Decorating On a Dime

Get ideas from these money-saving design makeovers

Do you have a room in your house that is in need of a complete decorating makeover, but you don’t think you have the budget to make it happen? Think again! Get inspired by these before-and-after photos of local room transformations done for less than $1,000, and find out their secrets to stretching those design dollars as far as they can go.

Laura Johnson, let me rearrange you in oak park

Goal: Give an updated look to an outdated living room



Following fresh paint and new carpeting, these Sherman Oaks homeowners decided they needed a new look for their living room, so they called Johnson, an interior redesigner. Johnson rearranged the furniture, moving the sofa and two armchairs to create a better flow while making the room’s focal point the beautiful piano nestled in the bay window. Johnson “shopped” the house, choosing accent pieces she needed to complete the room including plants, a print for the wall behind the piano, lamps and family photos. To accent and soften the wall behind the sofa’s new location, Johnson also added a drapery panel on a decorative rod.

Ready-made drapery panels and hardware - $100 (Bed, Bath & Beyond)
Redesign fee - $400
Accessories -  Moved from other rooms

TOTAL: $500

Dan Keating, coast home staging in long beach

President of the International Association of Home Staging Professionals, Orange County Chapter (IAHSP - OC)

Goal: Declutter and redesign a home office

These homeowners needed to revamp their home office to create a more productive and soothing environment. Home stager Keating came to the rescue, removing excess furniture and cleaning up the clutter. To give the room an elegant  yet cozy feeling, Keating choose a soft green paint for the walls accented by crisp white trim. The finished room features not only an orderly workspace but also a new reading nook via a chair and ottoman relocated from another room. The transformed room also showcases the homeowner’s lovely barrister bookcases, which previously were hidden in the clutter.

Paint and paint supplies - $45 (The Home Depot)
Painting labor - $400
Staging labor - $250
Furniture and Accessories - Moved from other rooms

TOTAL:  $695