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Create your ideal space with these budget-friendly tips from local experts.
When it comes to feathering your nest, it can be tough to know where to splurge and where to save. Should you invest in that stunning piece of original art … or replace that out-of-date sofa? And does it really make sense to buy a fancy dining-room chandelier … especially if you’re not sure how it’ll play alongside your eventual kitchen reno?
If those questions make you tense … we get it. That’s why we asked five local designers, decorators and DIYers to tell us about the best $10,000 (or less!) that they ever spent in a single space … either in their own home or a client’s. Here’s what they shared.
Elaine Stephenson & Seely Stephenson Nicholson, Elaine Stephenson Interiors
When you ask this mother-daughter design team how to best spend $10,000 in a single room – especially if that $10,000 represents your entire design budget – they know exactly where they’d put it: in high-quality upholstered furniture.
“Certainly, you can spend it on a great antique chest or a lovely rug [or] artwork, but you can’t sit on those and live,” says Elaine Stephenson, who has worked as a local designer for decades.
Her daughter, Seely Stephenson Nicholson, is quick to agree, and with one important caveat: upholster those pieces in a hard-wearing, stain-treated fabric – “kid-proof, dog-proof,” she says. As a new mom to a one-year-old, she’s had a chance to put those kinds of fabrics to the test in her own home.
“I have performance fabrics on all the upholstery in my family room,” she says. “My sofas are white … and they’ve been really easy to clean!”
A younger designer, Seely believes she’s in a good position to understand clients who are trying to maximize their dollars. For those just starting out, she recommends laying a solid foundation with well-made larger pieces, and then layering in art and accessories as your budget allows – a perfect recipe for building a personal, collected look over time.
“For accessories … bookshelves, mantles, coffee tables … I think a mix of high- and low-end is always a good thing,” she adds.
And while it pays to splurge on a quality foundation, there are other good places to save. Budget-friendly fabrics, for instance, can be a good choice for pillows and window treatments, Seely says, which are easy to dress up with custom trim. “If you’re looking for curtains, that could require anywhere between 15 and 30 yards,” she explains, “and if you specify fabric that is $250 a yard, that’s really tough.”
Instead, says Elaine, “There are some great plain-but-pretty fabrics that are a fraction of that — maybe $50 a yard or less — and then you can put a great-looking tape or fringe on the leading edge and just make them really special!”
Maisie Leach, Rambling Interiors
When it comes to naming her favorite $10,000 expense in a single space, emerging designer Maisie Leach doesn’t need to think for very long. The solid winner is a built-in storage closet, she says, which she designed for the mudroom at Wesley Hodges Fly Fishing + Bird Hunting in Eagle Rock.
“He initially had a hall tree in the space which was just overrun with coats, fishing waders and shoes,” remembers Leach, the owner of Rambling Interiors — a newer company that specializes in natural, organic spaces inspired by outdoor living. “The built-in was a great storage solution well under $10,000 that not only made the space function a hundred times better, but it also looks so much cleaner … We were able to incorporate sliding dog kennels… lights [and] power outlets, wader hangers, and a secret gun closet for his bird hunting gun storage. Try to guess where it is!”
Her client admits that the built-in made a huge change to how he uses the space … and the overall feel that his guests experience when they arrive at the farm for hunting and birding trips.
“[Previously,] it didn’t match my overall business brand – that ‘Garden & Gun’ look,” says Hodges, who offers glamping and is undergoing a full renovation of his farmhouse to accommodate luxury-AirBnB guests, too. “I wanted my clients to be able to feel very catered to, and part of that catering process is, once they show up on site, they don’t have to touch their gear anymore.”
And when it comes to achieving a pulled-together look in your own space, Leach has some simple advice: “If you can make built changes to your home in order to make a more efficient and beautiful look of the space, I say do it!”
If that’s not possible, however, she has three additional tips for improvements on a budget. First, start with paint and wallcoverings – “It’s the most cost-effective way to make a huge impact throughout the whole space.”
Next, consider vintage and antique finds. “Most of the time you can get cost-effective furniture with way more character at antique [shops], thrift stores or estate sales,” she says.
Finally – don’t skimp on your lighting. “If you can implement three sources of lighting in your space, no matter what else is in it, it will just make the space glow,” she says. “Try using lamps, sconces, and candles instead of just one overhead light.”
Want more great tips from the experts, including Emily Mangus of Emily Mangus Interiors and Cheryl Moseley of Lyrehc Styles? Read on in our latest issue now on newsstands or keep reading for free in our digital guide linked below!
The story above is a preview from our September/October 2022 issue. For more stories, subscribe today or view our FREE digital edition. Thank you for supporting local journalism!
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