Rental accommodations are not just cool because they are home to people who cannot own a place. They give you amazing flexibility and are perfect for those who wouldn’t want to live in the same place for a lifetime. You can start looking for a new place by searching for ‘Cupertino apartments for rent‘ if California is next on your destination list.
Once the lease is over you can get the exciting feeling of moving into a brand new home more than once. And there are no hassles about property taxes and neither do you need to worry about expensive home repairs and maintenance. Certainly, rental homes are not a bad deal. When it comes to these homes, apartments take the top spot because renters love the lifestyle and amenities they get as a perk of apartment living.
One concern that may be on the top of your mind, however, could be about the decor of your apartment. Whether you have just moved in or have been living on the property for some time, you would want to make some changes for getting that homely feel. Obviously, you can’t expect to make any major changes like knocking down the wall between the kitchen and dining room because the place is rented after all. Still, there are some useful decor tips that you can try to make your apartment feel like home, even while ensuring that your landlord is happy and you will get your security deposit back. Moreover, you won’t have to spend a fortune to get things looking as you want them to. Here are some you can try.
Experiment with wall art
Your landlord probably won’t let you paint the walls (though you may try asking), but don’t be afraid to experiment with wall art. You can start by selecting a large-format canvas, such as a trio of posters or even a world map to create an attention-grabbing focal point on your living room wall. There are cool ideas that can help you make an even bigger impact like hanging a large rug, tapestries, or even a piece of patterned fabric to cover boring white walls and add interest with just a little creative thinking.
And if you don’t want to spend on buying large pieces of art, it is easy to get the same effect by simply combining smaller items and putting them up on a gallery wall. You may be worried about nailing into the walls, yet this is one of the easiest issues to address while moving out. Alternatively, using removable hanging devices that don’t damage paint for the job is a good idea.
Upgrade the lighting
Another easy and cost-effective way to ramp up the decor of your rental apartment is by upgrading the lighting. Having an outdated ceiling light may not be your idea of perfect decor, so why not do something that is more like your style? Go ahead and replace it with a modern fixture like the LED neon lights by www.neonfilter.com to instantly personalize the living space. The owner won’t have objections and you can remove the stuff and carry it along once you vacate.
A modern chandelier is a good investment if you have that kind of budget. You can even try disguising the existing fixtures if you don’t want to risk removing them. Think creative and use a DIY lampshade to cover the original fixture. And you may use table and floor lamps along with the existing fixtures. Just a little bit of work will amp up the ambience of the place manifold!
Replace kitchen or bath fixtures
Apart from upgrading the lighting fixtures, you can try the same idea for kitchen and bath fixtures as well. However, this is something you’d better do only after seeking the permission of the landlord. In fact, they might be happy with your initiative to swap out the medieval-looking kitchen or bath faucet for a better-looking version. This idea surely makes sense if you plan to make this apartment your home for at least a few years. Upgrading faucets can make the place aesthetically and functionally superior.
While this investment may cost a bit, it is something you can easily remove and take along to your next home when you relocate. While you replace these fixtures, you need to be careful about one thing. Remember to keep the original fixtures in a safe place that you can recall later because you will have to reinstall them when you remove your stuff while vacating the apartment.
Warm up the place with rugs
As a renter, giving the apartment a personal touch is something that can give you the feel of a home. A warm and appealing ambience can do wonders in this context and nothing works better than area rugs to add warmth. Pick colours and patterns that match your taste and you can personalize your decor, just the way you want.
While rugs are just right for the living room, you can spread them all around from the bedrooms and dining rooms and even kitchen and hallways. For rooms with neutral decor, bright colours, and bold patterns look impressive. While rugs have a decorative appeal, you can use them smartly to cover stains and spots on the flooring or carpet. Don’t forget to anchor them with furniture to prevent shifting and wrinkling.
Hang curtains over blinds
If the bland old blinds over the windows of your apartment don’t make you happy, you can add a pop of colour to the place with some bright and beautiful curtains. The right window treatment goes a long way in personalizing your rental space and doesn’t cost a fortune as well. Moreover, you can even keep changing the curtains to give the place a whole new look and feel from time to time. To jazz up a plain-looking room, you may choose a bold curtain fabric. Choose a pretty pattern for the kids’ room.
And the best part is that you can hang them right over the blinds and just have to remove them when you vacate. You don’t have to be a home decor genius to implement this idea. Mounting the curtain rod close to the ceiling above the window is all you need to do to get started. Get the right length of the curtain so that its fabric should brush the floor for maximizing the appearance of tall ceilings.
Hang temporary wallpaper
The idea of hanging curtains over blinds is a cool one and you can try something similar to the walls as well. Since a majority of landlords won’t allow renters to paint the wall according to their preference, this is a smart thing that anyone can try. The good thing is that you can easily find removable wallpaper in the market and use it to change the entire look of the apartment without much hard work.
The best thing you can do with temporary wallpaper is by creating an accent wall rather than doing it for all of them. This will save you a lot of time and money and give ample room for experimentation as well. What’s more, you can do it for the entire place once you see how well the idea works for accent walls. Or you can stick to highlighting one wall in each of the rooms if you like things subtle and simple.
Make the apartment “green”
A place that is green is more likely to feel like home, particularly if you are a nature lover. Create an indoor garden with your favourite plants all around the place. You can have small pots of herbs in the kitchen window, a decorative plant or two in the living room, and even have a small garden in the balcony of your apartments. Not only will green plants pep up the decor but will add freshness to the place and improve quality as well.
You can be creative with your gardening skills as well. Pick some colourful pots in various shapes and sizes and have them all around the place. Have a few plants on the front door to give a welcoming feel to the place. You can even use old dishes and cups for tiny plants and place them on shelves and side tables. The entire place will light up with the lovely greens and give positive vibes as well.
Conceal what you don’t like
Home decor is not just about accentuating everything that is beautiful; it is also about concealing the stuff you don’t like. This can get a bit tricky in a rented property because something you don’t like could be the landlord’s favourite. Though you can’t remove the things that are unappealing in a rental apartment, you can still find ways to hide them smartly.
For example, you can easily disguise the ugly backsplash in the kitchen with some removable tile stickers. What about hanging a large painting over a wall opening that looks awkward? And you may fit a removable bookshelf over an ugly-looking window that opens to a dirty street at the back of the apartment. It is all about being creative and you can have some cool ideas to hide things that you don’t want to see and show.
Home decor in a rented space needs a lot of smart thinking because you cannot make any major changes and wouldn’t want to spend a lot. And once you are able to do it, you will have a place that looks and feels like home!
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