Decorating a rental apartment can be a big challenge. You want to prettify your space to make yourself feel at home without making any permanent changes that could possibly irk your landlord. There may be restrictions in place to not paint the walls in certain colors or change up the flooring. This also means that you have to filter every decorating idea through the lens of these restrictions, and that might just leave you feeling frustrated.
But how are you supposed to feel at home when you don’t even have the liberty of giving your place a personal touch and decorate it your way? How do you make changes that aren’t permanent and yet make your home look elegant and classy?
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Knowing that you’re reading this right now, I figure you’ve been looking for the answers to these questions. Luckily, it’s totally possible to redesign your rental apartment without making any long-lasting changes that could be a possible threat to your rental agreement. I’ve rounded up a few great ways to transform your rental space without having to break the bank or annoying the homeowner.
Read on to know what these tricks are.
1. Create A Color Palette For Every Room
As someone who has implemented this design idea all her life, I can vouch for the fact that having a color palette for every room in your house is the best way to make your space look elegant and wholesome. I have different pre-decided color palettes for all three rooms of my house.
Given that you don’t have the liberty of painting your walls in certain colors in a rental apartment, change up the colors of the curtains, bedsheets and movable furniture instead to suit the color palette of the room.
2. Create A Gallery Wall
Having a personalized gallery wall showcasing some great artwork is another way to decorate your rental apartment. Make sure that you follow a particular theme while choosing which artwork to display.
The designer here has chosen a textured wall to showcase this amazing artwork and has made sure that the number of articles on display is neither too few nor too many. The paintings are positioned in such a way that they are aptly distanced and still appear to cover a good part of the wall.
3. Go All Natural With Houseplants
Having a lot of potted greenery is another great way to decorate your rental apartment without spending a lot of money. Get some hardwood floating shelves and open cabinets to display the houseplants. In addition, you can build a gallery wall around the theme of greenery to match the vibe of your space. Decorating your home with houseplants is an idea that never goes out of style and is the best way to bring the outdoors inside your small space.
4. Play Around With Furnishings
If you can’t paint the walls in your favorite color, go all out with the furnishings you choose to put on display. Get curtains and throw pillows that reflect your personal style to liven up the living room. If you can’t change the flooring, place an area rug that perfectly goes with other items of furnishing to make the space feel warm and cozy.
5. Spruce Up The Space With Great Lighting
Lighting is another budget-friendly way to decorate your rental apartment. You can keep floor lamps in the seating area of your living room and in those awkward corners to brighten the space up in an instant. While wall lamps can do wonders for your kitchen and bathroom, go for pendant lights in your entryway and living room to bring warmth and coziness to these spaces.
6. Update The Bathroom
There are some very easy, non-permanent ways to elevate the look of your bathroom in a rental apartment. The designer here, for example, has added a hardwood storage ladder for hanging towels and clothes. The floating shelves make it easier to display potted greenery, and the vanity perfectly goes with the color palette of this bathroom. The statement metallic stool brings a touch of black to this space and serves as a perfect surface to hold bath essentials or an item of decor.
7. Update The Entryway
Decorating the entryway of your rental apartment can help set the tone for the entire living space. There are many non-permanent ways to design the entryway but if you are a minimalist, feel free to go for a simple décor like the one shown in the layout below. The designer here has chosen to add a touch of nature with a statement wooden table along with a matching pot to house the greenery. The striped rug matches the vibe of this area and makes the space look simple yet classy.
8. Use Lots Of Floating Shelves
Given that you don’t have the option of adding permanent storage solutions to your home, get floating shelves to store things and to display items of décor.
The best thing about floating shelves is that they can be installed in every room of the house and can serve different functionalities as per your requirement. In bathrooms, they can be used to keep toiletries and to display houseplants. In your kitchen, these floating shelves can be used to store jars and containers. In the living room, they can be used to display décor accessories. And in the bedroom, they can be a great alternative to a bookshelf.
9. Use Large Mirrors
Mirrors are another great way to decorate a small rental apartment. Being good reflectors of light, mirrors can instantly open up the space and make it look roomier than it is. The designer here has used a big round mirror to adorn the cabinet in the living room. You can also go for an ornate mirror to hang on the wall or a tall mirror leaning by the wall to brighten the space up in an instant.
Living in a home that isn’t owned by you might limit you in certain ways, but you can always go with these little tricks to design your rental space and make the most of the situation. The good part is that you can take this décor along with you if and when your rental agreement expires.