Furnishing a Small Apartment Inexpensively
Furnish Your Tiny Place Tastefully and Cheaply
Jul 19, 2008
Inexpensive ways to decorate your new digs without it looking like a college dorm room!
Your first apartment is that first attempt at putting an individual stamp on your surroundings. You’re no longer at Mom and Dad’s house and you don’t have to put up with a hyperactive college roommate anymore. It’s your place and yours to furnish any way you want. And that’s the problem. How can you afford furniture and accessories on a limited budget?
Ways to Furnish Your Apartment Inexpensively:
- Shop thrift stores and estate sales. You have to do a lot of digging and wake up early on many Saturday mornings to find the real steals. You’ll find more junk than treasures. But those few keepsakes are worth the long lines and endless garage sales. Just be sure to negotiate a good price. Don’t settle for what’s on the sales tag. You can do better. Come armed with cash and the chutzpah to walk out if you’re not happy with the deal (you can always send someone else back later to get the item for you if negotiations fail.) And don’t leave the house without a measuring tape. Even if you’re stuck in someone’s garage miles from your home, at least you’ll be able to measure the piece and know right away whether or not it will fit in your apartment.
- Scour discount stores. Target is a great place to start. They often carry inexpensive contemporary pieces that don’t take up a lot of space. But remember, everything looks smaller in the store. That’s why you should not only carry your apartment's dimensions with you when you shop, but also a diagram of the room layout. If you’re not an artist, ask the apartment manager for a copy. And when you’re in the store, pull out the diagram and mentally picture the furniture in your place. If you find something you love and it’s not in your price range, ask the sales person if that particular piece will go on sale anytime soon. They will often call or e-mail you with news of impending clearances.
- Visit warehouse stores once a week. The merchandise at Sam’s and Costco changes constantly. But often they feature furniture at great prices. However the merchandise is often seasonal. So in the summer you’ll see more patio furniture and outdoor grills. But in the fall and winter you might be able to pick up inexpensive couches and office furniture. Just make sure you bring some sort of transportation for the items, like a friend’s pick up truck or min-van. Otherwise, you might be able to find the same merchandise online.
Remember, the most important thing to keep in mind when furnishing a small apartment: Less is definitely more. If you clutter your place up with a bunch of stuff it will look small. But a few well positioned pieces will not only give you more room to move around, but your visitors will be impressed by your newly acquired sense of style!
The copyright of the article Furnishing a Small Apartment Inexpensively in Consumer Education is owned by L. Marie Dubuque. Permission to republish Furnishing a Small Apartment Inexpensively in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
