Finding Deals in Home Decor

I love a good bargain, especially when it comes to home decor. It’s fun to furnish and decorate my home without spending a small fortune.

So, what are the tricks for getting good deals in home decor?

Sign Up for Emails

Subscribe to get emails from your favorite stores, whether it be a big box store or a local thrift store. Those emails often contain the stores’ latest deals, sometimes including coupons. Yes, those emails do tend to fill up your inbox, but if you are looking for deals, you can often score with the discounts or coupons in those emails.

Most of the big box stores and other, larger stores allow you to subscribe to emails from them, but don’t overlook local, smaller stores, including thrift stores. For example, I have subscribed to emails from my favorite local home furnishings consignment store; they send out an email every once in a while with specials or clearance sales.

I also get emails from my favorite local salvage store and the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store, both of which include current sale inventory and notices of special sales.

Clipping Coupons

Coupons are a great way to save money.  You can find stores’ coupons on their websites, through discount programs like Groupon and the like, and even just in your local paper.  For example, Michaels regularly has a “40% off one regularly-priced item” coupon in our local paper (and on its mobile app). Clip that and you’ve got yourself a bargain!

Patience Is a Virtue

Buying off-season will save you money on home decor, especially holiday decor. For example, toward the end of the summer, stores are trying to get rid of all their summer merchandise to make way for fall merchandise. It’s the perfect time, then, to buy summer decor that was too expensive during the beginning and middle of summer. You just have to be patient and wait for the sale. I recently found some outdoor lights I had been eyeing for some time for 75% off, just because it’s the end of the season.

This works especially well for the holiday season, when we have special observances seemingly back to back. For example, I’ve seen that – even now – stores have priced Halloween, Thanksgiving, and other fall decor 40-50% off to make room for winter/Christmas merchandise coming in. We haven’t even had the fall holidays yet – so it’s your time to score some deals and still decorate in time for the fall holidays.

Thrift Shopping: Economical and Green

Thrift stores are becoming more and more popular as sources for home decor and furniture. One thing I’ve noticed is that, since thrifting has become more of a trend, the prices at thrift stores have gone up considerably.

That said, there are plenty of bargains to be had! The thrift store near us has a 50% off day on Monday, where everything is half-off, and then it offers a 50% discount on merchandise with a certain color price tag the rest of the week.

I also want to talk about salvage stores, including, for example, Habitat for Humanity’s Re-Store.

If you have a Habitat for Humanity Re-Store near you, you can find furniture and other home items there, as well as wood, tools, toilets and bathroom fixtures, and much more. The best part? Sales benefit Habitat for Humanity.

For bargains, even at the Re-Store where the prices are already low, our Re-Store has days where certain merchandise is 20% off – some days it’s cabinets; some days, tools; some days, you can choose your bargain. You can sign up for an email to find out about special discounts available.

I also love shopping at a local, non-profit salvage yard. The money they make goes back into the community, and they keep building materials and furniture out of landfills. My favorite salvage yard has a “free” section, where you can just take whatever is there for free. I got these vintage bocce balls there, as well as samples of tile, wallpaper, and wood for projects.

Thrifting is green, too; it’s one of the best forms of recycling. Thrift and salvage stores keep unwanted materials and furnishings out of landfills and price them well so that someone else can buy and reuse them.

The best trick for thrift shopping? Get to know the people who work at the thrift store. They are often the best source for upcoming sales or discounts – if you’re lucky, and friendly, you can sometimes get the scoop before anyone else!

Outlet Stores

If you have outlet stores near you, you can score some deals on furnishings and decor you see in your favorite catalogs. Our living room sectional and chairs all came from the nearby Pottery Barn outlet store.

Outlet stores are fantastic sources for bargains, although you have to check back now and then because the stock changes so frequently. The other thing you should be careful about when shopping at outlets is that, sometimes, the merchandise is damaged in some way. Inspect the item before you buy it and, if it is damaged, make sure that you can fix it.

For example, our living room chairs, above, came from the Pottery Barn outlet and, when we bought them, they had scratches on the legs. With a little stain, though, I could cover up the scratches and now they blend in with the rest of the wood.

Outlet store “malls” often have coupon books for additional bargains, so look for that before you start your shopping there!

Dollar Stores

What? The dollar store? Yes – you can find dishes, candlesticks, and other home decor items – especially for holidays – at the dollar store. For example, I made these mugs for Christmas from dollar store mugs and a sharpie pen.

I hope this has provided you with some ideas for finding fun home decor bargains! I’d love to know your favorite sources for home decor deals – let me know in the comments!