Making a (Rent) House a Home

Decorating a rent house can be tricky, especially when you're working with mismatched furniture and a tight budget. It's so easy to get frustrated with issues you either can't change or don't want to invest in. With a little creativity, we've been able to work around restrictions like no overhead lighting and very little storage...

Since painting the walls weren't an option in the living room (what I would give for white walls!) I covered as much of them up as possible. We already had two Ikea bookcases so I hung mirrors (also from Ikea) to reflect what little natural light we have.

Whenever I get antsy, I either make new throw pillows for the couch or switch up the collage wall. Both are easy, inexpensive ways to freshen up without making drastic changes. I'm sure our landlord will be thrilled with all the patched holes when we leave!!

One of the biggest issues is the lack of storage and closet space. Add a toddler with toys and a mama that loves fabric into the mix and it's a real mess. Luckily I've found ways to conceal it. Our coffee table is an old trunk that doubles as fabric storage and P's toys get tucked away in baskets.

We weren't ready to invest in a dining room table yet, so this is a 48" round folding table from Ballard Designs. It's terrific for extra storage and we can squeeze 8 people if we need to! Luckily we were able to paint the dining room walls and I already had the curtains from P's nursery at our old house. The mirrored lamps are from Target and the curly willows are in an Ikea vase...

The Pottery Barn chairs were my mother-in-law's and they were previously red. After we had already painted our dining room, I fell in love with this color combination in Paris so I painted our chairs Benjamin Moore Agave.

When I'm deciding what to buy for this house, I try to choose things that I absolutely love and that we'll be able to use in the next house. Lamps, curtains, artwork, and rugs are key, especially since our hardwoods aren't in great shape!!

This rug in the "entryway" was a huge steal on Ebay for $70! I was getting tired of my flower so Will painted us a boat last week. Plywood is a really inexpensive way to fill a large wall and you can use just about any kind of paint. This is done with oil paintsticks...

As for the bathroom, I have major wallpaper envy but it would be silly to spend money on something we'd have to leave behind. So for the time being, I'm enjoying my monogrammed towels!!