When you've spent nearly your entire budget on a piece of real estate in Georgetown, Ontario, there's not a lot left over for decorating and outfitting the house with furniture. You might think that your only options are to rack up a sizeable credit card debt to decorate your new place or to live with it nearly empty until you've saved enough to buy what you want, but there's a third option: learn to decorate on a tight budget. We can teach you how.

Sales

There's no rule that says decorating on a budget has to be done only by rearranging your existing belongings or by accepting hand me downs from others. As long as you shop frugally, there's no reason you can't buy new decor for your loft. Toronto is full of outlet stores and malls, such as the Dixie Mall in Mississauga, where you can get end of line and out of season merchandise for a fraction of the price new. Plus even regular stores have good sales if you keep your eyes peeled.

Second Hand

There are certain pieces of furniture that you simply can't get by without, such as a bed, a sofa, and a dining room table. If you can't find any sale items that fit your budget, why not try second hand? While it's best not to bring second hand soft furniture like mattresses or sofas into your Toronto waterfront condos unless you know where they came from and they're bedbug free, hard and wooden furniture is completely fine. You can probably even beg or buy old soft stuff from friends and relatives you trust.

Refinishing and Covering

The problem with your existing furniture and with furniture that has come from other people's Mississauga homes is that it's usually a bit shabby and doesn't match the decorating scheme you have in mind. Not to worry. Wooden furniture can be sanded and refinished or repainted to match, and soft furniture like recliners, sofas, and pillows can be covered with slip covers to change their whole look. The only cost is a bit of wood stain and some fabric.

Hand Making

When it comes to smaller items of décor, buying new stuff to fill your whole condo on Market Square - 80 Front Street E. & 35 Church Street will add up fast. So save yourself some money and hand make your decor out of things you either already have or can buy cheaply at Dollar stores and second hand shops. Picture frames can be scavenged and repainted, artwork can be created from your family photos, and your creations can be displayed all over the house.