilled!

Nan ~ Playful Decor said...

Excellent ideas! My blog is focusing on kids room decor and I'd love to re-post this. I just started so I'm still collecting and working on things. Let me know.

Susan W. said...

Hello! I finally met up with someone who HATES to commit to a color! I am sooo that way. You were very fortunate in your finds. Have you ever tried using fabric on a wall as a border? Very nice and easy to apply and remove. Just cut your fabric to the width you want, apply it with liquid starch and let it dry. I do find the fabric is a shade or two darker with this method so keep that in mind if you try this. I have had much success with this in my daughter's room as I redecorated it,I don't know how many times, the first 6 yrs of her life...I had to get all the looks in you know :-). Oh..pulling off the wall...that's it...pull it off like it was stuck on with tape. I usually use the clearance fabrics to cut down on price. Looking forward to reading more of your ideas :-)...Sue

Katrine Joy said...

AWESOME! Why are you so good at this kind of makeover? ;) I love the lamp and the wallpaper, they're really lovely.

Heidi said...

Loving the wall borders on your little girls room, still cant's believe you pulled off the tablecloth as a curtain, awesome job!