Now that you have followed your favourite designers on Pinterest and Instagram, constructed the perfect flat-lay of your colour scheme, you realise that even if you could afford the designer’s consulting fee, there would be no budget left for the furniture and stylings.  Let us walk you through how you can bring the coast to your home, without getting underwater on the finances.

Budget Is As Budget Does

Sure, its not really a ‘Gump-ism’ and you still get the point.  It’s one thing to say you are ‘on a budget’; and entirely another thing to know what your budget is.  Do a walk-through of your home and take some wild guesses at what you would like to do and then hit the web for some costings.

Rarely will you get it correct on the first go, but as you grow your inspiration and change your mind, you will eventually settle on the changes that are right for you and that won’t put your mortgage on tilt.

Relax

The goal is a laid back, comfortable living space so don’t start out by putting too much pressure on yourself.  Take your time to be sure you have planned the spaces you want.  While social media is a great resource for getting inspiration, don’t let it make you feel bad about operating on a budget.

Get creative and brainstorm your ideas.  The proverbial beach house in reality is often filled with ‘left overs’ of furniture, décor and memories.  So, recreating that feel will likely involve some reclaimed items and quirky pieces.

Exterior Charm

It can be difficult to save money on the exterior, as decent paint and trim can be quite costly.  That said, budgeting is as much about spending money in the most efficient way, as it is saving money. One pro tip from popular stylists Oak and Orange is to splurge on the front door, because it makes the most significant impact out of most of the things you can do to the exterior of your home.

Exterior painting goals should include a single light colour and white trim.  Then you can experiment with darker coloured features for porches and garden beds to set it off.

Throw Rugs Ahoy

Lots of natural wood, particularly the floor, and white décor will be the order of the day.  Creating calm and cosy spaces in the living areas and bedrooms is greatly assisted by blond woven floor coverings and strategically placed rugs and cushions to create welcoming lounges and chairs.

Try and avoid harsh shapes in the interior of the home by utilising wall panelling and break up areas with feature colours.  Some designers have even introduced darker palettes to break up the overall lightness, without losing the relaxed charm.

Heart to Heart

Central areas like kitchen/living need to be light and airy. Utilise Nordic style wooden elements for the floor, shelves, and trim.  Always be ready to seek out an older, quirky piece of furniture that you can repaint white and really set off the room with contrasted style that is the cornerstone of the coastal home feel.

To get the best out of your bathroom makeover, try and make the colour tones much cooler using darker colours.  You can save money and avoid using new tiles simply by changing the colour of the grout for a different look.  Also, stick on floor tiles can be a cheaper and easy to install method to bring a whole new look.

Work It Out

Although working is not a great way to relax in your coastal dream home, we can’t seem to do without the home office anymore.  You can continue the laid-back look by making smart use of space saving and dual-purpose shelves and furniture.  Yes, Ikea has many such items, but don’t be afraid to use reclaimed elements like packing crates to create quirky and functional storage spaces.

If you don’t have the space for a home office, the coastal look is well suited to having functional nooks throughout.  This way you can avoid the office all together and still have spaces where you can have some focus time.  Simple screening layouts with plants, furniture or repainted room dividers can give you the perfect nook to have a zoom meeting, or just scroll your socials for more inspo.

A scandi makeover doesn’t need to put you further into debt, in fact being strategic about reclaimed and older items can bring an authenticity to the space that would not otherwise be achievable with high-end products.