Making a flat cosy and comfortable on a budget

luckofthe_irish

Hi there,

This is one of my first posts so I hope I am posting in the correct place.

I have recently moved into my first flat and am living in it by myself. It is a one bed flat with bedroom, kitchen, living/dining room and bathroom. Compact but perfect for one person.

I have all the necessary furniture items i.e. sofa, bed, wardrobes etc. but am struggling to make it cosy and look like a 'home' rather than just a rental place. I am on an extremely tight budget and can't afford to spend large amounts of money on extras, but was wondering if anyone had any moneysaving ideas to up the cosy-ness and make my flat feel like my home.

I am big on comfort and warmth (very cold person) and would love my flat to look inviting to cosy up in the winter.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions

Fluff15

Sofa throws and cushions warm up the place, you can buy cheap ones from places like Primark, they do fleece covers for around £3. Have a look on freecycle/facebook selling in your local area for decorative items. Paper shaded lamps give off a very warm light - Ikea do floor standing lamps for around £6.

no1catman

Some places have Heart Home & Electrical Charity shops, which may give you bigger options not available in ordinary charity shops.

DaftyDuck

Tried Freecycle? Certainly try all your charity shops.

Making your own wall hangings, curtains, decorations can help.

bouicca21

Cushions and curtains make a big difference, as do rugs.

Pictures? A friend (who is far more arty than I am) made some fantastic not quite sure whether to call them wall hangings. She took some lengths of wood (plank width) and covered them with wallpaper - the sort that has pictures on it and you'd be wary about having too much of. They look fantastic and super expensive.

lazer

adding personal things make a difference

Photo's and nic nac's - i have a teddy sitting on my spare bed.

I would go to a pound shop or somewhere like B&M bargains and buy a few things - not stuff you need, stuff you want.

Pictures handing on the walls really make a difference.

Did you repaint any of it, it took me 3 years to paint my house, but when i did it was when it immeadiatly felt like mine

Wassa123

The main difference I've found between rentals and a "home" is that you're allowed to put things on the walls!

Put up some shelves and hang up some pictures!

luckofthe_irish

Thanks to all for your responses, I will be checking out Primark and charity shops for some bits and bobs this weekend.

I have wall to wall beige carpet so was thinking of getting some cheap shaggy rugs to put down in the living room and bedroom so they are nice to walk on. Ideally I would like wooden floors - one day

Love the pictures idea, I just need to be careful about how much I hang as I am not really allowed to hang things on the walls. Definitely not allowed to paint as much as I would love to! The walls are plastered with a strange almost pockmarked effect that I cannot stand!!

jrtfan

Putting a long white/cream voile curtain flat on the walls behind taller pieces of furniture might help to break up the pock-marked plaster effect a little (behind your settee, for instance).

DD265

We've used those Command velcro hanging strips to hang our pictures (and hooks for towels etc) and they're great

Laurensalive

I would go with a throw for the sofa. Primark have offers on throws at the moment. They have a home event on.Look around the charity shops for a nice painting. A vase looks good. Try the car boot sales for bits and pieces.