By the time you’ve paid your rent, bought your furniture, and forked over cash for toilet paper, the last thing you want is to drop more dough.
01. There’s a ton of free public domain art available online, like from public library sites or Wikimedia Commons.
All you need after that is a printer and maybe a frame if you fancy.
02. Display keys from everywhere you’ve lived.
If you have roommates or live with a significant other, add theirs to the collection too!
03. Order these incredible (fake) signed pictures of random celebrities.
They’re free from Celebrity Merch.
04. Stack books to make a low surface for display.
(Maybe ones you don’t reach for very frequently, unless you don’t mind moving your house plants around on the reg).
05. Make garlands from paper cut-outs.
You can use scraps you already have lying around or paint chips. Get these directions here.
06. Use paint chips to cover an entire wall.
Use removable poster tape or painters’ tape to minimize wall damage.
11. If you want to decorate with wine/beer bottles or jars, nail polish remover will help take the labels right off.
12. Use newspaper to make a wall design, like a map.
13. Or just straight-up use maps.
Who even needs these now that GPS is a thing, amirite? Get the directions for this project here, although I did this in my apartment without the frames and it still looks pretty rad.
14. Re-cover a boring or beat-up lampshade.
Old Lamp Shed / domesticsluttery.com
15. Print out your Instagram.
Even if *you* don’t have a printer for all of these, chances are your office does/your friend does/your friends’ office does/you can spring for a couple bucks to have Staples do it.
16. Display old t-shirts that have sentimental value.
thenotsoblankcanvas.blogspot.com
Mount them on canvas, in the unlikely event you have any, or just squares of cardboard cut from old boxes.
18. Use an artful stack of books to hide unsightly things like cords or your router.
20. You can find plenty of carpet squares for free.
Attach a bunch using duct tape for a custom rug, or display them individually.
21. Hang wallpaper samples or pieces of fabric.
A lot of places will give out wallpaper samples for free as well!
23. Display magazines on hangers.
It’s a step above taping torn covers to your dorm room walls.
24. Free Vintage Posters offers exactly that.
Like what you’re reading? Subscribe to our top stories.
Discussion about this post