Find what speaks to you
Take a look through home decorating magazines or peruse decorating sites online and see what inspires you. You can then either clip pictures or pin ideas and collect them to review. After a while you will start to notice some trends in the things that peak your interest, whether it is common colors, styles, or patterns. You'll often find that one thing that really strikes you, and that can be the starting point of your decorating plan.
Look at the space you have
Does your apartment have high ceilings or low ones? A long single wall or a few small rooms? No matter how much you love long drapes, they just won't work in a room with very low ceilings. Conversely, if you have a room with average height ceilings, you can trick the viewer's eye by putting long curtains in above the window frame to draw the eye upwards. It adds an air of elegance in the process.
You can pick up some great treasures at discount stores, charity thrift shops, and the classified ads. This will give you all kinds of ways to customize your décor. A can of paint or some stencils will unleash your creativity and give you the satisfaction of knowing you created that look using a solid piece of vintage furniture. If your budget won't let you decorate your entire apartment at once, you can choose one room to focus on and make it perfect, then move on as your budget allows.
Draw a plan
If you wish, you can draw a layout of your apartment and sketch out your decorating ideas. This will give you a roadmap of what you will need to buy as compared to what you already have. There are often free plans you can download online and print off, then fill out exactly how you want your new apartment to be decorated.
Think minimal
The minimalist look is not plain or empty, but rather it's a clean look with exceptional wire maintenance of home entertainment systems, mid-century furniture designs, and modern colors. A common theme often runs through a minimalist look, focusing on a color palette or perhaps designing around a focal point like a wall fireplace. If you want to go with a minimalist design, you may want to consult with a designer who can help you be classic and interesting instead of austere and boring.
Decorating is part finding what speaks to you and part making it all work in the space you have. You should spend the bulk of your funds on classic furniture pieces in neutral colors that will last you a long time and think of them as your base investment on which you will build your decorating. Most of all, decorating shouldn't be stressful. Relax, have some fun with it, and you'll find that your style comes through.
