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15 Small Bedroom Decorating Ideas on a Budget

These affordable tips for refreshing a small bedroom are sure to keep your style on point and your wallet happy.

Tip #1: Get Cozy with an Area Rug.

Soften both the look and feel of a small bedroom with a cozy area rug. Choose a rug color carefully: rugs may take up minimal space in terms of height, but when it comes to floor area, they can span the entire length of a small bedroom – and pack a lot of style power into a sleek profile. Remember, too, to measure the floor of your bedroom space beforehand – especially if the floor plan includes any odd corners or other obstructions.

cozy area rug

The softness of a rug isn't just in the feel – warming colors like beige and brown offer cozy vibes all around.

style smart

Look for beds with pullout drawers for an easy way to stash extra blankets, pillows and more.

Tip #2: Style Smart.

When it comes to small spaces, style smart – not hard. Look for furniture pieces that double as storage to help you save space – and stay tidy. Beds and nightstands with drawers, benches with lift-tops and even chests with built-in shelving will make it easy to keep organized without adding extra bulk.

Tip #3: Elevate Your Wall Decor.

You can furnish your bedroom all you want – and as chic as possible – but none of it will matter if your walls are blank. The good news is that the right wall art can instantly overcome any dullness that comes with a blank wall – and refresh (and even open up) the smallest of bedroom spaces. Not to mention, decorating a small bedroom with wall art will create an easy center of focus to keep a room feeling defined and pulled together.

elevate wall decor

For an extra chic flair, incorporate wall art with hints of gold and other metallics.

tufted

Tip #4: Tuft It Out.

A tufted look is an easy way to incorporate major style on a budget. From headboards to accent seating, tufted designs allow for a comfier, plusher, traditional aesthetic.

blue nightstand

Tip #5: Celing-to-Floor Curtains

The look of long, flowy curtains is unrivalled; use it to your advantage in a small space, as elongation means the illusion of higher ceilings.

tiny bedroom ideas

Tip #6: Blue + White Pillows

Pillows should be your go-to when you think about small bedroom budget decorating; mix and match colors and go all out – they're not much more than the price of, well, any daily item you can think of (an affordable throw pillow costs less than the individual costs of a pack of sodas, a t-shirt, a hardcover book and/or a bottle of shampoo and conditioner, just to name a few!).

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Tip #7: Bare Floors

If you don't want a rug, don't fret – your room will still look comfy, and lack of rug can even make the natural wood undertone of hardwood floors stand out. To keep the comfort level without rugs, opt for plush comforter or duvet; tons of throw pillows and layered blankets, flowy curtains and a plush, tufted headboard for size.

plaid bed

Tip #8: Plaid Pad

Make your bedding pop with pattern – and go for the plaid for a cozy, lumberjack-in-wintertime vibe. Since plaid is associated with flannel, arguably the coziest fabric ever, you'll have, arguably, the coziest dreams ever.

pillow

Tip #9: Tone on Tone on Tone

Here, pastel shades don't pop but rather blend, thanks to the soft palette and slightly different shades of slightly different neutrals. Incorporate colors through pillows, comforters, headboard, blankets, rugs and drapes.

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Tip #10: Dark Bed Coverings

This masculine bedroom gets its energy in a darker way – not as in depressing, but as in style with a bit more focus. From comforter to wall to headboard, each statement color is chosen for its darker, more focused energy.

lace

Tip #11: Lace Pattern Décor

On a more feminine note, light, bright lace pattern is as girly as one can get. Look for it in bedding, curtains, rugs and even lampshades. You can even try this hack: a lace table runner over a dresser, for a more unique aesthetic.

how to decorate a small bedroom

Tip #12:  Overbed Lighting

If reading in bed is getting harder and harder not (just) because of aging eyesight but because of an aging bedroom lightbulb or dull lighting power altogether, go for a table lamp positioned right at your headboard – and angle it directly to shine onto the page in front of you.

floral

Tip #13: Multipurpose Nightstand

In small apartment bedrooms, styling a dresser and a nightstand is usually not possible (we have our society's steady rise in rent rates and simultaneous fall in apartment sizes to thank, at least in part, for this widespread decorating issue!). Solution: use a dresser as you would a bedside table. One for all, in one place, taking up less bedroom space.

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Tip #14: Nightstand with Shelf

A nightstand with a shelf is an easy way to decorate for less, since the shelf allows you a "display area" (you're getting a built-in decoration when you buy the furniture). Use the shelf to display your favorite bedroom reads, record collection, vintage toy or picture frames of the people in your life who make you smile the most.

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Tip #15: The Adulting Headboard

This headboard knows how to adult – its ultra-calm hue is not quite brown and not quite beige (very adult-like). It's also got the slightest hint of decoration via nailhead trim (very adult!) and an easy, slightly distressed pattern (oh so adult). Use this or a similar design for small bedrooms in need of a more sophisticated (adult) touch.

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