Decorating Ideas for a Rent House?

Question

I recently moved into a rent house and would like some ideas about decorating. Of course I can't paint or do anything permanent to the house, but I really want to make it feel comfortable and like home. Any personal ideas you have or websites would be great.

Answer 1

Assuming that you already have your furniture like beds, dining and living sets, then you can do the following:
For dining table, use a nice table runner, place a bowl of fruits in the middle, or a vase of flowers. Have a rug underneathe table and chairs. For living area, add nice cushions for your sofa, have a few table lamps on side tables or floor lamp, picture frames on walls and tables, plants or flowers, carpets or rugs, candles, a few books or magazines on coffee table and a bowl of potpourrie.To add warmth to a room, have wooden furniture, wooden blinds with curtains for windows and lots of soft furnishings. If you like a room to be bright and breezy, use bright and cheerful colors. For bedrooms, choose nice colors for your bedspread, place pictures and table lamp on bedside tables, a small plant or jewelry box. For bathrooms, buy towels which have nice colorful designs or prints on it so your towels are like a decor themselves when you hang them in the bathrooms. Place all your items in basket or box on countertop. Have a nice rug in bathroom. For kitchen, buy interesting utensils that not only work for you but are decor pieces themselves. For example, I have a brush shaped in a potato which I use to clean my potatoes! Also an egg whisk that has a handle that looks like a chick. A cow shaped paper towel holder. I think you get the idea. Have colorful kitchen cloths and apron. If you have a table and chairs in kitchen, add interesting cushions with farm animal or fruit designs on them. Buy placements of same. These are all movable and personal items which you can use in your home decoration, easy and practical.

Answer 2

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Answer 3

he success of any decorating scheme depends on how well it suits all the members of your family. To create a décor that you will be happy with, think about what you want and also what you don’t want.

It’s a good idea to know what you have before you begun to change things. As you begin to pull your design ideas together, think about your preference and what will work in your home.

Color can work wonders... it can change the look of a room and change your feeling about the room. You can start by looking through magazines, and catalogs. Give yourself plenty of time, it will take longer than you think, and your ideas will develop as you go.

Gathering samples is a great way to begin. If you are starting with a color, your samples might include fabric, paint chips, wallpaper, carpet, wood, stone, and tile.

Knowing what you can spend on a project will give you a clearer idea of what you can achieve. If you’ll on a limited budget, mark off those things that will make the most difference, such as a new wall color and a new sofa.

You can set the mood of a room in lots of ways, such as lights, and furnishings. There are no hard or fast rules or must-do sequence for this process.

Answer 4

If you are able to put things on the wall it's a great way to add color. uy some really big canvas'. If you're not an artist, go to a fabric store and find a fabric with a really nice, big colorful print and staple it onto the canvas. You can do a series of them.

Also you can find a solid color fabric and make a curtain and hang from a rod hung from the ceiling and run it all along the wall with clip on rings. This adds color just as if you had painted the wall.

Answer 5

I don't know what your personal style is, but how about hanging a huge quilt on one wall? You can find or make quilts in just about any style - traditional, modern, whatever - and they make a really huge visual impact. Plus, they don't require making a permanent change to the house.

Another random idea: if you'd like some splashes of color, get flat sheets in whatever your favorite colors are and use them as loose throws over the furniture. You can use them on seating, hang them on walls for a big burst of color that doesn't require paint, or toss them over the dining room table as an impromptu tablecloth. Add some interesting pillows on the couch or even a pile of huge pillows on the floor (kids love those) and you will have instantly staked out your territory.

Best of luck!

Answer 6

You can add your own personal style to a rental by displaying accessories that reflect you personality. Change your bedding, hang curtains, put up a new shower curtain with matching rugs and accessories...Also use large prints, canvases, or display groups of family photos on your walls. I have used an oversized corkboard before and changed out the pictures and items whenever my mood changes. Check out hgtv.com or any website that has home decorative items like restoration hardware, crate & barrel, pier 1, or pottery barn.

Answer 7

A friend of mine just found a solution to this problem. If you can't paint or wallpaper, you can find a decopage recipe on-line and decorate the walls that way. You could make a stencil of the silhouette of a tree and do it in black or red if you have white or light walls (which most rentals seem to have) and then decopage it to the wall. It washes right off with soap and water. You can find great ideas for stencils on TLC.com and HGTV.com. Trading Spaces just aired an episode of a room with a red tree, so maybe they have stencils available on-line.

Then you could paint your old wood furniture (console and end tables) black and use accents of red and black to decorate with.

Answer 8

Like others have already said, use fabric for the walls. To do that, just put fabric on a curtain rod...or staple fabric to a 1x2 and secure it to the wall. Create interest on bookshelves or tables to bring the attention away from the walls or floors. Bring in rugs, change the curtains, add candles, and don't forget flowers. There's so much you can do! If you see something that gives you inspiration, go for it. Interior design is my life.

Answer 9

Throw rugs!

Avoid any tape on walls... Tiny nail or pin holes easily repaired on most white walls.

Book shelves.

And some landlords do not mind you doing permanent changes IF preapproved(some may actually split costs depending on what it is...)

It is the renters who spill paint on wall to wall carpeting, leave huge holes/marks, paint rooms black etc that cause them to say nothing no way...

Almost every apartment I had also had new outlets/ fans when I left. But not everybodies an electrician.

But throw rugs and furniture your only SAFE bets...

Answer 10

hgtv.com = room by room - They people have great ideas.. like using fabric and starch as wallpaper for your walls when renting.. etc

and a ton of other interior home shows are on this site.

http://www.christopherlowell.com/ - Christopher has many books out.. wonderful books really.

Lynette Jennings had a show, but I am not sure it's still on - She has books out that are also wonderful..

http://shop.maryengelbreit.com/default.aspx?Affiliate=2
I love the ides that this lady and her magazine come up with! All fun and full of character!