5 Simple Ways to Beautify Your Bedroom on a Budget

These simple budget bedroom ideas will take your space from "blah" to beautiful and give you the cozy haven you've always wanted!

A huge thanks to IKEA for sponsoring this post! My favorable opinion of beautiful and affordable bedroom decor is 100% my own. For more information, see my disclosures here.

Once upon a time in a way different world, our extended family had this grand plan where everyone would come into town and stay at our house for spring break and we would do all sorts of fun things all over Pittsburgh!

My mind is always on decor, so of course I got all excited and started giving our guest room a little refresh in preparation for our onslaught of visitors.

Weeelllllll... the world had other plans. All of the places we were planning to visit are currently closed. The events we had booked were canceled. And our family members are safely distanced in their own homes.

I'm not going to lie. At first, I was a little bit mopey that all of our carefully laid plans would never come to fruition. But we've been getting creative with ways to spend time with our family virtually. (Long distance puzzle competition via Google Hangouts, anyone? 🙂 )

And even though I put it off for a bit, I finally finished our little guest room refresh so that it would be ready when it's safe to have visitors again.

And you know what? Giving some new life to a space really perked up my mood and gave us a cozy new spot to hang out in now that we're spending so much time at home. I'm calling it a win!

(Donnie is also grateful. Our boys have taken over his office to do schoolwork and gaming since that's where the big computer is, so he's been working in the guest room a lot! 🙂 )

Budget Bedroom Ideas to Beautify Your Space

Probably the best part of this refresh was that, along with being oh-so-pretty, all of the new pieces I brought in were really affordable. In these uncertain times, it was great to be able to create a beautiful spot without breaking the bank!

If one of the bedrooms in your home could use a refresh but you don't want to spend a ton to do it, here are some ideas that can create a gorgeous transformation on a budget.

1. Switch out the duvet cover.

I love, love, love the duvet insert + cover combo because it makes it so easy to update the look of any bedroom!

Not only are duvet covers affordable, but they are also easy to wash. And they don't take nearly as much space to store as a full bedspread, so it's easy to keep a few around and switch things up whenever the mood strikes.

I have always been a sucker for white bedding, so I chose IKEA's OFELIA VASS duvet cover + pillow cases for a crisp, clean look with the perfect amount of texture thrown in for good measure. I also have the GRUSBLAD comforter insert, and it is so cozy and just the right weight.

2. Choose new pillow covers.

I may be just a smidge obsessed with throw pillows. It has gotten to the point where my boys watch me like a hawk in decor stores and report to Donnie IMMEDIATELY if they see me go anywhere near the pillow aisle.

Little stinkers. 😉

But as much as I love throw pillows, I didn't love how much space they were taking up in my house. So a few years ago, I started trying to buy pillow covers instead of full pillows whenever possible.

A bonus perk of this move is that pillow covers are SO much more affordable, so I don't feel guilty stocking up on them!

I always raid the pillow cover section at IKEA because there are so many gorgeous options. For this refresh, I picked two light pink AINA covers with the cutest little bows. I also grabbed three larger URSULA covers in light beige.

I already had the FJADRAR pillow inserts in the 26" and 20" sizes, so I just popped them into the covers, and I was good to go!

3. Change up the curtains.

I love the extra drama that curtains bring to a room, so I like to add them whenever possible.

I am typically a white curtain girl, but I grabbed some blue TIBAST curtains for this refresh. I'm so glad I went for the bolder color! (And for less than $40 a set, you can't beat the price!)

Every set of curtains we have in our house is from IKEA because not only are they affordable, but they also come in nice long lengths. I can hang them right up near the ceiling to make the room look bigger and still get the little pooling effect that I like to have at the bottom.

4. Swap your small accessories.

Let's talk about tchotchkes! I think it's the little details that can really make a space. Having a few well-chosen accessories to decorate the nightstand or dresser can really give a room that polished, finished look.

Small accessories are also great because for just a few dollars, you can change up the little details and subtly alter the feel of the space. I chose these cute HARLIGA cloches from IKEA (in both the large and small sizes). I placed them on a wicker tray with a sweet little birdie as the final touch.

On the other nightstand, I added a faux FEJKA plant in a SPARRISKNOPP pot (because hello, black thumb!). They sit alongside the RANARP lamp and little alarm clock.

You can see how we DIY-ed this stool in this post.

I also couldn't resist tucking a pink INGABRITTA throw into our basket that holds the extra pillows for a little extra pop of color and texture.

5. Have fun with frames.

I love frames because they hold so many possibilities. It's so easy to switch up the contents and change the feel of the space.

Above the HEMNES dresser, I hung two RIBBA frames that I already owned and filled them with prints I found on Etsy for just a few dollars each. There are also a ton of free printable art prints out there if you search on Google or Pinterest. This makes it super easy to find beautiful frame fillers while spending little to no money at all!

For my smaller SONDRUM frame, I raided our stash of family pictures and definitely teared up when I re-discovered this shot of Connor holding a baby Caleb so protectively. That is still their personalities-- Caleb relies on Con so much, and Con is always watching out for his little brother. So sweet!

Bonus: Organize it!

Finally, you know I can't tackle a room without dealing with the organization aspect at the same time, and this space was no exception! I had been meaning to organize the boys' hand-me-downs that we keep in the HEMNES dresser for some time, and I finally got around to it with this project.

IKEA's SKUBB boxes are one of my favorite organizing tools ever because they're inexpensive and come in three convenient sizes. They are also made to fit perfectly in the HEMNES dresser without any extra gaps or spaces, which makes my type-A heart giddy with delight!

I file folded all of the hand-me-downs so that they would fit neatly in the SKUBB boxes. I then used my label maker to create little labels so we could easily tell what was in each box.

It felt great to get this space organized and decorated at the same time, all within a modest budget!

Now every time I walk into this room I breathe a little satisfied sigh because in the midst of all of the craziness that has been going on, this space has become our cozy little haven. (And when we're spending so much time at home, that was definitely needed!)

What are your favorite ways to spruce up a space on a budget? Let me know in the comments below!

Budget Bedroom Ideas- Sources

If you're looking for any of the items we used in our guest room refresh, you can find a list of links here:

OFELIA VASS Duvet Cover + Pillow Cases

GRUSBLAD Comforter

AINA Cushion Covers in Light Pink

URSULA Cushion Covers in Light Beige

FJADRAR Pillow Inserts (26")

FJADRAR Pillow Inserts (20")

TIBAST Curtains

HARLIGA Cloche (Large)

HARLIGA Cloche (Small)

FEJKA Faux Plant

SPARRISKNOPP Plant Pot

RANARP Lamp

INGABRITTA Throw Blanket

HEMNES Dresser

RIBBA Picture Frames

SONDRUM Picture Frame

SKUBB Boxes

Want to save these budget bedroom ideas for later? Be sure to pin the image below so you can find them easily!

Thank you so much for following along! Have a wonderful week!

A huge thanks to IKEA for sponsoring this post! My favorable opinion of beautiful and affordable bedroom decor is 100% my own. For more information, see my disclosures here.