Home Office On a Budget: Coastal Theme Makeover For Under $350

I wanted to give my home office a facelift, but wanted it to still be cozy. I have worked from home for over a decade and spend a lot of time in this room. The budget was tight, so I needed to figure something out that didn’t cost too much, yet would still make an impact. I’ve had a picture of the ocean hanging on the wall for years so why not use that as inspiration for this makeover of my home office on a budget.

The total spent on this project was under $350 for paint, wallpaper, new curtains and rods, and decor.

Paint, Total Cost = $11

I’m such a fan of “oops paint” from Home Depot. All home improvement and paint stores have discounted paint, some call it “mistint paint”. It’s paint that has been returned or mis-tinted. But is still full and reduced for quick sale. Often times if I need more than one gallon, I’ll find a couple that are similar shades and mix them together in a five gallon bucket. How To Save Big On Your Next Paint Project gives you all of the details on this incredible money saver.

For this room I would need just over a gallon. I found a pretty grey shade for only $9 for the gallon in the Home Depot oops paint section. The grey was a bit darker than I wanted, so I added a quart of paint that was white, also purchased from the oops section for only $2. Easily I mixed the two together in a bucket. The white lightened up the grey perfectly.

When mixing paint like this, be sure to ensure you get the same finishes. For example, the quart and the gallon I used were both eggshell finish. How To Pick The Perfect Paint Finish For Your Room gives you the scoop on which paint finish works best.

Easy Coastal Theme Home Office Remodel - The Daily DIY — 2

Wallpaper, Total Cost = $67.88

Who doesn’t love accent walls! This home office had a wall that stuck out a bit, so I decided to make it an accent wall. Wallpaper is such a great, low cost way to add a pop of color to your room. This Beachwood Vinyl Pre-Pasted Wallpaper worked great for the coastal theme. Find step by step instructions on how to hang wallpaper here.

Curtains & Rods, Total Cost = $99.57

White tab top curtains would look great for this room, and Wayfair had some for about $12 for each panel for the size I needed.

For the rods, I found these cute rope knot rods on Amazon. Being a huge fan of filtering for “used” items on Amazon, I was able to get one of them for 40% off! Amazon “used” items are customer returns, and there is nothing wrong with them. You can still return if you choose, so there is no risk. It’s an easy way to get some extra discounts on things you need.

Hang Your Curtains Like a Designer gives you tips and tricks on where to place your curtain rods for a more dramatic look.

Decor, Total Cost = $169.74

More things from Amazon “used”, an anchor table lamp for 20% off, this beach pillow cover for 30% off, and a two pack of pillow covers for 12% off.

Hobby Lobby is also a great place to get themed decor. They have 50% off sales that rotate every few weeks. One week I went and got wall decor for 50% off. Then the very next week the table decor was 50% off. I was able to find six knick knacks and five things to hang on the wall for this home office on a budget for $115.51.

Lastly for my home office on a budget, I needed some new picture frames. Since I had a bag of sea shells and sea glass from a trip to Puerto Rico and Florida a few years back, it was easy to hot glue those to some old frames I had. By far this was my favorite part of this project. Not only was it free, but I finally got to put those shells to good use.

If you’re curious about the flooring pictured in this room, it is Lifeproof luxury vinyl plank in the color Tupelo Oak that I installed 4 years ago and is holding up perfect! Check out the review I have for it. The Blue/Grey sofa is from Best Choice Products.