We all can have a cleaner and more harmonious home at a fair price. This can be achieved by getting rid of clutter, proper placement of items and paying attention to what's on your walls and doors. My name is Krystal Brown and I run a blog entitled “Freedom in Frugality”. In this quick article, I am going to teach you how to have a more pleasant looking home for pennies. If you find this article useful, please subscribe to my blog at https://krystalbrownblog.wordpress.com/. I pledge to keep your email address private. Now, let's get started.

The first order of business is getting rid of clutter. If you haven't worn something in a year, you aren't likely to start wearing it. Now is the time to get rid of things like old purses, shoes and kitchen equipment you know you won't get around to using. Place your items on the free section of Craigslist. You can also give away the items on Freecycle. Freecycle is a list where people can give away and receive free items. If you need something, you post a message detailing what you need. If you have something to give away, you make a post telling about what you have to offer. I subscribe to their email list and everyday I get a newsletter telling me what is being offered. I have received free sheets for a new twin bed I purchased just by posting a request on Freecycle. The sheets were almost new. I simply washed them in hot water and they have been a fixture in my home every since. I have also given away a lot on Freecycle including clothing I had not worn in a long time.

Next, combine style and functionality by hanging needed items on your walls and doors using Command Damage-Free Strips and “over the door” hangers. They have both at my local Dollar Tree. I put the Command Damage-Free strips on my walls to hang everything from keys to shower caps. I use over the door hangers to hang up my purses, umbrellas and scarves. This keeps needed items at my fingertips and also reduces clutter. I use the hanging strips on my front door as well. I have about 4 strips in strategic places on my front door. Every season, I hang different decorations on the strips. My door is decorated differently for every season and all of the decorations are purchased from the Dollar Tree because they don't need to last a long time—they just need to last for a season or even just a month. On Halloween, I had a felt scarecrow and some felt pumpkins. For Christmas, I had a wreath and some golden angels and doves. For Valentine's Day, I had a “Happy Valentine's Day” sign with several hearts hanging from the strips. If they don't have the Command brand of strips, they are likely to have another good brand like VELCRO. I don't buy “generic” or “off brand” strips because even though I change out the decorations frequently, the strips themselves have to last season after season. So, if they don't have Command strips or another brand name, I simply go to Dollar General or Family Dollar instead of Dollar Tree. Dollar General and Family Dollar are low priced as well, but they have more brand names.

My next piece of advice is this—everything in your home needs a “home”. Don't leave keys or mail just sitting around on counter tops and tables. Get some decorative baskets and make sure that everything—from remote controls to paper bills—is in a basket. These baskets can be metal, plastic or wood. Get several glass vases from a dollar store. Use them on your bathroom sink to reduce clutter. Fill one vase with cotton balls, another with make up swabs and so on. All homes automatically look better when everything is in its place. You can use colored mesh laundry bags for stuffed toys and other things that are too big for baskets.

The last step is decorating our walls. Buy a dollar store calendar and about 5 $1 picture frames. Choose five of your favorite calendar pictures and put the pictures in the frames. Hang the frames on your wall and you have several beautiful pieces of wall art for next to nothing. I also use silver “wall clings” from the Dollar Tree on my walls. They have inspirational sayings or some are just pretty to look at—like wall clings in the shape of flowers or vines. Just follow the package directions. I also put up greeting cards on my bedroom doors. I use birthday and holiday cards that I've received for this purpose. Put a little tape on the back of the cards and stick them on your doors. You have just used something that you probably were going to throw away anyway to make your home look nicer!

Having a more beautiful and organized home does not have to be expensive at all. You just have to be aware of what you hang on your walls, reduce clutter and make sure that everything in your home has a place. You also have to shop at the right stores. All of the items I wrote about can be purchased at discount stores such as Dollar Tree, Dollar General, Family Dollar, Roses', Ollie's' and TJ Maxx. I hope this article was useful to you! If so, please consider subscribing to “Freedom in Frugality” at https://krystalbrownblog.wordpress.com.

Guest Contributor, Krystal Brown