Cheap but chic.

Do you flick through interior design magazines in the newsagency whilst quietly weeping because you could never afford the things inside its hip pages and notice that as your crying gets louder the sales assistant approaches you and tells you “you cried on my magazine, you cry you buy” to which you respond “I only have six dollars” and get escorted from the shop?

Me too.

We are so in sync right now.

Here are five ways to take your apartment/dorm/bedroom from drab to fab without breaking the bank and to ensure you never get escorted out of the newsagency in a sweaty pool of tears ever again.

1. Knick knacks found at Op shops.

Yes Mum you snob, I said op shops. Op shops really do provide us with the opportunity to shop. There’s no denying it the name is apt. You can pick up some quirky crockery, some salty sheets even some interesting artwork. I recently bought a framed photo of pod of dolphins for $8. You don’t see prices like that anymore.

2. IKEA

If you can’t handle the second hand then opt for the shiny new- IKEA, the place where flat packs are king and dreams really do come true. You can pick up anything here from a $200 bed frame to a $1 hot dog. They’ve got it all and that makes it a perfect starting point to stock up your trolley with all of the furniture essentials.

3. Indoor plants

Indoor plants instantly give your place life by adding greenery and bringing a little bit of the outdoors, indoors. This statement becomes untrue if your plants die- don’t be heartless, water them. Indoor plants can be found at almost any local market, hip inner-city florists, IKEA (as mentioned above) and more. If you are likely to murder your plants, then go for the plastic variety which are borderline tacky but what are you a high fashion figure? No. You get what you get and you don’t get upset.

4. Magazine art

A lot of the trendier magazines nowadays are jam-packed with artistic goodies for you to snip out, pop in a frame and hammer into your wall. This comes at a relatively low cost for very little effort and can add colour and life as well as cover things like mould, water damage and blood stains. Wait what?

Happy decorating my poverty-chic friends.