Decorating A Boho Living Room with $1500 or Less

Do you want a fresh look for your living room on a budget? Or maybe you have just moved into a new place and your stuff didn’t come with you for one reason or another. 

I recommend checking out Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist for steals before you start shopping retail.  But it doesn’t help you to see my used finds since you can’t get the same thing.  This living room is full of items you can buy retail when this post goes live. 

Thanks to online shopping, your choices for staying inside a small budget are limitless.  I’ve got six living room options that will be coming to you in the next few weeks in different styles. The first one is boho/bohemian. Stay tuned if you like farmhouse, modern, traditional, coastal and industrial which will be featured in the days to come.

Fundamentals of decorating a Living Room

There are rules to follow when you are decorating a living room.   First, you need to think about an inspiration piece for your living room.  This will help you decide what color palette to use.  Each of these designs has an inspiration piece. 

If you haven’t heard of this idea of using an inspiration piece, read this article.  The plan below has one item in the room that is the inspiration for the colors.  It’s normally a rug or a piece of art.   If you like the style, but not the colors, you can easily switch out the thing I’ve identified as the inspiration piece and make the color palette your own.  These aren’t the expensive items in the room.

Second, the room has to have comfortable seating for you and guests.  For most people, this means a sofa. Sofas can be expensive.  Stick with a neutral fabric for high priced items because you keep them for longer and you can get tired of bold prints or trendy colors.

You probably need seating that isn’t on the sofa.  Here’s where you can throw in a chair with a  bolder fabric.   If you watch TV you also need something to hold your electronics and a plug.  Sometimes if you live in an older place where you can’t add an outlet, this can really control where you can put your TV. 

Third, once you have seating arranged in your space you can decide what type of rug fits your space.  You want it to be large enough that all of your furniture can at least have legs on the furniture.  There are so many inexpensive places for rugs now that you can afford to get one that is large enough and it really makes your room feel cozier.  I used an 8×10 rug in the rooms below. 

Fourth is window coverings.  I like to get the rug first because there are more choices for fabrics in drapes than there are rugs so you should pick out curtains that complement your furniture and rug. 

Finally, you can add the more fun things to  your space like lighting, art and accent pieces like pillows, plants and chatchkis.  These are the fun things that really add your personal touch to the room.  . 

Each plan I will share over the next few days/weeks includes all of these items that are fundamental to a living room.  If you don’t like one thing, you can swap it out for something that speaks more to your personal style.

Boho Living Room for $1500

I wanted to start off with boho because I’m always inspired by Emily Henderson’s blog, which I think has a very boho vibe to it.  I love to read it, but can’t usually get close to purchasing most of the things because they are out of my price range (unless they are one of a kind flea market finds, which I also can’t get). 

If you like a Boho living room that means you like your space to have lots of plants and a worldly style.  Nothing is too matchy, matchy.  It looks relaxed and hip, without trying too hard. 

For this room I’ve chosen a bargain leather sofa and a graphic rug. 

  • Target Lewes Sofa – This sofa is on clearance for $440, however there are several other faux leather sofas in the same price range.
  • Overstock Safavieh Monaco Vintage 8×11 rug for $183 – This is the inspiration piece for this room. That means the colors are pulled from the colors in this rug. If you don’t like this rug, Safavieh has lots of different color combinations that are in the same price range. The primary colors are this pinkish red and an indigo blue that you will see repeated.
  • Walmart Better Homes and Garden Woven Stripe Pattern Drapes – These curtains come in several different colors, cream, white, indigo, grey and more. They have a shear look so they wouldn’t provide much privacy but I like the look. They also come in different lengths, depending on your needs. They are only $18.
  • Walmart Better Homes and Gardens television stand – This comes in three colors, grey blue and a weathered brown. It’s only $183. I like the blue because it picks up the blue in the rug.
  • Ikea Buskbo Wicker Accent chairs – These wicker accent chairs are from Ikea and they are only $130. Wicker is very popular in boho-style rooms. The budget affords two. Wicker is very popular in 2019 and these chairs are much less expensive than in other retailers. Ikea has a few wicker styles to choose from.
  • Black Target lamp – This Threshold lamp is only $60. Floor lamps are necessary in almost every room because they can provide a lot of light.
  • Etsy World Map in Watercolor – Maps work in a boho style room because many times there are items that look like they come from around the world. This item comes in many sizes. The price is for the larges size, 24×36 is $92 (unframed). You can get this poster sized frame at Target. I love the Watercolor because it is a softer feel. Etsy is my favorite place to shop for art, but it can be overwhelming if you don’t narrow your search down to a subject matter.
  • Pier 1 cream striped pillow – Pier1 has great deals on pillows. This room could use a few more, but those are things you can add when you see deals. I would add a few indigo or redish pink accent pillows. These pillows have lots of texture without having lots of color. They are only $14.
  • Fejka plant from Ikea – Ikea has great deals on fake plants. This one is only $40.

If you want to see a different style of living room in this same price range, let me know in the comments. Otherwise, next up will be farmhouse.

Do you want to redecorate your living room in a boho style but you don't have the budget?  Here's a complete bohemian style living room for under $1500

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2 Comments

  1. I just moved into a 3 room apartment DOWNSIZING my kids are grown I AM divorced I saved some money finally for furniture ( had just bought a set 2 years ago did not fit) I need help I do not want to make a mistake I cannot afford when it comes to decorating . Place is very small but bright could b cheerful do not no were to begin I did see a sectional I also like a Carmel leather sofa help

    1. Karen,

      I would love to help you. Can you tell me the dimensions of your room or send me some photos? Do you like the boho style?

      Andrea

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