How to shop for free

To contact us Click HERE
I've had a few posts lately about not doing projects, and not buying things just for the sake of feeling like it's the thing to do. So today I thought I'd talk about my favorite way to update my house with minimal effort and expense!

via Flickr Creative Commons jeffk

Shop the house!

I've learned that when I get sick of something (a table cloth, decorative pillows, picture frames, etc), the best approach for me is not to get rid of it, but rather just to put it away for awhile. I know tons of people that sort of obsessively purge their belongings- and I get into moods like that too- but usually after a few months I find a way to make something work in a different part of the house. I always find myself wishing that I hadn't gotten rid of that one thing I finally decided to get rid of...which isn't necessarily a great approach if you're trying to streamline your belongings, but sometimes it's nice to have a little stash of stuff that isn't out on display at this moment, and then think of a way to make it work by swapping some things around.

There's a nice white throw blanket that bought as decoration for my youngest daughter's bed, but it's forever spending its days on the floor underneath her bed instead of on display. So I think I'm going to steal it for the living room for awhile.
New accessory- zero shopping.

I was able to finally finish my gallery wall for my bedroom by digging picture frames out of my closet and swapping out some photos elsewhere in the house. Someday if we get a "man cave" again I'll have to answer to my hubby about what happened to all of his framed sports action shots...but they've been gathering dust for 6 years so I figured I might as well put the frames to use!
New display- zero shopping.

I also love to move furniture around, experiment with decorative storage basket placement, and change the contents of various closets and drawers. It drives my hubby nuts, but it fixes that creative itch that I get- without going to the store and spending any money. I'm also on a continual quest to find the system that works best for storing everything from winter clothing to spare dishes...and sometimes the only way to know if something would work better is to try it out for awhile.
New flow- zero shopping.

Even something as simple as moving a lamp across the room or rehanging a large piece of artwork can completely change a space.
New vibe- zero shopping.

Give in to your design ADD and try something new!

p.s. shortly after I wrote my frist draft of this I happened upon a post on one of my fav design inspiration blogs, Decor8 by Holly Becker, and I was so exicted to read that she does the same thing- she calls it Tinkering. Do you Tinker?