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Getting your coastal kitchen floor plan right
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Getting your coastal kitchen floor plan right

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This Kmart fan hacked an old gate to make a Hamptons party table

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Montauk – the new Hamptons

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One of our all-time favourite Hamptons homes is for sale

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Amazing budget Hamptons home makeover

A savvy interior enthusiast shares her top tips - by Nicola Conville
  • 09 Mar 2020

Watch: Four easy ways to Hamptons Style

While there's no denying the appeal of the Hamptons decorating style, the cost can be somewhat prohibitive. However, one savvy interiors enthusiast found clever ways to create the home of her dreams, all on a tiny budget.

Amazing budget Hamptons home makeover

Homeowner Melissa has been slowly making improvements to her "builders basic" home, which she bought 13 years ago. 

"This has been a slow and gradual process over many years," she told Home Beautiful.

"I started with a more specific plan and vision at least five years ago. There’s still more to do, but it is beginning to feel more complete and the vision is coming to life."

Image: supplied
Image: supplied

"Even though decorating brings me great joy, for many years I put off making changes in our house thinking that I would wait until we moved into a ‘forever house’," Mel says.

"I found that this made me really detest what we did have and pick fault with it. With an expanding family and a tiny house that didn’t reflect my tastes, eventually I felt quite miserable and trapped; not to mention guilty for feeling this way because there are plenty of people with much less.

"At this stage it dawned on me that it was very foolish to hold back on personalising the house we are lucky enough to have, at the expense of waiting for an imagined house that may never actually come to fruition."

Image: supplied
Image: supplied

Mel and her husband did most of the work on improving their home themselves, although they did outsource the new carpeting and flooring. Everything else is down to clever budgeting and styling.

"I have no specific overall budget, however I commit to make one, possibly two big-ticket purchases each year," Mel explains.

"That means I can save for each item specifically and spread the cost out across a longer period. I would love to get everything done at once or in a shorter time, but that’s just not realistic for us.

Image: supplied
Image: supplied

"By working slowly I have greater flexibility and I find that I appreciate what I have more, because I’ve had to wait for it." - Mel, homeowner

For inspiration, Mel uses Pinterest, and keeps costs down by selling old items to make extra cash, shopping during the sales, and mixing and matching budget finds with more expensive 'investment' pieces.

"I always 'shop the house' first to see what I already have," she adds. 

Her favourite stores for bargain pieces include TK Maxx, IKEA, Kmart, Target, Big W, Bunnings and Pottery Barn. She also sources items from op shops, Etsy and eBay. 

Image: supplied
Image: supplied

"I have projects currently going on throughout the house with no set overall deadline," Mel says.

"My situation has helped me to embrace perceived imperfections and feel a lot more relaxed about not needing things to be completely finished in a fervent rush to get there.

"Decorating slowly has brought me great pleasure, mindfulness and a sense of accomplishment when I make progress on my planning."

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  • Open Homes
  • Decorate
  • Lifestyle
  • Hamptons
Nicola Conville
Nicola Conville
Nicola Conville has worked as a lifestyle journalist and editor for twenty years across a wide range of print and online publications. As Home Beautiful's Digital Content Editor, she is passionate about discovering and sharing the latest styles, trends, hacks and celebrity homes.

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Getting your coastal kitchen floor plan right
Watch 2:03

Getting your coastal kitchen floor plan right

{headline}

{headline}

This Kmart fan hacked an old gate to make a Hamptons party table

This Kmart fan hacked an old gate to make a Hamptons party table

10 Instagram accounts to follow if you love Hamptons style

10 Instagram accounts to follow if you love Hamptons style

7 ways to achieve a Hamptons look on a budget

7 ways to achieve a Hamptons look on a budget

Amazing makeover: from dingy cottage to modern Hamptons-style home

Amazing makeover: from dingy cottage to modern Hamptons-style home

{headline}

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Montauk – the new Hamptons

Montauk – the new Hamptons

Home Beautiful’s Hamptons Kitchens collector’s edition is out now!

Home Beautiful’s Hamptons Kitchens collector’s edition is out now!

A classic Queenslander renovated in stunning Hamptons style

A classic Queenslander renovated in stunning Hamptons style

{headline}

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Confessions of an Australian addicted to American interior design

Confessions of an Australian addicted to American interior design

10 lessons to learn from this stunning Hamptons transformation

10 lessons to learn from this stunning Hamptons transformation

10 essential elements to Hamptons style interiors

10 essential elements to Hamptons style interiors

A classic Hamptons home in the NSW coastal hinterland

A classic Hamptons home in the NSW coastal hinterland

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10 easy ways to Hamptons style

One of our all-time favourite Hamptons homes is for sale

One of our all-time favourite Hamptons homes is for sale

House Rules judges tell all

House Rules judges tell all

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