Trying to spruce up your home on a budget? Despite the common misconception that an eco-friendly and exquisite living space is costly, there are a few ways you can make your living space green and still not break the bank. We partnered with GoHaus for the final part of our 4 part series on interior design tips to bring you 4 creative ways to achieve an eco-friendly home on a budget!

 Four? Yes, Part IV. If you’ve missed:

Part I (The ABCs of Designing a Small Space on a Tight Budget)

Part II, Which of These Four Interior Design Styles Best Describes You? or

Part III( The 4 Must-Have Essentials for Your First Big Girl Get Together),  then make sure you go back and get some really great and easy-to-understand information about small space design on a budget. I feel like I just got a BA in Big Girl Home Improvement. 🙂 

Also, If you are looking to spend your money with a company that is socially conscious, progressive, and thoughtful, then I highly recommend working with Go Haus for your next home improvement. 

Enough of my plug. But seriously, #whereyoushopmatters. 

Onward,

Kara

1. Bring on the greens.

Adding indoor plants into your home not only provide an invigorating scenery but also promotes the health of your living space by ensuring proper air circulation and by filtering. Depending on the rest of your decor, carefully chosen plants can merge into the overall design theme and color scheme of your space. You don’t necessarily have to go for plants that are green, there are a wide array of options to choose from when it comes to indoor plants! Succulents, colorful flowers, and plants with attractive leaves can instantly add a touch of elegance and sophistication to your living space. Regardless of how your space is set up, you can still nurture nature’s lovely decor in creative ways to create a breathtaking indoor garden that will make your home attractive.

If really want to improve the air quality and add plants that also remove harmful chemicals from the room look towards lilies, bamboo palm or gerbera daisy; all of these are known for their improved air filtering and circulation properties. Most indoor plants are extremely affordable to buy and also easy to maintain, going green and going easy on the wallet!

Don’t stop at indoor plans. Even with a garden, you’ll see these benefits as well as making your modular home attractive (for all you prefab owners out there).

image source = HomeDesigning

2. Use Energy-efficient lighting and sunlight 

Sometimes all a space needs to make it more exceptional and exquisite is a little bit more lighting! An open well-lit space brings out all the different design elements and colors you have incorporated into your home. Lighting your home can be affordable and eco-friendly. Here are creative ways to light up your home

• Let sunlight in! The easiest most cost effective way to bring lighting in to any room is to use the free lighting we all have access to! Create skylights or open shades in rooms that don’t have a lot of light and remove those dark, dusty blinds in lieu of beautifully designed curtains that you can open up completely over windows and sliders to let maximum light in!

If you have lamps, wall lights or even chandeliers, opt for compact fluorescent energy saving light bulbs! Not only will this reduce your electric bill every month (which is reason enough for most of us) but it can prevent harmful emission of chemicals and pollutants that most light bulbs emit. Shop smart and look at the labels when shopping for light bulbs and always opt for the energy-efficient option.

3. Use furniture made from natural woods!

Move away from plastic chairs and coffee tables. A lot of “modern furniture” nowadays is made from harmful plastics that contain VOCs and other toxic ingredients. Opt for chairs, tables and shelving made from natural, organic woods. Not only is this furniture better for the environment, but most of these pieces will last a lifetime compared to the cheaply made, mass produced furniture sold in most department store. Look at antique stores, second hand furniture shops and even goodwill to find deals on these types of pieces! You will be surprised at how much you can get with not very much at most of these places, stay away from the big box chains here and you won’t have to break the pocket book to deck out your apartment!

image source = GoHaus Engineered Oak Floors

4.  Eco-friendly hardwood flooring

Hardwood flooring (specifically renewable and eco-friendly species) has recently experienced a surge of popularity and is now featured in many homes and commercial spaces. Due to its rising popularity, there have been numerous developments over the years to make hardwood floors more environmentally friendly and cost-effective. Most companies now sell engineered hardwood as opposed to solid, which cuts down the amount of actual real wood used to make the floor as engineered boasts an HDF core with a wear layer of the real wood on top. Not only does this allow species like oak, maple, and acacia wood floors to be more renewable, engineered floors actually are less susceptible to moisture and the buckling and expansion that comes along with it. Apart from being extremely durable and easy to install, eco-friendly hardwood flooring also provides important insulation benefits. Most species now have unstained options with a natural oil coating to give your home that organic, modern look and come in easy to install tongue and groove connection to cut down on installation costs!

There was a time when the term Eco-friendly evoked images of bland, boring and unattractive materials. Thankfully, it is no longer the case today. Manufacturers have significantly stepped up their game by developing a myriad of Eco-friendly design options to pick from. So if you are looking to be a better citizen to the environment while creating an amazing space, implement these easy, budget-friendly tips!

If you’re interested in exquisite, eco-friendly design (on a budget), visit GoHaus to find out more information. 

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