PEAKLIFE

By Neha Mehrotra

So, you’ve snagged your very first apartment, rented or otherwise. It might not be an interior decor masterpiece yet, but hey, Rome wasn’t furnished in a day either! Moving into your first apartment, especially when moving into a new city, can seem daunting. So, what makes a home a home? The simple answer is—you. Your scent, your style, and the memories you create. Your home must be your safe place—a place where you exhale a sigh of relief after a taxing day at work.

Therefore, decorating your first apartment, according to your style, is quite essential. But where do you start, particularly if you don’t have the budget to splurge? To make this process easy and stress-free, we’ve gathered some tips to help you make your home resemble you.

Walls that Tell Tales

If you can’t paint your walls, consider investing in wallpapers, which are like temporary tattoos for your apartment. You can liven up the walls of your rented apartment and add character with removable wallpaper. Make sure to pick a pattern that resonates with your style.

Light Up the Scene

Good lighting is one of the easiest ways to brighten up the overall decor of the home. If you lack natural light, consider putting some lamps in the corners of your house. Table lamps create focused lighting for reading in the bedroom or your living room. (buy it here). You can also invest in fairy lights and use them to create a layered lighting scheme, casting an aesthetic spell throughout your house.

Plant Parenthood for Beginners

Indoor plants can brighten up a room, bring a space to life, and help to boost your overall health and wellbeing. Introducing natural materials, colours, textures, and patterns evokes a feeling of nature, and our homes need to have spaces that energise, stimulate and connect us with nature. If you’re short on time for plant care, succulents, snake plants, and pothos are low-maintenance choices that require minimal attention. Additionally, for those who admire the verdant aesthetic but prefer not to commit to real plants, decorating the corners of your home with artificial ivy garlands and vines can be an equally appealing option. (buy it here)

Upcycling and Budget Brilliance

While decorating an apartment for the first time, the first question that might pop up is “Where on earth am I supposed to find all the items?” Well, it’s time to channel your resourcefulness. Scour thrift stores, raid rustic furniture, and let your inner DIY guru shine. Wine bottles, perfumes, jams, coffee and pickles can be creatively reused to create table lamps or pieces of decor. You can even turn your forgotten wooden pallets into rustic-chic coffee tables, and transform mismatched mugs into a colourful art piece.

Personal Touches that Pop

Install floating shelves on blank walls to display decorative objects. Whether it’s a gallery wall of your travel pics, your personal artwork, or ornate frames, your personal touches will make your apartment a reflection of your fabulous self. Additionally, mirrors not only make great accessories but also reflect light and can make a small home look larger. (buy it here)

Select the Right Pillows and Linen

Your bedding arrangement should not only be functional but also speak comfort. Opt for fabrics made of soft, durable, breathable material for all-weather use. Bamboo, cotton, sateen, percale, and linen are the best and most affordable choices. Choose colours that soothe you and suit your preferred aesthetic. Throw pillows are a great addition to add warmth to the room and make it cosy and comfortable.