Or you want to do a total overhaul, but not just yet.

Or you’re a broke young professional.

Or a broke old professional.

None of the above mean you have to live with a room you that makes you cringe like a sink full of dirty dishes that have been sitting for a week. (I’m just sure this is a perfect analogy.)

Here’s how to tackle a one-day room makeover on a budget.

Before

My friend Angela has an extra room that she’s been less than excited about for the past few years. She was ready to do something about it, but no major projects. So she started with an impressive purge, getting rid of six trash bags worth of stuff.

After

Then, I got to help with the fun part! In one day, one trip to Ikea, and about $130, we transformed the room into one she couldn’t wait to show off when her husband got home. And of course, he was impressed.

Here’s how we did it.

Three “L’s” to a quick, budget make-over

1. Layout / Function

Consider how the room is arranged now. Do you have good flow through all of it, or does the flow kind of get stuck somewhere? Or does it rush through in one path? (As Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan of Apartment Therapy fame says, it helps to think of “flow” in terms of water, and the eddies in a creek or river. How and where would water flow through your room?)

In a long room like Angela’s, it’s hard not to wind up with the bowling alley effect, where everything is pushed against the long walls. So we moved the desk to the end of the room, creating flow and purpose throughout the whole room, even at the end.

Also ask yourself how you want to use the room? Angela decided she wanted to move her jewelry-making from the kitchen and living room into this room. Again, a great reason to move the desk to the end so Angela has more light, and easy access to storage on the wall shelves.

2. Lighting

I’m an unabashed lamp-aholic. But rightly so, I say. There’s no such thing as too much light! In fact, a room that only has a ceiling light has a limited mood and use. Whether for task lighting, or just to add warmth, table and standing lamps are easy ways to create an entirely new feel to a room.For Ang, we added a table lamp for her crafting. And I love the glass heart she had. Ees so cute, no?

3. Liveability

Now you want to like the room. So remove any clutter, or things you don’t love, and add some character with things you do. Shop your house for things from other rooms. And buy a few new loves!

We spent a good part of the budget on these pillows.
Plus a few little things like vases.And Angela’s idea… this sweet set of wedding photos that visually tells a story of Angela’s big day.And just like that, you have a room that makes you stop and smile rather than curl your lip.

Pre-fab frames: Before

There is one thing, though. I find these photographs to be a yawn. In a city full of amazing architecture, how do you manage to choose the most boring photos of the 11th century church up the hill? So I fixed it.

Pre-fab frames: After

And anyway, I think my graphic DIY art fits the feel of the joint much better.

Not to mention how well they draw the orange from the curtains into the room.

*Dusts hands.*

Now I just have to remember to remove all signs of my improvement before they deduct it from our deposit.

(For DIY chevron instructions, I hit up kelly + olive. And Jess’s chevron art at Makeunder My Life is my favorite yet.)

After

Over 36 years ago I bought a wicker clothes hamper right after we got married. It started out being a salmon pink. I’m not a pink person so I painted it yellow and covered the lid with a piece of oil cloth. Oil cloth is a plastic coated material…like the plastic table cloths your grandma (or great-grandma) used to have. Get the picture?

Before

A few years passed and I got over my yellow craze and went with neutral: cream fabric on the lid and cream paint.

While the kids were growing up the hamper was a favorite hiding place when playing hide and go seek on rainy or cold winter days. It’s hard to believe any one of them were small enough to get into it!

A few years ago I looked around for a new hamper but quickly realized they don’t make them 1) sturdy enough or 2) big enough for a week of laundry, so I’ve kept my old relic.

I often put my foot on it while applying lotion to my legs, and the cats sometimes sit on it so they can visit with me while I’m brushing my teeth or applying make-up.

It needed a new look so I went looking for fabric that would hide dirt and the random cat hair, found a multi colored piece. The new color of paint is called “Caramel Latte,” Krylon’s spray line of brushed metallic spray paint. (You may have noticed in previous posts I am becoming the queen of spray painting stuff.)

I still love my old hamper!

{Note from Amy: I never appreciated this hamper till this very moment. Mom, when you’re done with it, can I have it? And I’m just sure I could still fit in it.;) }

Ahhh, the bathroom’s finished and I’m satisfied with it’s transformation.

Picking paint colors for this project was an experience like no other I’ve had. I figured I’d better find a shower curtain that I liked — bought 4 before I found “the one.” Then searched several paint stores before deciding on a wall color a bit lighter than the curtain.

I tried my hand at free-form texturing the walls; all I have to say about my technique is that it’s…unique!

Then for the woodwork and cabinetry I was determined to find a paint color that nearly matched the bathtub tile. Do you have any inkling how many hues of a “pinkish tan” there are???

Next I had to re-mat my favorite lighthouse print as well as get a frame for the lighthouse poster and spray paint it along with an empty frame for my artsy project.

Now came the fun part: sorting thru my collection of shells and beachcombing finds to make a collage. I used good ole E-6000 glue to fix all my favorite seashore treasures onto the mat board in the sand textured spray painted frame.

Now, every time I go into the bathroom I take a moment to think of my favorite vacation destination: the beach! I even have a candle on the back of the toilet, it’s scent: Sun N Sand!

Drop everything. De-book the bookshelf; rummage through the vases; hoist chair over head and teeter up the stairs; leave a mess in my wake in at least four rooms. And never once ask for help. Because there’s never time to wait for someone else when inspiration is leading the charge. This is how I decorate our home. One impulsive idea at a time. What’s great about it is I’m shopping my own house, snagging something from here, yoinking something from there. And a nook that’s been Bore City is suddenly one of my favorite spaces! For FREE.

The drawback to this method is that I also leave holes where I’ve plucked various items. Like the living room sitting area. Hope you don’t plan to sit with company because now there’s only one chair.

But I do think every house can find new life just by rearranging! And if the shoe fits, the pink chair belongs in the nook. That just means I need to hit craigslist for something that works better in the living room, anyway. Right?

So here’s what I came up with from “free-arranging” last week. (A service I offer, in fact. Hire me.) I needed a “set” for my stash-busting collage video, so I threw this together, and, Hot dog! I like it!

I dragged a bookcase from the junk closet (holding stuff I do actually like, just don’t know where to put), pulled a chair and pillow from the living room (effectively leaving aforementioned holes), gathered some tchotchkes and beach twigs for une petite vignette (twigs were one of my daily gifts from the ocean during our winter trip!), and tossed the Ikea sheepskin and thrift store storage cube on the floor.

I wanted some texture on the wall, and pronto. So I hung a white curtain from a tension rod (no drill necessary), and a strand of Christmas lights behind that (with thumb tacks – also no drill). E. Z. And you can imagine the lovely glow at night.

Now I’m thinking we may have to play musical bedrooms so I can gaze upon this nook. What do you think, honey?

A few years ago we were on HGTV’s My House Is Worth What? The comment I remember most is that though we’ve updated most of our townhouse, the half bath felt like you’d stepped back into the 70′s. That wasn’t a compliment.

The bathroom’s most notable attributes were a light fixture that nearly had the power to make you gag, a counter that ran all the way across the wall (why? please tell me why) that effectively blocked the lid to our new (free!) low-flow toilet, and a toilet paper inset cut into the side of the cabinet.

Not anymore!

Here’s what we did:

Paint! Light gray with teal accents. (Glidden Totally Teal in high gloss.) I’ll get to the inspiration behind the stem and leaf design in a bit. (And you may recognize my favorite bowl on the toilet tank.)

New light fixture. Found this for $10 at the Habitat ReStore. We actually turned it around so it hangs up-side down. Right-side up, it looked like Gaston’s lodge to me.

New faucet. I love the white porcelain knobs… they feel very vintage to me. Rare stroke of retail luck: this was a) my favorite option, and b) one of the bottom-of-the-line models at Home Depot, so it only cost $25!

New vanity/countertop. Found this on Craigslist for $75. Had to drive 40 minutes out to a lovely country home to get it, where it was new in the (decomposing) box in a shed. Thankfully the gal who sold it to me wasn’t afraid of flexing her muscles to help me get it in the car. That beast was heavy!

The vanity came with plain, brushed silver knobs, but I swapped them out with knobs from an upstairs cabinet we ripped out. I love how they match the faucet handles.

New towel/toilet paper hardware. From TJ Maxx. Installed them myself. Who loves a power drill??

New mirror. Well, different mirror. I actually salvaged this from an alley in Chicago years ago when I was a nanny there. I love all its antiqued imperfections against the modern graphic wall mural.

Did I mention paint? I even painted and poly’d the back of the door, which is a fun surprise when you use the lou.

We did all the work ourselves (with profuse thanks to Dennis’ handy-man padre!), so total we spent about $300.

Can you guess which of the above is my favorite feature? I drooled over the graphic mural in this bathroom on Apartment Therapy, and toyed with doing the same design, same color. But I kept running into this design:

It was on a card I got in the mail from a friend, on wallpaper in a magazine I was flipping through, on the tree branches outside a client’s house, on this storefront I passed while lunching with a friend. By george, I’m doing it! So I did, in what appears to be my favorite color (unintentionally dotted my living room with it, too): teal.

I’m pretty happy with my rendition.

And just because you deserve one more angle:

First I primed the brick so the color of the paint would be true. Then I brushed on the paint (I decided to use a brush rather than rolling on the paint because there were lots of little holes and crevasses where a roller may not cover). Invest in a quality paint… it covers with one coat – I used less than a gallon!

Note from Amy: I just have to say, my Dad was a total skeptic about this project. He’s a bit of a brick purist. But guess who still, weeks later, daily comments on how much he loves it? Mmm hmm. My momma knows how to decorate. I particularly love how her decor pops so much more now!

A few years back, I created a quick-fix (because I’m too lazy for a full re-finish) by cutting out cardboard rectangles, wrapping them with fabric, and hot-gluing them over the royal blue disaster.

Now that my bedroom is finally coming together (stay tuned), it was time for another facelift (still too lazy for a full re-finish). This time I used a spot of teal spray paint, and a quarter yard of the raddest fabric I’ve ever owned.

Oh, she’s cute! I think she deserves a name now. She looks like an Amelia.

Rusty metal gym baskets. Aren’t they fantastic? They’re my favorite part of this entryway I decorated for my friend Gail (which leads to the living room). I got them on Craigslist for $8/each. I have to say, though, I’m a little jealous because while I have seven getting rustier on my patio since I don’t know where to put them, Gail has the perfect place for them! I think they’d look great with some big coffee-table books stacked inside.

I also love the console table ($30) and lamp ($20) I found on Craigslist, and the ring-on-a-stand I walk-by grabbed* at Savers for $5. Gail had the mirror and giant clay pot, which perfectly finished off the sleek-with-a-touch-of-junk-market entry.

*Walk-by grabbing: The act of grabbing an item upon first glance without slowing one’s pace. Not recommended for use on body parts, particularly those of strangers.

My friend Gail has a big, beautiful, empty home, so she called me in to decorate.

I was determined to go as far as possible with her budget, so I literally hit every thrift store in town I know (Reason #271 I love Austin: plenty of thrift stores), and kept a close eye on Craigslist.

The result: a bright, inviting, airy living space for $150.

My design plan for the living room was born when I found this pair of giant green and yellow tweed pillows at the Salvation Army for $2.50/ea! I knew they’d make great sitting pillows on the hearth (when there’s no roaring fire). From there, I gathered different tones of green as I found them, with white accents.

Gail had a great leather sofa, three end tables, and a coffee table that I used as my building blocks for the room.

There were a few “must’s” the room needed, including more seating which I added with these banana leaf chairs (Craigslist, $40). Their condition isn’t perfect, but I spruced them up with some pillows ($6, Goodwill), a bright throw ($7, Ikea), and some fun vases (grass vase: $5, Craigslist).

The other “must” was more lighting. I found coordinating table lamps for a steal (white: Goodwill, $4; silver: Craigslist, $10), and two bargain white drum shades that I painted green.

On top of my committed bargain-hunting, I saved money with a couple DIY projects.

The mantel was begging for some fun, and I knew I wanted some bold graphic art. But the closest I found to what I was looking for was an ottoman at Target. Can’t put an ottoman on the mantel. So I used the fabric as inspiration to paint a canvas. J’adore!

The brass candlesticks ($6, Salvation Army) just needed a coat of primer and spray paint to become a perfect fit in the room.

Plus, I shopped Gail’s house for a few of the finishing touches, like most of this coffee table setting (pair of gold trays: $7, Savers).

And my favorite… the ceramic porcupine Gail’s son made when he was a tike.

I’m happy to report that Gail is thrilled with her new room. I rather love it, too!