Renting a space doesn't have to dampen your design. What can you do to take a drab room and make it yours without losing your security deposit? Here are 20+ ways to help spruce up your rental.
When I first moved out on my own, I moved around a lot. And what I found was the apartments or rental homes I stayed in were pretty boring. It is the same when my husband and I moved in together. Everything had white walls, plain cabinets, and mirrors that can sometimes look grungy. And as a designer, my artistic side really wanted to change it all to my taste.
The first thing I want to do when I move into a rental is change the wall color. Now most places don't allow you to change the wall color or if they do, you have to paint it back before moving out or loose out on your deposit. Instead, there are many alternatives to dressing up your walls.
1. Peel & Stick Wallpaper
Peel & Stick wallpaper is a fun and easy solution to add patterns or color to your space. They tend to be inexpensive and can come in a wide variety of styles, patterns, and colors.
2. Use it on furniture or doors
Peel and Stick wallpaper doesn't have to go just on walls. You can also add it to old furniture or spruce up a door.
3. Decals
They even have decals that doesn't have to fill the entire wall. These can come in forms of phrases or quotes, smaller pictures, or your favorite sport. By placing the quote above your headboard (as shown to the right), it acts as a work of art and helps frame your wall.
4. Tile backsplash
Sometimes, the kitchen area doesn't always look good or up to date with the newest trends. There is an inexpensive way to make the backsplash look better. By adding small decals to the tiles, it changes the look completely.
5. Floor/Wall Tile
And today, they even have peel and stick tiles for the floor or wall. This is a perfect solution to those ugly bathroom tiles. Just be prepared to use an Exacto knife to help trim around the tub and toilet areas.
6. Decal Mirrors
Most rentals can be small and one of the best ways to make it feel bigger is adding mirrors. However, some mirrors can be very heavy and you don't want to put holes in the walls. Amazon sells wall decal mirrors which also add a stylish look without breaking the drywall.
7. Leaner/Over the door
One type of mirror I love to use is the leaner mirror. I love to put it in the corner of a room with a stool or plant to add some length in the room. An over the door mirror is good for the smaller spaces. The full length lets you see that full outfit together and can also act as a jewelry case.
8. Washi Tape
Washi tape has been around a few years and is a fun solution to sprucing up your walls or furniture. You can buy them in different colors or patterns and then use them to design different geometric designs.
9. Window treatment
Once I have figured out the color scheme or wall covering I am going for, the next thing I always want to change are the window treatments. Most of the time they have the ugly vertical blinds that always fall down and look tacky. Typically those are screwed into the wall that you can take down and store until moving day. Once I do that, then I bring out the command hooks.
There are many ways command hooks come in handy (which we will discuss later down the list). The 1st is with curtain rods. You can use them to hand light weight curtains to bring life and color to your room.
10. Tension Rod Roman shades
If you have smaller windows, like in the kitchen or bedroom, you can use tension rods in between the window frame to make a small valence or roman shade style.
11. Shoe rack
There are other ways you can use tension rods to help update your rental besides for the shower curtain or windows. You can also use it in the closet as a shoe rack. Attach them to the walls in layers and place shoes on top.
12. Hanging Kitchen Utensils
Another way is in the kitchen. Hang the rod between 2 cabinets either above the stove or sink and place hooks. Then hang your utensils and oven mits to save space on the counter.
13. Hanging plants
For those who love to garden or grow their own herbs, use the tension rods to help hang your plants. Not only does this add counter space for other things, but it also adds a natural element to the room. And makes it look pretty!
14. Command hooks for Wall art
At this point, I have the walls updated with a fun pattern or design, the window curtains up, and some updates in the kitchen. Now it is time to add the personal touch on the walls. The Artwork. The best way to hang artwork without having to poke holes in the walls is to use command hooks. We talked about it earlier with window treatments. But it is best to use on wall art. (Side note: clean the wall first before sticking the command hooks for them to stick better.)
15. Floating shelves
The newest trend for wall art is to display them layered on a floating shelf. Using the command stickers, you can display the shelves and then layer your family photos.
16. Hanging string lights
There are command hooks that you can use to help hang lights behind your bed. These look great during the holidays or in a teens room.
17. Hanging lights
Command hooks work great to also hang lights. This frees up space on your nightstand or table, adds height to the room, and come in different styles to add character.
18. Light strips under kitchen cabinets
I always hated it when cooking in the kitchen and there wasn't enough light. Using the command stickers under the cabinets helps add that light you are looking for and a cool look at night.
19. Velcro
This also goes along with Velcro strips. Not only can you use them to hang art, but they also can help update the ugly bathroom mirror. By adding some Velcro and wood trim, you can help turn that plain mirror into a stylish one.
20. Updating the knobs
Another easy and cheap solution to help spruce up your rental is to update the hardware. You might not be able to touch the front door, but the kitchen or bathroom knobs are an easy update. Find your favorite style, unscrew the ones on the cabinets (of course save for later when you move), and place the new ones.
21. Rugs
Last on my list to help make your rental not feel so boring is to add rugs. Personally I love ruggable.com. They have a wide variety of sizes, styles, and shapes and are not that expensive. The best part... they are washable. I don't know about you but with dogs, kids, and a messy husband, my rugs get dirty. Being able to wash them has been amazing.
Let me know if you have any other ideas to help make a rental look more like yours but without having to lose your security deposit.
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