The Best Way to Furnish Your First Apartment After Graduation

You made it! You’ve graduated, and you’re starting a new life with a real job, a real apartment all your own—some serious adulting. However, you’re working for an entry-level salary, and probably paying off student loans and credit cards. You may not be staying where you are for too long, either. So how do you get set up on a budget?

Here are some tips on the best way to furnish your first apartment after graduation so you can live comfortably and happily without breaking your budget.

Furniture Rental

Especially since you might move before too long, renting furniture is a great option for your first apartment after graduation. Furniture rental allows you to select a full apartment of beautiful, clean furniture that goes together—and pay much less. Plus, it gets delivered to your new apartment right when you need it, and picked up as soon as you don’t.

Fabric Store Fashion

If you can’t paint your walls to add flair, hit the fabric store. For just a few dollars per yard, you can find fabrics that you love to cover accent walls, tapestry-style. You can also spruce up older furniture or bedding with splashy, colorful fabrics. Need some colorful accents in the kitchen or by your desk? Cover an old cork board with a piece of fabric and trim it with ribbon or tape for a cool new look.

Recycle Your Décor

A great source of funky décor is the estate sale and yard sale scene. Check online listings every week to see what’s happening on the weekend. You’ll find everything from wall art to rugs, and it’ll be priced to move.

Au Naturale

Bring a little bit of outside into your apartment to make it your own. Hang plants with swag hooks, or place them on plant stands or tables. If you get a lot of sun, try a nearly-impossible-to-kill cactus garden. If you’re planning on cooking in your new place, get an herb garden growing—also a money saver! It looks beautiful and smells even better, and you can use the herbs in your dishes.

Get Painting

Sure, you may not be allowed to paint your walls, especially not that cobalt blue color you’re craving. But you can definitely paint an old wood nightstand you pick up at a thrift store that color, and it’ll look interesting and cool when you do. You can also buy cheap, unfinished photo frames and paint them to add lots of visual interest to your walls. Hang photos or posters in them, or even unexpected items like dried plants and flowers, doilies, or a family heirloom.

Family Pride

Speaking of heirlooms, don’t forget to show your family pride when you’re decorating. Old family photos make dull walls an interesting focal point. A wooden basket with baby shoes in it can be a conversation piece. Your great-grandmother’s old manual typewriter or sewing machine, or grand-dad’s antique phonograph, or even some old vinyl records are amazing decorative items if you can get them out of your parents’ attic—and they’re absolutely free, too.

Tying It All Together

Your first apartment doesn’t have to look like college, the sequel. You can create a space that feels like home and stay well within a budget by following a few simple tips. And don’t forget, if you want more advice on the best way to furnish your first apartment after graduation, the team at Fashion Furniture is here to help you create a gorgeous apartment that fits your budget. Give us a call!