I’ve moved five times in the past 10 years, due to life and job changes. My way of saving money is called “use what you have decorating.” I’ve had the same bedroom drapes and comforter for four of the five places I’ve lived. Sometimes I use my old things in a new way. For instance, I had inherited some painted china plates that my Mom had stuck in the back of her china cabinent. You couldn’t even see ’em there! I hung them up in the bathroom, of all places! But they made pretty wall decorations and the steam and humidity doesn’t affect china plates. A cedar chest became a behind-the-sofa table. Old kitchen items — utensils, dishes, pot lids and knicknacks — were placed on top of the kitchen cabinents in one home, where the cabinets didn’t go all the way to the ceiling. They made a cute display. My nightstand began life as a microwave oven stand back in the 1980s, when microwaves were HUGE; its big table surface provides lots of room for my lamp, alarm clock, glasses and books. An antique dresser from a third bedroom has been in two large bathrooms, used for storing towels and cosmetics. The curtains in one house has been made into valances for windows elsewhere. I’m not above dumpster diving, either: I have scrounged stereo speakers, plant stands, shelves, lamps, a Martha Stewart shower curtain, large baskets and chairs from apartment dumpsters. (Everything was in perfect condition. Can’t believe my neighbors threw all this good stuff away!) If you “think outside the box” you can come up with new uses for the things you already own or items you find — and you can’t beat the price; it’s all free!
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