12 Home Decor Items Everyone Should Own

When you’re decorating your home on a budget, the most important thing to remember is to buy versatile home decor. Buy things that you will be able to move from room to room so that you can refresh your spaces from season to season or from year to year.

We want to target items that are going to stay with us for the long haul.

In this post, we’ll talk about 12 home decor items that will do just that. Let’s get started.

12 Must-Have Home Decor Items

1 – Canister Set

A set of canisters can be purchased just about anywhere. They often come in a set of three. The great thing about canister sets is that they are relatively inexpensive and come in a huge variety of styles and colors.

Not only can you use them on your kitchen counter to store things like sugar, creamers, and coffee, but you can also use them in your pantry or bathroom.

If you purchase a neutral set with a bit of texture on the outside they’ll be even more versatile. They can be used in an office to store pencils, and in the bathroom as an elevated-looking vessel for cotton balls, cotton swabs, disposable razors, bath bombs, and many other things.

2 – Tray

The next home decor item to pick up is a tray. Trays come in all different shapes and sizes. One of my favorites right now is a long-footed tray that I found at Target. But, like I said, you can find trays in all different shapes and sizes.

To get the most use out of your tray over the years, choose something made of a natural material like wood or marble, or something with a silver or gold metal finish.

Also, try to find something with an edge on it. This will give you the ability to style vignettes on your tray for a coffee table or centerpiece. Then, when you need a little extra space on your surface, you can easily pick up the entire tray and move it without worrying too much about items sliding off during transport.

Also, a tray with a lip or edge to it gives you more styling options. You’ll be able to use moss, sand, or rocks in your vignette and the edge will hold everything together on the tray nicely.

3 – Small Potted Plants

Look for small potted plants that come in a set. These can be faux potted plants like the ones I use, I found them on Amazon. Or, you could go for a small set of live cactus plants.

Just like with the canister sets, you can break up the set of mini-potted plants and use them all around your home. They can be used to decorate bookshelves, countertops, coffee tables, dressers, or bathroom shelves.

4 – Pillow Covers

Changing out your pillow covers from season to season is a great way to keep your living spaces refreshed throughout the year. Pillow covers and pillow inserts are the more cost-effective way to go when it comes to accessorizing your furniture.

Moreover, pillow covers are easy to store. They lay flat and can fold up easily. Buying and storing full sets of decorative pillows is not only costly, but it eats up storage space you could be using for other things.

Instead, go for the pillow covers and inserts. You can find them in sets of 2 for around $16 on Amazon. I like to switch mine out twice each year for the fall/winter seasons and the spring/summer seasons.

5 – Small Baskets

Small baskets are another home decor item you should have. You can use them to store just about anything. They can be used to store toys, mail, and magazines, or as a tank basket on the top of the toilet to house bathroom supplies.

Baskets can be found everywhere and at every price point. I like to check out 5 Below and thrift stores like GoodWill to find inexpensive baskets.

Walmart also has great prices on baskets.

Try to stay away from the plastic baskets and instead go for a wicker, seagrass, or hyacinth basket. These look much nicer and only cost a few dollars more than their plastic counterparts.

6 – Large Vessel

A large vessel is another home decor item that you’ll want in your arsenal. You can use a large vessel to upgrade the base of an artificial tree. You can also use a large vessel to create a dramatic centerpiece.

The most cost-effective way to get your hands on a large vessel is to look for planters or pots in the garden section as opposed to searching for large vases.

Large and oversized vases can be extremely expensive. However, planters and pots are quite affordable in large sizes.

7 – Door Wreath

A front door wreath is the next home decor must-have. They bring so much personality to your home. They’re also a great way to welcome guests and decorate for the season.

If you don’t like the idea of having to have a different wreath for each season there are lots of all-year-round wreath styles that look amazing during any season.

Eucalyptus and boxwood are two examples of wreaths that would be great all year round.

8 – Doormat

To accompany your front door wreath, you’ll want to get a doormat. It helps balance out the decor on your front door.

Much like the front door wreath, you do not have to switch it out from season to season if you don’t want to. Simply choose something that is neutral and/or coordinates well with your wreath.

Another way to style your doormat is to choose something neutral, like a brown coir welcome mat, and then add an underlay mat that you change out from season to season.

During the fall you may use an orange plaid underlay that you switch out for a red underlay during the holiday season.

In the spring and summer, you may use yellow, green, blue, or pink for your underlay mat to go with the season’s colors.

9 – Faux Floral Stems

The next home decor item that you should be buying for your home is faux floral stems.

Buy faux floral stems inexpensively from Amazon or CraftOutlet. The prices at both of these sites are far better than any sale you’re going to get from Michaels or Hobby Lobby.

Faux floral stems are an economical way to add greenery or color throughout your home. Also, using the same stem or the same few stems throughout your home will give it a cohesive look.

Purchasing fresh flowers for your home week after week is expensive, even if you’re buying them from discount grocers like Aldi and Trader Joe’s.

Faux florals are a much better choice and there are many realistic styles to choose from online. Look for words like “real touch” and “soft touch” in the product description to ensure that you’re getting a more realistic-looking stem.

Also, be sure to check out the reviews. Other customers will tell you whether or not the stem looks as good in person as it does in the product photos.

Use faux floral stems to dress up a console table, coffee table, kitchen counter, bathroom counter, or nightstand.

10 – Large Basket

Next up is a large basket. Earlier we talked about smaller baskets to use on tabletops and countertops. But, you’ll also want a large basket.

These can be used for laundry baskets, toy storage, blanket storage, and any other thing that you don’t want spread out all over the house but still want easy access to on a daily basis.

Go for a sturdy, well-constructed woven basket that will be good for years.

11 – Area Rug(s)

In my opinion, an area rug is a home decor must-have. If you have hard floors in a living room, dining room, bedroom, or kitchen nook make sure you get an area rug for those spaces.

This is especially important if you have an open floor plan. Your area rug will help delineate your space and mark the transition from one area to another. It will also help to inform the layout and spacing of your furniture.

An area rug will add color, texture, and warmth to your space. It acts as another layer of decor that will help pull other elements in your room together and give your space a polished look.

Home Goods, Amazon, and Wayfair are all good places to find a great deal on an area rug.

12 – Oversized Wall Art

Invest in a few oversized wall art pieces for your home. Oftentimes, the default advice for styling a large blank wall on a budget is to create a gallery wall. This is because small frames and smaller artwork are less expensive. Using multiples of these is often a cheaper way to fill a large wall than one oversized painting or print.

However, too many gallery walls in your home can give your space a busy or disjointed feeling. Instead of peppering your walls with 6 or 8 different items clustered together, opt for a single oversized piece of artwork.

This will make a bold statement in your room while also giving it a clean, polished feeling.

Home Goods, Burlington, Marshalls, and Wayfair are all fantastic places to visit for affordable oversized wall art. You’ll also find affordable 2 and 3-piece wall art sets at Wayfair, Amazon, and Walmart.

Conclusion

Those are my 12 home decor must-haves. If you’re decorating on a budget, start by targeting these 12 items. They’re versatile, affordable, and will be useful to you for many years to come.

Here are a few more posts you may like…

• 7 Affordable Home Decor Brands You Need To Know
• The NEW Bed Bath and Beyond (YES, They’re Still Open!)
• 8 Easy Ways to Update a Room

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