March Spring Clean: Day 9

Today we are going to get creative and have a bit of a project. Today’s task is to plan a mini room makeover on a budget.

While it would be nice to splash the cash on a load of designer stuff without thinking about it, most of us need to set a more sensible price cap for room makeovers. Fear not, it can be done.

It might be difficult to make over a whole room on a budget of, say, £20, but a little really can go a long way. Here are a few ideas to brighten up your personal space:

• Paint the walls (try one of the Dulux paint mixing machines to obtain shades that look like designer paint colours)
• Paint some woodwork (even a lick of one-coat white paint on the skirting boards will work wonders)
• Make a feature wall with some interesting wallpaper
• Buy a new bedlinen set or cushions (from a budget shop or in the sales)
• Get a cheap throw to put over old or mismatched furniture
• Add a rug (try Ikea, Poundstretcher, Argos, Lidl etc)
• New shower curtain and bathmat
• Storage boxes to organise/hide clutter (try WHSmith, Ikea, Matalan)
• Change the mood with a new lamp or lightshade (try Homebase, B&Q, BHS)
• Buy a few ornaments and accessories (second hand, in the sales, or in budget shops)

Also, the more work you’re prepared to do yourself, the further your budget will go. For example, while a new set of curtains or customised piece of furniture might be out of your price range, you might be able to do the work yourself and stay within budget. There are loads of online tutorials if you need a confidence boost.

If you’re very short of cash, you could try what I’ve just done with my refurbished kitchen. Sell a few things on eBay to get PayPal credit, use TopCashback to earn cashback and convert it to Amazon vouchers, and do online surveys to get high street vouchers. Using these extra earnings, I’ve been able to get hold of various goods without spending my wages, including a new clock, a cutlery drainer, some high street designer collaboration mugs and storage jars.

My top tips for nice design on a tight budget include mugs at BHS, crockery at Matalan, and the current sales promotions for Designers At Debenhams homewares.