I love my bedroom. It’s the warmest and most peaceful room in the house and I’d spend all my time there if I could. But it wasn’t always that way – when we first moved in, the room was dark, stark and in desperate need of a makeover.
However, I was on a tight budget so I didn’t want to splash lots of cash to get it into a liveable condition. I had to make some decisions about what to spend on and what to scrimp on during the makeover so I thought my experience might be able to help you if you’re planning a bedroom revamp too…
Let’s start from the bottom up with flooring…
When you’re considering what type of flooring to use in the bedroom, it might be a good idea to start by finding out the cost of repairing floorboards. If they’re in good condition, keeping the existing floorboards can often be the quickest and lowest-cost option for flooring as you can simply sand, stain or paint them and the job is done.
It’s also a great DIY option that you can do yourself so you can cut out the need for a carpet fitter or for someone to lay laminate flooring. I think that carpeting the room will probably be one of the most costly options, as you’ve got to buy the carpet by the metre and pay for the cost of underlay and fitting.
In contrast, many laminate and LVT flooring products are easy to fit yourself, especially the ‘click’ systems that I’ve used before, so you could save some money there – but you’re still paying out for the flooring planks or tiles, which will cost you much more than a simple tin of stain to tidy up the existing floorboards.
Plus, with a laminate or vinyl floor, you might want to add underlay beneath it and rugs on top so that you’re not stepping onto a cold floor – so that’s another expense to consider. Sure, you might want to add a rug for comfort on your floorboards but a wooden floor will always retain more warmth than a tile or laminate surface.
Scrimp on – Flooring by painting the existing floorboards
Spend on – Add cosy rugs for warmth underfoot
What’s the most important thing in a bedroom? The bed…
Clearly, the only thing you really need in a bedroom to make it into a comfortable space to sleep in is a bed. Or, more specifically, a mattress. When I first decorated my bedroom, I actually only had a mattress on the floor while we saved up the buy a bed frame. Okay, it isn’t ideal in the long-term but honestly, that’s all we needed at the time.
This just goes to show that getting a comfortable mattress is essential in creating a bedroom that you love. There are so many options for mattresses out there that it can be quite confusing to choose one so I would recommend visiting a showroom to actually feel the surface before you decide to buy.
There are mattresses to suit each kind of sleeping style – side sleepers, stomach sleepers etc – or you could even choose one with different firmnesses on each side to suit both you and your partner.
Of course, the more comfort elements in the mattress, the more expensive it’ll be – but can you really put a price on a good night’s sleep? When I was living in my first flat, the mattress has such sharp springs that it was really uncomfortable and I didn’t sleep soundly until I moved house and bought a better mattress.
So now, I would prioritise spending my budget on the mattress and try to save money on the bed frame instead.
Scrimp on – The bed frame
Spend on – A supremely comfortable mattress
Let’s explore storage options…
You can certainly make some savings when you’re shopping for storage furniture for your bedroom. Although I currently have fitted wardrobes that are inch-perfect for the space, there’s no need to splash out straight away if you’re on a budget.
This is an area where you can definitely make savings by buying drawers, wardrobes and bedside tables secondhand. They don’t even have to match as you can upcycle them with any colour of paint to suit your interior. They just need to be sturdy wooden pieces without any signs of wood-worm and you’re good to go.
I’ve lost count of the number of times that I’ve repainted grandma’s chest of drawers that we inherited. It’s been pink, blue, orange, white (and many more colours in between) and has travelled with us to 5 different homes, which just goes to show that one solid piece of furniture will last for years and can be incorporated into any interior style.
You’ll certainly save money in the long run when you buy quality wooden furniture, even if you source it second-hand, as flat-pack furniture only lasts so long before wobbling apart. I just don’t think it’s designed to move house!
Sure, cheap flat-packs won’t cost much to start with, but when you have to replace the furniture every few years, the costs-per-use soon start to add up. Whereas, with a more expensive but sturdy wooden piece, the cost-per-use comes down the longer you keep it.
Scrimp on – Upcycling secondhand pieces
Spend on – Quality wooden furniture
I hope this blog post has given you some ideas for saving on your decorating project. Let me know if you’ve made over your bedroom on a budget and please share your hacks for updating your space in the comments below – I’d love to hear how you cut costs on flooring, beds and storage. 🙂
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