How to cheaply renovate an apartment: photos of ideas, advice from experts

• August 14, 2019
• Repair Tips
• Plugatareva Yana

How to cheaply renovate an apartment? This question concerns not only those who have just purchased housing. Many people want to make budget renovations in their old apartment. Today, materials are produced that can be bought by a person of any income, and they are not inferior to expensive finishes.

Step-by-step instruction

To ensure that you have enough money, you need to decide in advance what work needs to be done. You can proceed according to the standard scheme:

1. First, a work plan and estimate are drawn up. All this should be done with an eye on the budget.
2. Next, building materials are selected.
3. The third step is to prepare the rooms for the start of renovation. All old coverings are removed and furniture is taken out.
4. The floor is poured if necessary, and the walls are rough finished.
5. The ceiling is being finished, wallpaper is being glued, and the flooring is being installed.
6. The final step will be the arrangement of furniture, decor, and lamps.

If you have some experience in construction, then you won’t have to think about how to make cheap apartment renovations, because most of the work can be done yourself.

Replace curtains

Do you have tatty curtains made of cheap fabric in your room? Choose others with a fastening suitable for the owner’s cornice. New “clothing” for window openings will easily transform the interior, and besides, it is not difficult to transport it to a new place of residence.

If the wallpaper has patterns, choose plain curtains. Avoid lambrequins and tulle with patterns - laconic products will cost less and will also make the interior more modern. Look for options at online flea markets or fabric stores: sometimes it’s cheaper to sew the curtains yourself.

Important Rules

To make repairs truly budget-friendly, you must follow certain rules:

1. Owners must have enough time to do the work themselves. If you have never plastered walls before, laid communication lines, or installed plumbing, it will take much longer to figure out what's what. It is logical to start repairs on weekends or during vacation. There is no need to try to do everything faster, it is better to focus on quality.
2. Adequate assessment of the apartment before the start of renovation. How to make cheap renovations in an apartment if the walls need leveling and the floor needs screeding? Paint will not solve the problem of crooked walls, and faulty communications will still leak, ruining the repairs already made. This is all to say that you cannot count on very cheap changes. It is better to take into account all possible breakdowns in advance and eliminate them so that you do not have to redo everything all over again. You can save on decorative materials, but certainly not on rough finishing.
3. Carefully study the assortment and prices in all nearby construction stores. The location of the store also matters because shipping can be more expensive than the materials themselves. You shouldn’t pay attention to very cheap materials, because there are a lot of fakes in the construction business.
4. It is very important to draw up an estimate before starting repairs. This way you will spend only what you planned, and not much more.
5. Never skimp on generally dangerous communications. This includes electrical and gas equipment, which should only be installed by specialists. If you lay communications yourself, then in the best case, the devices simply will not work, and in the worst, a tragedy may occur.

Bayhouse

A relatively new style that originated at the beginning of the last century. It is characterized by functionality and a rejection of luxury as a relic of the past. This is a universal, practical, simple and at the same time modern style with a minimum of decorative elements.

It uses:

1. Metal;
2. Plastic;
3. Glass.

Wooden and leather items can be added in small quantities. The walls do not need expensive wallpaper, but are subject to conventional plastering, but perfectly smooth.

Furniture should be functional and practical - built-in wardrobes, upholstered furniture without armrests, folding tables. Household appliances serve as decorations.

First steps

How to quickly make repairs in an apartment? If you manage your time correctly, then the repair will take less time. It is better to proceed according to the following plan:

1. First, a room plan is drawn up. On paper you need to sketch all the furniture, communications, including sockets, radiators. On the plan, you can divide the room into zones and think about the location of all the furniture and decor.
2. Removing old coatings from all surfaces. The ceiling, walls, floor are cleared of the old coating, windows and doors too, if they are not planned to be replaced. To remove old materials, you will need a spatula, solvents, and a hammer drill. To prevent mold, the walls are impregnated with an antiseptic solution. Then a primer is applied for better adhesion of the finishing material to the wall.
3. A new concrete screed is poured. If this is not done, the floor will not be level, which means walls and partitions will suffer.
4. If you are thinking about how to quickly make repairs in your apartment, then most likely you have forgotten about communications. Electrical wiring should be hidden in the walls not only for aesthetics, but also for safety. Cartridges and sockets must come to the surface. This also includes the installation of plastic sewer and water pipes and heating systems. The plan may indicate plasterboard partitions, then at this stage the frames for them are installed.

The rough finishing is now complete. The room has not yet taken its final form, but is ready for further renovation. It is best to move somewhere during the renovations, but if this is not possible, then make sure that dust and dirt do not get into other rooms.

Industrial style

Urban style with simple and modern decoration, functional furniture and lack of decorative additions. The following materials are used in the interior: metal, concrete and wood. The walls are plastered, and classic curtains are replaced with Roman curtains.

Furniture is replaced:

1. Wine boxes;
2. Racks;
3. Stepladders and other items.

Related article: Things that should not be stored in the nursery

The point is to use ordinary objects to the maximum and with comfort.

Choosing material

How to make renovations in an apartment inexpensively? Do all the work yourself. To do this, it is necessary not only to choose inexpensive building materials, but also to study the theory. And also advice from professionals will not hurt.

For flooring, you can choose multi-layer plywood or boards. If the material is properly processed, the appearance will be decent. In rooms with high humidity, tiles are laid on the floor. If money is really tight, then look for broken material in stores or defective tiles. It can be given away for a symbolic price, or even for free. Just a little imagination is enough, and it will no longer be broken ceramics, but an original floor design.

For walls, wallpaper or paint is most often chosen. There are much more decorative materials, but their prices are higher. If you want to add decorative niches or openings, use drywall.

The cheapest option is to whitewash and paint the ceiling. Depending on the budget, you can use suspended ceilings.

Doors and windows can be left the same, but decorated. Some design techniques like aging, decoupage or color inserts will be inexpensive, but will look beautiful.

Color accents

It is not necessary to create an accent wall by painting it entirely in one color. You can highlight these accents very precisely by painting the ends of the elements in a contrasting shade, or create a beautiful fragment on the wall without artistic difficulties.

All this within very simple geometric shapes. This is easy to do yourself using patterns, masking tape, and stencils. Try it and you will immediately see that these bright accents will immediately transform your interior. They will bring color, idea, play, mood and style into it. They will also help you save on apartment renovations in general and on finishing materials in particular.

What else can become a color accent when renovating an apartment on a budget?

• Furniture facades,
• Part of the ceiling
• Any individual decorative elements. For example, a painting, textiles, figurine, etc.

Repair stages

People are thinking about how to make inexpensive renovations in an apartment, usually before the event, and not in advance. For this reason, many mistakes are made that affect the quality of repairs.

It is believed that renovation begins from the ceiling, but this is not so. All the construction dust will rise and the new ceiling will become dirty. It is very difficult to remove dirt from the ceiling, so it is better to start from the floor.

All vertical surfaces - window slopes, walls, ceilings are leveled. Perfect walls are expensive, but painting or wallpapering them will be much easier later. For leveling you need a primer, base and finishing mixture.

First, a reinforcing mesh and beacons are installed on the floor, then they are filled with a finishing screed. Drying of the solution depends on the consistency and thickness of the fill. You can use the finished surface no earlier than three weeks.

How to make budget repairs? Completely master the theory. For example, logs are installed according to the standard - the step between them should be no more than sixty centimeters. For plywood, the step is slightly smaller - forty-five centimeters, and in addition there is a transverse lattice. The boards are laid, knocked together, there should be no gaps. If the flooring is made of plywood, then the sheets are arranged in a checkerboard pattern.

The right wallpaper will fit perfectly into a budget renovation. How to make sure that you don’t have to starve for several months later? Choose the right wall covering. Thin paper wallpapers are the cheapest, but their quality leaves much to be desired. Painting the walls will cost much more, but the surface can be washed. And repairs will have to be done much less frequently. There are liquid wallpapers, you can even make them yourself. Decorative plaster is a fairly inexpensive decor that requires only a finishing mixture and a special spatula. You can create a pattern using improvised means. For example, the bark beetle effect is achieved by smoothing the finish coat with a float wrapped in sandpaper. Beautiful strokes can be made with a regular spatula. When the drawing is ready, you need to let it dry. If desired, the wall can be painted and then secured with acrylic varnish to achieve greater impact.

Only now can we start working on the ceiling. If you are thinking about how to make budget renovations in your apartment, then you will appreciate the opportunity to simply paint or whitewash the ceiling. When you want something unusual, you can consider a suspended ceiling. It is easy to install yourself without special equipment. A more expensive decor is to make a slatted ceiling from mirror slats. The reception will not only add spectacularity, but also increase the space. Lovers of natural interiors will love the idea of ​​using laminate on the ceiling. The plates can be laid out in different patterns and experimented with color and effect. Since no one walks on the ceiling, the load on the laminate will be minimal, which means you can use the cheapest material.

Painting the floor or sanding it is done last. Painted wood looks very beautiful and gives nobility to the apartment.

The finishing is complete, all that remains is to arrange the furniture and hang the lamps.

Decoration

If you are looking for an answer to the question: “How to save money on renovating an apartment in a new building?” - the simplest, but one of the most effective techniques is the use of decorative elements. These can be: paintings, posters, objects of art, textile decorations, etc. In fact, your interior can be used as a blank white sheet on which your imagination can create absolutely any story, set any style and mood with the help of decorative pieces. With proper use of decor, any, even the simplest and most inexpensive renovation can look stylish and original.

As you can see, there are many simple budget renovation ideas that will enhance your interior. They do not require huge investments and are very relevant if you are planning a budget renovation. The main thing that is required of you is imagination and the desire to create and equip your home. And if you think that you can’t do it yourself, our designers in Yekaterinburg are always ready to come to your aid!

Advice from experienced people

How to make budget renovations in an apartment? Many apartment owners ask this question, but not everyone knows the answer. For some reason, it seems that budget repairs necessarily involve the cheapest materials, but this is not the case. You can choose only by price, but it is better to remember that the materials must also be of high quality. Natural materials not only look more expensive, but are also much more environmentally friendly. When we are in the house, we breathe all the fumes and chemicals with which the materials are impregnated. Refuse plastic, oilcloth, choose plywood, ceramic tiles or wooden boards.

Although painted walls can be washed, you don't have to pay more for the wet cleaning option. Now there are many washable wallpapers that are much cheaper than high-quality paint. If you choose between paint and ceramic tiles, the former is much cheaper. This means that you don’t have to lay tiles in the bathroom, but paint the walls. Moreover, you need to choose moisture-resistant paint, because there is increased dampness in the room, due to which the simple coating will peel off and crack.

A suspended ceiling is not the cheapest replacement, especially since suspended ceilings eat up the height of the room. Water-based paint is suitable as a budget ceiling covering. In this case, the money saved can be spent on furniture or decor.

Wicker lampshades

Wicker items are more relevant today than ever. Chandeliers made of rattan and wicker will organically fit into the kitchen and living room in Art Nouveau, Provence or ethno style. They look incredibly stylish and beautiful. This simple and budget solution will help you save on renovating an apartment in a new building and will add warmth and comfort to any room in the house without expensive Italian chandeliers, fluorescent spots and other newfangled things.

Tricks from designers

How to make inexpensive cosmetic renovations in the kitchen? If you have already tidied up the ceiling, floor and walls, then it’s time for furniture. And then designers came up with some tricks that help save money. High-quality cabinets do not need to be completely replaced, just changing the facades is enough. Let the back and side walls remain old. To give your kitchen a completely new look, buy new handles. Even a different faucet or sink will give the room a completely new look.

Nowadays it is very fashionable to install suspended equipment, including plumbing equipment. A wall-hung bidet and toilet look much more expensive and make cleaning easier, but few people realize that this is not the only item that will have to be purchased. You will also need to purchase the installation and install it. The work should be carried out by professionals, because if installed incorrectly, the risk of leaks increases. You can buy a floor-standing toilet, and replace the bidet with a hygienic shower. The latter will cost much less and will be much more useful than a bidet.

How to quickly make repairs? If the area of ​​the apartment allows, then the balcony can be left cold, then the finishing work will be cheaper. On a loggia or balcony, you don’t need to replace the windows if they are in good condition. Sometimes it is enough to just insulate them, which is much cheaper. You cannot save on wiring on any budget, especially on a balcony. Poor quality materials can lead to short circuits, and it can be humid on an uninsulated balcony.

In order not to look for ways to make economical renovations in your apartment, you should listen to the advice of professionals. Designers have long said that built-in wardrobes are much cheaper than free-standing furniture. If you have a large living space, you can make your own dressing room. It will be quite cheap to build walls from plasterboard and screw in shelves and install brackets. Instead of sliding doors, you can use thick curtains. Choose them in the same color scheme as the interior or make them the accent of the room.

It is better to buy furniture not in boutiques or chain stores, but in markets. You can buy really worthwhile things for almost nothing and put them in order yourself. You can also find many advertisements for sale on used items websites. The furniture is being sold by restaurants and cafes that are forced to close. This will also significantly save your budget. You'll be able to repaint an old chair or cabinet, but you'll know that the piece has a story.

Instead of expensive designer items, look for homemade items that are made by yourself. You can even do artistic painting, stained glass or rugs yourself. Something can be replaced with similar items. For example, instead of decorative brocade pillows, place knitted pillows on the sofa. This way you will be sure that no one else will have something similar.

There are many photographs of beautiful interiors on social networks, and from them one can judge that the owners paid a considerable amount for the aesthetics. It seems to ordinary people that this will not work out with modest capabilities. Sometimes it's enough to play with light to create a feeling of expensive design. Lighting will turn a boring interior into a mysterious one, and interesting design solutions can look ordinary in ill-thought-out light. Before you start choosing lamps, think about how many light sources you need and what functions they should perform. Cutting additional channels for cables, buying chandeliers and built-in lamps means additional expenses, but if you still needed to change the wiring, then you won’t feel much of a difference in money. You can reduce the cost of repairs by buying regular lamps instead of built-in ones and placing floor lamps at the right points.

Budget renovation of a two-room apartment

How to make cheap renovations in an apartment

Based on the desire to save space in such housing, we propose to carry out a budget renovation of a 2-room apartment

, placing the following emphasis:

1. Gender All options are considered a little higher, and laminate is chosen as the optimal economical floor covering. But you have the right to choose any other one.

2. Bathroom. Changing the bathroom begins with replacing the shelves with more functional, but less voluminous ones. A wall-hung toilet model (discussed a little higher) allows you to save space, water consumption and improve the appearance of the room. Usually there is a good flush system and a double button for its operation. The barrel is walled up in the wall. But if a pipe bursts (God forbid!), you can turn off the flushing mechanism - there is also such a button. And there is no need to break the wall, as many owners who fear gusts of water believe.

3. Change of lighting system. It is especially useful if the chandeliers in a 2-room apartment are already 15-20 years old. In this case, if you want to carry out budget repairs, you should choose spotlights. They are cheaper and quite reliable.

4. Replacement of furniture. If we are talking about saving space, it is better to choose double beds for children or transformers; it will not be cheap, but it will be reliable, aesthetically pleasing and practical. If you want to replace something without purchasing anything new, you can paint or cover old furniture with film. But there is also a solution that will cost about 20,000 rubles, but will highlight the readiness to implement modern solutions if they are functional and good. Considering the small size of Khrushchev apartments, there’s definitely not a lot of space in a two-room apartment. Therefore, a bulky cabinet left over from the same times (often) can simply be thrown away. And a dressing room becomes a worthy replacement. In a 2-room apartment it is not possible to allocate 1.2-1.5 meters for it. But there is a chance to create a dressing room in the corner of the room. This visually saves space, and with an equal area allows you to create a spacious storage system for clothes and shoes.

Original ideas

How to make a beautiful renovation in an apartment (you can find photos of finished designs in the article) with modest finances? Society and social networks dictate their fashion, and, willingly or unwillingly, people obey it. In our country, modern interiors are rarely found, because there is a widespread belief that they are expensive. But there are many ideas that use cheap materials, but still look decent.

For lovers of a beautiful life on a limited budget, we will consider some methods in detail.

Planning and zoning

It is possible to think through the renovation of a living room in an apartment on your own without involving designers. There are numerous photo catalogs on the Internet with options for ready-made solutions for modern living rooms.

Please note that when planning a living room, it is necessary to provide for every detail.

The design will depend on several factors:

• room area;
• entrance to a balcony or loggia;
• presence of a fireplace;
• likelihood of combination with other premises.

In large rooms it makes sense to use functional zoning. The dining table should be located separately from the rest area. Foreign objects should not interfere with food intake. The workspace can be designated as a table with a laptop and a chair, placing them along the wall.

If you combine the hall and the balcony, there will be additional space for a small office in the niche by the window.

In a private house, you can combine a living room with a veranda or greenhouse. Children need to feel part of the family. Be sure to highlight a play area: this could be a small carpet and a rack with toys in the corner of the room.

The large space of country houses allows you to implement interesting ideas. The presence of a fireplace will create a special mood for guests and residents of the house. It is advisable to make it the main element of the entire setting.

If desired, you can organize an additional place for relaxation by placing a TV in front of the fireplace. This solution is suitable for a large family of four or more people.

The possibilities for city apartments in panel houses are severely limited. Every meter in a small space must be taken into account. The owners of Khrushchev apartments combine the living room with a kitchen or bedroom to increase the small area.

There are many other tricks and techniques to visually enlarge a room.

Decorative plaster

How to renovate a room on a budget if you don’t want to put up wallpaper? Use decorative plaster instead. It is especially suitable for families with pets or children. The plaster can withstand scratching and you can draw on it or glue plasticine on it. It removes any dirt without affecting the appearance.

Plaster is sold on different bases. For example, a mineral-based coating will last thirty years, a silicone-based coating will last sixty years, and polymer plaster can last a century. Even the best wallpaper cannot last that long; its maximum is twenty years.

For all its advantages, plaster is expensive, but among different compositions you can find inexpensive ones. Most often, textured coatings with different effects are chosen:

1. "Lamb." This is the name for a coating with small and large stone grains.
2. "Fur coat". The wall appears fleecy due to slight roughness.
3. "Bark beetle." The effect resembles corroded wood.

The price of plaster starts from 250 rubles per square meter.

Hall design in minimalist style

The minimalist design of the hall implies simplicity with maximum functionality. Light shades of walls and ceilings predominate here, mostly white or gray. The space divider is “black” contrast.

The interior is dominated by textures with natural colors:

• brick;
• stone;
• tree.

The interior of a hall in the style of “minimalism” is characterized by a floor in the form of:

• natural polished stone;
• self-leveling coating;
• light tiles.

Cabinet furniture for the living room of this style involves choosing metal fittings, laconic flat facades with polished or varnished wood. Doors with glass shelves, as well as a variety of glossy surfaces, are welcome.

Priority is given to multi-tiered structures with built-in drawers and transformable chairs. There should be plenty of daylight in the room!

Stretch ceiling

How to make repairs in a rented apartment cheaply? Compare the budget and the cost of building materials. Often people choose between painting the ceiling and stretching material.

In favor of a stretch ceiling, we can say that it is installed very quickly. Just a few hours - and a beautiful, smooth ceiling is ready. There is no dust or dirt, no preparatory work required. This method is suitable if a person is looking for how to make the cheapest renovations in an apartment. Maybe the suspended ceiling doesn’t seem cheap, then remember how long it will take to prepare for painting or whitewashing.

A fabric ceiling protects the room from leaks and floods, because all the water is concentrated in it and does not flow out. In order to drain the water, it is enough to make a small hole or call the team that installed the ceiling. Now a fabric ceiling costs 250 rubles per square meter, high-quality paint costs the same, so there is no point in paying more.

Country

A cozy rural flavor is combined in this style direction. It is a cozy place to relax from hard work and gain strength. There are no bright colors, cutting-edge materials or fancy furniture. Textiles occupy a special place and predominate in all rooms. These are tablecloths, blankets, curtains, rugs and chair covers. Indoor plants will fit perfectly into the interior.

Laminate

No plywood can compare with laminate in terms of strength. To make sure of this, let’s consider all types of floor coverings:

1. Solid wood boards. The service life is approaching fifty years, suitable for any interior. Disadvantages include dependence on room temperature and humidity. If you want to make cheap repairs in a one-room apartment, then this option is not for you, because a square meter of such coverage costs from 3 thousand rubles.
2. Parquet. Sold individually, allowing you to make any design. Used for at least fifty years, but provided that the subfloor is perfectly leveled. A square meter costs 3-5 thousand rubles.
3. Parquet boards are distinguished by the fact that they are already varnished and sanded. It lasts up to twenty years and costs accordingly - from 1200 rubles. per square meter.
4. Cork covering. It is pleasant and useful to walk on it: it is elastic and warm. The disadvantage is that it is easily damaged. Price - from a thousand rubles per square meter.
5. Laminate. It is a wear-resistant coating and is easy to install. Although laminate flooring lasts for twenty years, it is afraid of water, so it cannot be installed in wet rooms. A square meter costs from 300 rubles.
6. Natural linoleum. Easy to install, eco-friendly and warm. The service life is thirty years, but the coating is resistant to alkalis. The coating costs 700 rubles per square meter.
7. PVC linoleum. Can be with any pattern and any color. The coating is inexpensive, but can cause an allergic reaction due to the chemicals in the composition. The price starts from 200 rubles per square meter.
8. Carpet. A soft material for which you do not need to prepare a subfloor. The coating requires constant thorough cleaning because it attracts dust. Service life is five years. The price starts from 130 rubles per square meter.

Of everything available, it is better to buy laminate, because it is suitable in price and quality for the average budget. Its use allows you to renovate your apartment cheaply and beautifully.

Retro style hall design

The design of the hall in the “retro” style provides for the romanticization of the past, creating a serene and joyful image of it. The walls should be dressed in “wallpaper” of the beige spectrum. It is advisable to cover the floor with a laminate that imitates light wood boards. A floor carpet made in brown tones is required.

To decorate the ceiling, you can use stretch fabric or plasterboard with snow-white ceiling plinths.

Such a living room should be furnished with a pair of armchairs and a soft sofa. The main line of decor should also be evident in the design of furniture upholstery.

The TV can be hung on the wall by placing a light-colored wooden chest of drawers with high legs underneath it. On both sides of it you can place low cabinets with one drawer.

The central part of the room should be occupied by a coffee table placed on the carpet.

Design of the hall in the "Khrushchev"

Comfort and coziness can be created even in a Khrushchev building. To do this, you can resort to increasing the space of a small room by:

• mirrors;
• photo wallpaper;
• choosing light colors;
• additional lighting.

In the room you can place a sofa with a couple of armchairs, which it is advisable to choose in light colors and compact sizes. Also, when choosing interior items, you should take into account the severity of the lines and the accuracy of their placement among themselves in order to give the room comfort and airiness.

Hall design in Provence style

The Provence style in the design of the hall is characterized by the dominance of light bedding colors and decorative furniture. Placement of finished frescoes or images of cozy Provençal streets with floral motifs on the walls is welcome. The shelves are complemented by decorative ceramics using the decoupage technique.

Decorative living room furniture should have curved legs with carved patterns. The floor should be tiled, never covered with carpet.

It is advisable to choose light colors with watercolor floral patterns for the upholstery of wooden furniture. The ideal option for decorating a room would be to fill it with furniture made using the “artificial aging” technique, imitating scuffs, scratches and chips.