Here’s another great expert to tell you about. Meet Marlene Alexander who has a Web site and newsletter called Dollar Store Style. Here she shares some of her tips with us. Be sure to check out here Web site www.dollarstorestyle.com for more budget friendly home décor ideas.
Budget Smart Girl (BSG)-Tell us about yourself and how you became interested in budget friendly decorating.
Marlene Alexander (MA)-I’m an empty-nester living in Ontario, Canada with my husband of 35 years, John, a Jack Russell Terrier named Christie an a tortoiseshell cat named Cloe. I became interested in dollar stores around the same time I started reading decorating magazines like Style At Home. It occurred to me that some of the smaller ideas in the glossies could easily be copied with similar items I’d seen in my local dollar store and that’s how the idea for Dollar Store Style http://www.dollarstorestyle.com began.
BSG-You write a column on Walletpop.com about dollar stores. Any good finds for decorating rooms?
MA-Absolutely! Glass vases, a wide assortment of candles and candleholders, tablecloths (round or square table-toppers), frames, even smaller pieces of artwork. Sometimes, you can get some great dinnerware for a buck a piece, too.
BSG-A big obstacle for most of us is getting and keeping organized. What low cost items would you recommend using for storage?
MA-I can tell you what I’ve found in my dollar store. I have a plastic under-bed unit that closes with a zipper. It’s about 40″ long by 17″ wide and 4 1/2″ deep.
I also found cloth-covered drawer inserts that unfold to a size of 12″ x 9 1/2″ x 4″ deep. There are also woven cloth baskets in a variety of shapes and sizes. The ones I have are 9″ square and 4″ deep. These cost $2 each. And, of course, there are usually a variety of small bamboo or other reed baskets. I use one for storing fingertip towels in the bathroom and another to corral salt and pepper, napkins and spoons on the kitchen table.
BSG-Any current decorating trends which are easy and inexpensive to duplicate?
MA-I have noticed that trends usually end up in the dollar store in one form or another. Smaller accents, of course. For example, when frameless canvas art became popular, I began seeing 8″ square canvas art at the dollar store and some of it is very nice.
BSG-Say you’re bored with a room in your house but don’t have a lot of money for a major redo, what can you use to give it a facelift?
MA-Decorating experts talk about this all the time. They say that the best inexpensive thing you can do to give a room a major lift, is a fresh coat of paint. More simply, you can re-arrange the furniture, change cushions and switch accessories from one room with those from another part of the house. Adding fresh flowers is also recommended.
BSG-Any sites/stores you recommend we check out for decorating bargains?
MA-Vintage Printables www.vintageprintable.com is a site containing a wide assortment of free downloadable images that are great to print and frame.
BSG-Garage sale season is coming up. Any tips for using sale items for jazzing up room?
MA-This isn’t really my area of expertise, but magazines like Style At Home http://www.styleathome.com/how-to/diy-decor/how-to-make-over-a-coffee-table/a/28022 always have ideas for making over old furniture or other accessories to bring them up-to-date. This link will take you to an article about making an old coffee table into a bench.
BSG-Here’s something I’m currently dealing with and I’m sure many other readers are to. Kitchen cabinets that are structurally perfect but the doors are looking worn. Anything we can do to give them a makeover?
MA-I think paint and new hardware would do the job. The tricky part is the how-to and for that you need an expert like Debbie Travis.
BSG-What are some of your favorite tips for low cost decorating?
MA-You can recover existing cushions with dollar store cushion covers, provided you find some that compliment your decor. I have also used a colorful headscarf as a dining room table cover. Another thing I do is to re-purpose things from the dollar store. For example, I use a hanging wicker basket in the bathroom to store extra toilet paper, my kitchen window has a valance made from three tea towels and I make small rectangular cushions by sewing two tapestry placemats together.
BSG-Tell us about the newsletter you send out and what readers will find in it.MA-The monthly newsletter includes an original article detailing a craft or decorating idea using things from the dollar store. My readers are the first to see these articles before they become available on the website. I sometimes include things that I have personally discovered don’t work for one reason or another, tips on what to buy for upcoming seasons, a new section called “Quick Fix” where I suggest solutions for fixing common household problems, simply and quickly and “Reader Suggestions/Questions.” Lots more information, as well.
