Champagne decor on a beer budget

My husband Dave told me a story about a discussion he and my brother-in-law had at lunch earlier this week.  My Dave and BIL are seriously like twins, having done everything together since they were little and still have a great relationship.  Can we say "bro-mance" ? :-D

My rad BIL is smart and successful in his job and going to grad school.  He is also going to be a homeowner of a brand new townhouse in Daybreak.  Construction is almost done.

So Dave mentions to BIL: "You should have Alina come help you decorate your place"

BIL: "I don't know man, her taste is too high"

Dave: "What do you mean?"

BIL: "Those chairs, they cost like $300 bucks each??"

Dave: "No.  We got them at Ikea for $70 bucks each

Before the dining table and chairs

Sorry for the bad lighting but here they are

This is with a tablecloth we got on clearance at Williams-Sonoma for $20 instead of $90.  The picture frame we got for free from one of Dave's friends.  The flower vase was from Burlington Coat Factory for $5.  The tray was from Tuesday Morning for I think $15. 

The chair without the slip cover is $50 but the white slipcover is the least expensive of this chair line at Ikea (and not everything there is a bang for your buck at Ikea in my opinion) and was $10.  We didn't want to budget $250 for 2 chairs that "matched" the dining table from Kohl's so we kept looking around until we saw something we liked at a price we were comfortable at.  

You can refer to the price of the Ikea chairs HERE

Back to the story, my BIL then said: "Oh yeah?? But what about that mirror??"

He was referring to this rectangular mirror :

Dave replied: "Oh that?  That is...

From WAL-MART."  

This was $40 bucks!!  

(look HERE, this is in-stores only but it has excellent reviews)

I love this mirror because (1) it makes our living space look bigger and more "balanced"  (2) it is light, it isn't heavy to hang like other mirrors and (3) it was the best price for a mirror that size.  

I think it looks great!  Looking at our little space makes me happy.  

Some tips for making your space look smashing good

1. Have a budget.  You need to be comfortable with paying the price you want. Plus if you don't set a limit, you'll be looking forever at the wrong stores and wasting time.  

2. Shop around and compare.  Sometimes you may not know what the average cost is for an item until you do this.  I had no idea what a mirror like that should cost so I looked around.  With the mirrors, some were $250, others (like Ikea) were around $99, and the price was right with Wal-Mart for the rectangular mirror.

3. Be inspired with what you see on blogs, Pinterest, TV shows, and home decor magazines on decorating on a budget.  There is always a look-alike somewhere if you just. keep. looking.  You get lots of ideas from this. 

4. Ask me for help :)  Let's see what I can do to help you find something lovely at a price you're comfortable with.