Easy Ways to Refresh Your Home for Under $100

From hardware upgrades to propagating plants, these simple but effective changes can make all the difference.

Decorating a home can often seem like a never-ending project. As your tastes develop and trends come and go, it’s only natural to want to refresh our spaces every one in a while.

While it would be nice to fully revamp our interiors with new furniture finds and eye-catching decor, our budgets don’t often allow for this.

So, if you’re feeling uninspired by your space or simply wish to change it up, we’ve rounded up eight simple but effective ways you can refresh your home for under $100.

1. Rearrange furniture

Before you whip your wallet out, refreshing your home can be as simple and free as rearranging the furniture in your space. If you’re looking to change up your living area, try moving your couch away from the wall, or repositioning any armchairs in the space. If you’re tight on floor real estate, look up and see what decor such as prints, books, and plants, can be moved.

2. Update hardware

If you’ve ever walked into your kitchen or bathroom (or pretty much anywhere in your home with drawers and cupboards) and wanted to make a change but have been stumped on what to do, consider switching up the hardware. Albeit small, the drawer and door handles on furniture can completely change the look and feel of a space. If sourcing new hardware is out of your budget, consider refreshing your existing pieces with some coats of spray paint to give your living area a whole new look and feel.

3. Declutter and organise

Marie Kondo-fying our spaces was all the rage in 2016, but the value of tidying our spaces remains just as important. Start by sorting items in your home to see what can be donated, recycled and cleaned, and then find a more permanent home for items you wish to keep. If you find your coffee table or dining area harbours mess at the end of a long week, look for storage solutions for the clutter that repeatedly accumulates to keep your home feeling tidy.

4. Refresh your towels

You don't realise the difference a new towel can make to your space until you replace your old one. Whether it's draped over an oven handle in the kitchen or folded neatly beside a bathroom sink, investing in smaller towels for your home is a quick, easy, and affordable way to elevate your space.

5. Propagate plants

Whether you’ve got a green thumb or not, propagating your houseplants is a simple and effective way to refresh your space and make the most of what you already have at home. The propagation method will vary from houseplant to houseplant, but the results will be the same: leaving you with an abundance of greenery which can be dispersed throughout your home keeping it lively and fresh.

6. Thrift decor

If you’re eager to add some new pieces to your space, head to your local thrift store and scour the aisles for affordable pre-loved treasures you can decorate your home with. Some small decor items to keep an eye out for are; candlestick holders, silver trays, glass or crystal trinket dishes, vases, and decorative photo frames. These items add intrigue to your home and won’t break the bank while doing it.

7. Change up lighting

Sometimes all our space needs a little change in lighting to feel new again. From repositioning lamps to swapping out bulbs, lighting has the power to completely transform a space. If the area you’re wanting to update doesn’t have a lamp in it, look for one online or secondhand that’s in your budget, plug it in, turn it on, and feel the difference it makes to the atmosphere of your home!

8. Dress up surfaces

You don’t need to have guests over to make your surfaces look pretty! If you want to zhuzh up your dining area, get out your best tableware and play around with different ways of styling the area. You can add as much or as little to your table, depending on what look you’re going for, so go BIG or go small and let your home feel like it’s ready to host a dinner party any day of the week.

9. Update your pillows

Pillows and cushions are a super simple and cost effective way to update your space. Whether they're the pillows on your bed or the cushions on your couch, considering sprucing up your space by change up their covers. Experimenting with different textures and colours will allow you to create something that feels new and is uniquely you.

10. Paint an accent wall

Sometimes all it takes is a lick of paint to make a space feel brand new – and an accent wall is a perfect way to do just that. Whether you paint the entire room, just one wall, or even the ceiling, adding a new colour to an otherwise plain area in the form of a wall will completely reinvent and refresh the space. While this particular tip may only seem applicable to those who don’t rent, there are renter-friendly alternatives to this refresh approach! Removable wallpaper is a perfect paint alternative, and will give you the same refreshing effects as a painted accent wall.