How to Design Your Dream Home on a Budget

Do you love high-end interiors but don’t have the budget for them? Are you obsessed with Instagrammable décor but want to keep costs low? There are a number of ways you can achieve the look you want without breaking the bank.

If you want to design your dream home on a shoestring, here are some of the best decorating hacks to get luxury interiors for less!

Tip #1: Combine wallpaper and paint

Abstract Turquoise Watercolor mural

More often than not, it’s much more affordable to paint an entire room than to wallpaper each wall. With paint, it’s also not that hard to find budget-friendly versions of high-end brands. Whereas cheap wallpaper is usually a massive giveaway that you cut corners when decorating!

If you’re trying to make your wallpapering project more affordable, a good hack is to combine paint and wallpaper to achieve the look you want. Coordinating paint colours adds another dimension too, and can add nice breaks to your wallpaper’s design.

You can create a feature wall with your chosen wall covering. Usually, this works well behind a bed, a sofa or a fireplace. However, where you place your feature wall is up to you – and you should always consider the best place for it based on lighting in the room. Or you could wallpaper two adjacent walls and paint the other two adjacent walls to create interest and intrigue.

Antique World Map mural

Or, for something unique and different, try wallpapering the ceiling instead. This works exceptionally well if you have high ceilings and you’re looking for a way to fill the space on a budget. This can also work out cheaper per metre in terms of materials, as long as you know how to do it yourself or can find someone to do it for a reasonable price.

Tip #2: Keep colours simple

Beige Wood Panels mural

When it comes to keeping costs down, pared-back decorating can be a great way to make savings. This is because simple, minimalist styles are often much easier to pull off with limited funds.

A monochromatic or plain colour scheme can also make the design process easier, giving you clear parameters to follow from conceptualisation to execution. But plain colours don’t have to mean one-dimensional. Texture and layering are your secret weapon when you’re trying to design your dream home in a pared-back way – and murals like Beige Wood Panels create the look of intricate woodwork for a lot less.

Don’t worry about being too dull or predictable either. There are so many interior design styles you can experiment with. Here are some of the different minimalist trends you could try:

• Scandinavian minimalist design
• Japandi minimalism
• Industrial style minimalism
• Minimalism meets mid-century mod
• Dark minimalist interiors
• Organic minimalism
• Colourful minimalism
• Boho minimalism and eclectic design

Tip #3: Fake texture to design your dream home

If you’re a luxury interior design fan on a tight budget, one of the best tips is to fake texture. Texture and layering is an age-old trick used by professional designers. Not only does texture add depth and dimension, but it can fool people into thinking that your interiors cost more than they did.

Additionally, layering is your best friend when it comes to making rooms feel cosy and inviting rather than cold and soulless, as many generically designed spaces are.

But this can all be faked if you don’t have the funds to buy the real deal. Take marble surfaces for instance. Marble is one of the most expensive materials, but this can be emulated with affordable marble effect murals.

Our collection also includes other surface texture wall murals, all designed to mimic the real thing at a fraction of the cost. Our range includes murals for brick walls, concrete and stone, terrazzo, and wood panels.

Tip #4: Go big in small spaces

Tropical Blush wall mural

Distributing your design budget across every room in the home can be a difficult task, especially when there isn’t a lot to go around. One mistake that many people make is focusing their budgets on their biggest rooms.

While it makes sense to invest money and effort into communal spaces like your living, dining, and kitchen areas, making sure there are ample pennies in the pot for small rooms can really pay off. Small rooms are quick wins in interior design.

Adding luxury to small spaces is less challenging, with less strain on your bank balance. If you can afford to add designer wallpaper to every single wall here, don’t hold back. Go hard. Go maximalist. Go all out. Rooms like your downstairs toilet or a utility space deserve big, bold murals that scream opulence.

Think huge florals, flamboyant botanicals, bold art deco, exotic Chinoiserie, and more…

Tip #5: Make use of scrap materials

Music Street mural

Image credit: Jeremy Peel

Did you know that leftover wallpaper can be used in so many ways? Wallpapering furniture is a great idea for those who want to add colourful focal points or a sense of texture to the room.

Create dream interiors without having to replace old or cheap flat-packed furniture. It doesn’t matter if your drawers and sideboards are all from Ikea. Upcycling them with scrap wallpaper can instantly make them appear antique, expensive and one-of-kind.

The same goes for any paint samples you’ve collected over time. If your cupboards, furniture or fireplace surround look a little tired, a new lick of paint can be completely transformative. For small painting jobs, you can often get away with sample pots rather than having to buy whole pots of paint too.

Tip #6: Choose temporary for trends

Terracotta and Blue Medley mural

One of the best pieces of advice from professional designers is to think beyond trends. While interior trends are a great source of inspiration, opting for something more timeless can be the best way to make sure your design has more longevity.

Classic design also has a way of pulling off extreme grandeur and opulence, more so than fleeting trends seen on Instagram. However, if you find yourself beguiled by something trending on Pinterest and want to give it a go, choose a temporary solution so you have the option to update a year down the line.

For instance, if you’re obsessed with global design trends this season, such as Moroccan tiles, peel and stick wallpaper can be a fantastic temporary alternative to tiling.

With our range of peel and stick murals, you can design your dream home in a flash without needing messy wallpaper paste or hours of labour. It’s also easy to peel off when you’re ready to remove it, leaving absolutely no residue behind.

What are your top hacks for designing a beautiful home on a budget? Let us know your top money-saving tips below…