Whether you live in an apartment complex with strict regulations on painting your white walls, or if you just plan on moving soon and don’t want to have to put up with the hassle of painting, you can still create visually interesting walls without breaking open a can of paint. Here’s how:
Wall stickers
These can range from a set of smaller stickers that you can arrange in your own patterns on your walls, to over-sized murals made to take up an entire wall by itself. Some are re-usable and some are not, but they will not damage your walls coming off. Wall stickers can range from a small pack for around $20 to $100-200 for very large images. Check out blik for professionally designed wall stickers, or RoomMates for more options, including licensed images.
Wallpaper
Wallpaper doesn’t have to be ugly and out-dated – there are plenty of fun, modern styles to choose from these days. Sherwin-Williams has a line of easy-to-remove wallpaper perfect for renters, with hundreds of cute designs.
Wallpaper in general will take at least a few hours to put up if you want it to look even, so be aware that it can be a time-consuming process.
Artwork
You can buy affordable prints at Art.com or ArtPrints.com (though framing gets expensive quickly), or original paintings by up-and-coming artists on Etsy.com. You can also mix and match similarly-styled paintings and group them together on one wall for a unique but stylish art grouping.
Framed pictures abound at resale shops and thrift stores – you can repaint your frames to make them all match, and cut any artwork or photos you have to fit in these frames.
Large scale prints have a huge impact but can be hundreds of dollars. If you can’t afford the price tag, consider grouping similar themed prints in a grid pattern.
Wall Quotes
Hanging inspirational wall quotes can provide an uplifting atmosphere and provide a constant affirmation of something that is important to you. Best of all, you can bring the quotes with you to your next home.
Hanging Objects
You can hang paper or fabric from clotheslines or wire attached between two walls, or from wall clips meant to be removed without damaging the wall. Popular objects to hang this way include quilts, flags, maps and unframed photos.
Fabric
One of my favorite options, you can apply starch to fabric and then press it onto the wall you’d like to cover with starch. Depending on the price of the fabric you use, this can be a very cheap option, and the cloth is completely re-usable after a round in the washing machine. For full directions on applying fabric to your walls, check out this article on Rental Decorating.com.
