How to decorate a rental apartment – 7 steps to decor bliss
Do you want to learn how to decorate a rental apartment in a refined way that is tailored to your style? Then this article is for you!
Below are 7 steps on decorating a rental apartment so it looks more cohesive and well-designed. Read on to get rental apartment decorating ideas that can make your home magazine worthy!
How To Make Your Rental Apartment a Stylish Home
I alway say that everyone deserves a beautifully decorated home, no matter what their budget or size of their space. So whether you are renting a house, condo or apartment, you can use the following advice and tips to make your abode an attractive, welcoming, and comfortable home that brings you joy everytime you walk through the door!
If you’re looking for rental apartment decorating ideas, to give your space a designer look, you’ve come to the right place!
So where do you start?
Whether you are currently living in your space or are planning to move in soon, it all starts with a step-by-step plan.
The 7 Steps for How to Decorate a Rental Apartment
Disclaimer: As you go through these tips, some may apply to you and some may not. This is meant to be a guide to help you put things into perspective and provide you with ideas.
How to decorate a rental apartment Step 1: Take inventory of things you cannot change
When you are renting, your landlord may have certain restrictions of what you can and cannot do to the apartment. Nowadays most landlords are quite flexible provided you put things back the way they were before your lease is up. But, there are times, you may not be allowed to paint or even attach anything on walls.
If your landlord is flexible there are a number of things you can do to make your rental more appealing to your specific decorating aesthetic. If however, you have restrictions, you can still inject a design look into your rental, but you just have to be a bit more creative ‒ more on that later.
How to decorate a rental apartment Step 2: Embrace what you cannot change
If there are fixed elements in your rental apartment that are not to your liking, you can take cues from these items and work around them to achieve a look that is more to your taste.
Photo by At Home With Dia ©
In the above apartments the granite countertops and honey oak cabinet color were not what the renter would have picked if she had a choice. However, instead of fighting against the golden tones, she asked permission from her landlord to paint the kitchen walls a medium green color (which happened to be her favorite color) to tone down the overall “golden” color scheme.
Even if you are not allowed to paint the walls you can still embrace existing colors and material and learn how to work with what you cannot change. I will cover this topic later on.
And since we are talking about colors and paint, this leads to the next step of the process.
How to decorate a rental apartment Step 3: Create a color palette
The next major part of your plan should be to create a color palette. This will guide you when making decisions on how to use your existing furniture and what accent colors to incorporate in your decorating, pulling it all together.
When you are thinking of how to decorate a rental apartment, start by taking a good look at the walls, cabinets, counters and floors, and identify what these fixed elements have in common. Determine whether they are mainly in warm, cool or neutral colors.
Note: Warm colors are those with yellow, red, and orange in them. Cool colors are blues, greens, and purples. Neutral colors, like gray, taupe, tan, and cream work well with both cool and warm tone colors.
This will help you put together a color palette that compliments what you cannot change in the apartment.
If you are looking for rental apartment decorating ideas, pull color inspiration from things you may already have and love and see how those colors would look next to the apartment’s existing colors. Your inspiration can come from a painting, a rug or even a pattern on a pillow.
Pro tip: create a color palette that you can carry with you when shopping
If you find it difficult to visualize how it will all come together, go to your local hardware store and pick up paint chips that are a close match to the color of your floors, walls and cabinets. This can act as the basis of your color palette. Then pick paint chips that are similar to your accent color and put them next to the first set of paint chips to see how they look. When you have the colors laid out next to each other, you may find that bright blue you love might clash with the tan wall-to-wall carpet but a more subdued tone of your favorite blue may look wonderful next to the tan color.
Once you have narrowed down the color chips that best represent the apartment and your accent color, stick the chips onto a white piece of paper side-by-side. You can carry this sheet in your bag, so you can reference it when you are out shopping for furniture and accessories to ensure that what you pick compliments your overall color palette.
As an example, the renter of the above referenced apartment couldn’t change the honey colored kitchen cabinets and the black, brown, beige and tan speckled countertops. Her favorite color was bright green but instead chose a green that had a grayish undertone which down-played the golden hues. By introducing her favorite color into the mix she created a cohesive and harmonious look throughout the apartment that was truly hers.
As a result, we created the following color palette:
Photo by At Home With Dia ©
The warm tones and accent from the kitchen were carried into the dining and living area of the apartment. The dark brown drapes, matching throw pillows and black accent pieces add some contrast and help to break up the beige tones. The renter’s favorite green color can be found in pillows, plants and decor.
When you are learning how to decorate a rental apartment and you have a space that has very neutral colors, or you like the existing color scheme, a color palette is still a very useful tool. It helps you fine-tune your decorating for a consistent and balanced look.
How to decorate a rental apartment Step 4: Sprinkle your color pallet throughout your space
One of the most important strategies in creating a coordinated stylish space is to carry your selected colors from room to room. This not only enhances the visual appeal of your space but also provides a refined designer look to your overall apartment.
Also, to introduce a bit of drama and interest to your space, use some non-color accents in black or white for contrast.
Photo by At Home With Dia ©
In the secondary room of the same apartment, one of the walls was painted green. Notice how other colors from the palette were introduced in decorative pillows, window treatment and wall decor. The brown bedskirt and black furniture add contrast while the white bedding provides some relief to the darker colors.
The same green color was carried into the primary bedroom for a cohesive look throughout.
Photo by At Home With Dia ©
Pro-tip for renters with landlords that have restrictions
As you look at ways of how to decorate a rental apartment you don’t have to be fully limited by your landlord’s restrictions. Even if you are not allowed to paint any walls in your rental you can still achieve a cohesive color scheme using your color palette in blocks of color on other surfaces.
This can be accomplished by hanging draperies or placing a bedcover in the accent color and adding large wall art that has your desired accent color. Another way is to pick up some colored mats from the framing shop or craft store and use them in frames to accentuate your prints and complement your color scheme. If you are handy, this is a great opportunity to pick up a couple of inexpensive canvases and create abstract art with your color selection.
For those of you not allowed to hang anything on the walls, 3M Command Picture Hanging Strips, are your best friend! These picture hangers can be used to attach a variety of things and can easily be removed later without causing any damage to the walls.
How to decorate a rental apartment Step 5: Make The Most Of Your Existing furniture With A Few Tweaks
The renter already owned the majority of the furniture in the above photo, so once the “color palette” was established, the overall look came together by adding some inexpensive drapery panels to the windows, a few accent pillows and some DIY art.
Photo by At Home With Dia ©
Adding some complementary accents like green candles and plants added to the cohesive look of the primary bedroom.
If it doesn’t match try a cover up job
When you are looking at ways of how to decorate a rental apartment, you may want to freshen up existing soft furniture to match the apartment’s color palette. In this case, consider using slipcovers or even throws to camouflage upholstery that doesn’t quite match the scheme you are going for.
Also, if you have a dining table that is just not the right wood tone, put a neutral colored table cloth to create a totally new look that compliments your new color palette.
How to decorate a rental apartment Step 5: Dress your windows for a more elevated look
You are in a rental, and you may be tempted to settle for the window coverings that come with the apartment. Even if your apartment has blinds, dressing your windows with either sheer curtains or panels give it a more cozy and finished look.
You can install inexpensive curtain rods and hang the panels over the blinds. Just remember to ask your landlord if it is required that they be removed once your lease is over. If so, you can fill in screw holes with a dab of spackle and then touch up the wall with paint.
This is a minor, inexpensive task, but well worth the effort when you want your home to look well decorated and elegant while you are living there.
Photo by At Home With Dia ©
The dark panels on either side of each window make the space look more elegant and cozy.
When looking for rental apartment decorating ideas, sometimes you have to be creative.
Photo by At Home With Dia ©
The green accent color was carried into the primary bathroom by choosing towels, wall art and some decorative items in the same color. A green curtain panel was hung on the right side of the bath enclosure which is normally not opened. This acts as a block of green color without having to paint a wall and ties in the other green accessories.
Pro tip:
When considering how to decorate a rental apartment you may want to camouflage or hide certain elements that the apartment comes with. As an example, if you don’t like the cold look of sliding glass shower doors, and want to add some softness, think outside the box. Add a shower rod in front of the shower doors and hang a couple of sheer curtains. This conceals the glass slider while keeping it still functional and does not obstruct light. The curtains need to be long enough so they can be higher than the shower door, reaching down to about ½ inch above the floor.
How to decorate a rental apartment Step 6: Introduce extra lighting
Apartments normally come with overhead lighting which is used for overall illumination. However, introducing different layers of lighting to your space elevates your decorating by creating depth and interest.
Photo by At Home With Dia ©
Add table lamps and floor lamps into your space to serve as task lighting but also for ambiance. This adds another element of decor that is not only practical but also improves the overall appearance of your space.
How to decorate a rental apartment Step 7: Dress up your entry for practicality and esthetics
In most cases a rental apartment’s front door opens directly into the main living area or into a narrow hall. This is where you need to focus on making that space not only function well for everyday needs but also, act as a precursor to your overall decorating scheme.
When you are thinking of how to decorate a rental apartment entryway, keep in mind that this is the first impression of your home. So, make it a good one. It is also an opportunity to give your visitors a hint of your home’s style.
Let’s first talk about the practical side of your entry.
Ideally, you would place coats and shoes in an entry closet. However, by placing renter friendly, over-the-door, hooks inside of the closet door, you are now able to use the back of the door to hang bags, dog leash, keys, etc.
Over-the-door hooks from Amazon
As an alternative to a closet, you can use a lidded basket or small storage ottoman for shoes and 3 or 4 decorative hooks on the wall for jackets and bags.
Image by pvproductions on Freepik
If space allows, you can use a slim cabinet or chest of drawers for shoes and will keep things out of sight so your entry looks tidy.
Now let’s address how to decorate and accent to your entry.
Photo by Collov Home Design on Unsplash
When considering how to decorate a rental apartment, treat your entrance as a prelude to your elegantly decorated home.
If you use a low cabinet, chest of drawers, or an open console in the entry, decorate the top surface with items that relate to your home’s color palette and decorating scheme.
For a coordinated look, use accessories that include your accent color. You can use a bowl or box to place keys, sunglasses, or other items you need when leaving your home. Wall art or a mirror also add flair to the entryway and act as an introduction to your attractive home.
So now, armed with inspiration from this article you can achieve a home that is well decorated and cohesive!
If you liked these rental apartment decorating ideas and tips, feel free to share your comments. I would love to hear how you’ve used some of these tips to help make your rental apartment stylish and truly yours!
