If you’re like me, you want a Southern Living magazine-worthy home, decorated perfectly, but also cozy and family-friendly. If you’re like me, you don’t have a ton of extra money to spend on decorating your home. Let me show you some ways to add character to your home, by using things you can find lying around outside, repurposing cheap finds, shopping at discount stores, and even making some things yourself.

Let’s start in the kitchen, the heart of the home…

Picture this island without anything on it – boring, right?!? All browns, no color. But, add a cute dish towel ($3 from Target), a mason jar full of wildflowers picked from the side of the road (free), and a cute little turquoise ceramic bird ($6 from local store – Beehive in Ruston, LA), and for less than $10 that boring island is transformed into a bright and welcoming area.

Another way to add color and warmth is to add rugs. I know rugs can get pricey, but if you take the time to shop around, you can usually find one that won’t break your budget. There are many websites with cheap rugs, and discount stores like T.J. Maxx and Marshall’s always have some really unique ones for good prices.

These runners are usually fairly cheap, and fit perfectly in kitchens.

Another good place to find unique decorations is your local junk store. We have several in my area, and I love to stop in and look around. You never know what you may find! I had been coveting an antique aqua-colored food scale like this one for a while, but they were all over $50, WAY out of my price range! So you can imagine how excited I was to find this one at my local junk store for only $10! They were practically giving it away!

These sugar and flour canisters are actually glass cookie jars from Walmart that I labeled using scrapbook letter stickers, and the chalkboard was $6 from Hobby Lobby. I like being able to change out what is said on the little chalkboard, whether it is a Bible verse, the week’s menu, or any reminders for the family.

One of the hardest areas to decorate is above the kitchen cabinets. When it comes to this area, my philosophy is “less is more.” If the entire tops of the cabinets were filled up, I think it would make the space look smaller and just plain cluttered. (It looks like I need to take my own advice and apply to the countertops! Maybe I will do some de-cluttering this weekend!)

The main thing to remember when decorating your kitchen is to make it inviting to YOURSELF. If you have to be in there to cook, wash dishes, and put up groceries, a warm and colorful kitchen may just make those tasks a little more enjoyable.

Now on to the living room…

We have several things in this room that we actually FOUND outside and used to decorate – can you spot any of them in this picture?!?

This beautiful piece of wood we found in the woods, and it is now sitting on top of our mantel. And yes – you are looking at a wasp’s nest. You may not can tell from this picture, but it is HUGE! I would have never thought to put a wasp’s nest indoors, until I saw a picture in a fancy architecture magazine with million-dollar homes using them as decorations! (No one was harmed in obtaining this nest – we waited until winter to get it when all the wasps were gone!)

Deer antlers are another thing we have plenty of around here. Our entire family hunts, and we always save the antlers. Besides just setting them out on shelves, you can also repurpose them into other things, like jewelry holders or curtain tie backs. These two on the right we actually found in the woods behind our house. (Deer shed their antlers every year so that bigger ones can grow.) And speaking of deer…

This is a really unique piece you won’t find in a store. This is our window behind our breakfast table, and we needed something to go above it to break up the boring space between the window and the ceiling. We had all of these deer skulls saved from our hunts (the one in the middle is mine!), and my husband actually came up with the idea of mounting them all on the same piece of distressed wood. We got the barnwood for free from a local salvage company (it was too short for them to use), and just so we didn’t mess it up, we got our taxidermist to mount them on the board for us. He was so pleased with how it turned out, he told us he was going to do the same thing at his house!

 

A great way to add color is to use throw pillows. They are cheap, and easier to change out than furniture when you get tired of a certain color. Pick a neutral color couch or chair, and any accent color you choose will always match. The chair on the right did not always look this cute. In fact, it was hideous. I found it at my local junk store, sitting in the corner, waiting to be rescued. It was brown, very scratched up, and the seat was burgundy and hunter green with several rips. (I apologize for not having a “before” picture of it, but trust me, you’re not missing much!) Even though this chair had seen better days, I took it home, mainly because it was only $10. I unscrewed the cushion and recovered it with a curtain ($12 at Walmart – same thickness as upholstery fabric but much cheaper) and staple gun, painted the wood this cream color, and added a $5 throw pillow I found on clearance. Now this pitiful chair looks like a $100 piece of furniture!

My absolute favorite thing in my living room, though, is THIS…COFFEE…TABLE. Isn’t it beautiful?!? Well, it’s ok if you don’t agree with me. My husband hates it! But since his hunting and fishing decorations are everywhere throughout our house, I get to also have some “girlie” things. This is an old coffee table I found at – you guessed it – a junk store. (I told you we have a ton of them around here!) It’s solid wood, and that is iron inlaid in the middle. It is sturdy enough for my 7-year-old son to climb on it, extremely unique in its shape and details, and was already distressed and painted this seafoam green when I found it! And the best part? It was only $30!

Accent tables are also a good way to add charm, and some unique and inexpensive ones can be found at garage sales, junk/thrift stores, and online. (This cute little chalkboard sign was handmade by my friend Danielle, who is very talented and makes a variety of inspirational signs. You can visit her shop at imperfectdust.etsy.com., and follow her on instagram @IMPERFECTDUST.)

One of my favorite things in my house is this little doily on my kitchen table. It may be small, and it may have more than one stain on it, but it is very special. This was made by my husband’s great-great-grandmother, and it is still in our family. Using family heirlooms to decorate is a great way to remember family members who are no longer with us, and to pass on stories about their lives to your children.

Now let’s move on to the bedroom…

I looked for months for the perfect headboard, and could not find one I liked that I could afford. I looked on Pinterest at some DIY headboards, but the materials needed for them were pricey as well. Then one day, while browsing through Hobby Lobby, I found this on the clearance aisle…

Who needs a headboard when you can find a cool distressed metal wall-hanging for only $25?!? Not only is it unique and beautiful, but it leaves plenty of wall to be seen, making the space seem a little bigger. (Bedding from Pottery Barn and monogrammed pillow from Ballard Designs.)

When it came to a rug big enough to fit under a king bed, the prices were outrageous, so I found this remnant carpet piece at Lowe’s for less than $80. The trunk was $30 at Target, and is a good place to store picture albums and blankets.

Since the master bathroom is visible from our bedroom, I kept the same neutral and blue shades in here. This chair at my vanity is one of my favorite finds! The fabric is the same color blue as in my bedding, and the chair legs are the same espresso finish of my cabinets, so it looks like it was custom made for this room. I found it at T.J. Maxx (can you tell I go to T.J. Maxx alot?!?) and it was not expensive at all.

A cheap way to add charm to your bathroom is to get some really cute handsoap – you can find these pretty soaps at most discount stores for under $5, and they can make your bathroom vanity go from plain and boring to fancy and colorful.

 

And while we are on the subject of bathrooms, let’s go upstairs to the kids’ bathroom…

This is a very small bathroom, so I kept it simple in here. Luckily, we have a linen closet in the hall just outside of this room, because there’s not much storage in here.

I saw this “DON’T FORGET TO BE AWESOME” sign online and wanted it for their bathroom, but it was about $40 – waaaaaay too much! So I typed it on my computer in the same font/colors, printed it on regular paper and framed it – exact same sign for FREE!

The halls of a house often get ignored, but halls are a great place to hang pictures, make a gallery wall, or display a pretty runner.

Our hall upstairs also happened to be wide enough to squeeze in a small desk for the kids, leaving more space in their bedrooms.

And speaking of kids’ bedrooms…

This is my son Cash’s baseball-themed room, and here is my daughter Allyson’s room…

You can read more about how I decorated her room on one of my previous blog posts, “Allyson’s Room.” On the wall next to her vanity you will see a deer skull spraypainted gold and repurposed into a jewelry holder – very unique and cute!

The last room in my house I want to share with you is a room usually forgotten in the decorating process – the laundry room. But with as much time as we ladies spend in there, why wouldn’t we want it to be cheery and inviting?

These pictures of my children (even though they are from years ago) are hanging on actual pants hangers that I simply spraypainted turquoise – cheap, easy, and fitting for a laundry room. The letters that spell “WASH” are cardboard letters from Hobby Lobby ($1 each) painted with craft paint ($1 for 1 bottle). Rather than spend alot of money on cabinets above the washer and dryer, my husband rigged me up these old boards for shelves. I like them much better than cabinets because they open up the room and allow a spot to add some color.

So that’s the tour of my little home. I hope that I have inspired you to look around your house, your yard, your local junk stores (and even your local T.J. Maxx!) for some inexpensive ways to brighten up your space. My final advice is to ignore what is “trendy,” and just choose things that make you happy in your home, because you are the one who sees it everyday.

Thanks y’all!

– Nikki

 

Ok, this is it. The best recipe EVER. This is actually my husband’s new “death row meal,” meaning if he was on death row then this is what he would ask for as his last meal. (Previously it was chicken fried steak and mashed potatoes.) It’s that good.

Not only is it amazing, but it is also super easy. To begin, you need a 3-4 lb pork shoulder roast, dijon mustard, Tony’s seasoning and a crock pot.

 

Mix together about 3/4 cup dijon mustard and a tablespoon of Tony’s, then rub all over the pork roast and place in crock pot.

Fill just the bottom with water, about 1/2 cup. Do NOT cover the roast with water – you want the spiced mustard to form a crust when it cooks. Cook on low all day, at least 6 hours.

This is what it looks like after cooking. Yummy, right?!? But you’re not done yet.

About an hour before the roast is done, slice up some link sausage and brown in a skillet, then add to the roast. Continue cooking in crock pot for the last hour. (I used deer sausage.) And if you’re lazy like I am, you can skip the browning step and just throw it in cold. The browning will give the sausage some extra flavor though.

Using 2 forks, start shredding the pork roast. It will shred very easily.

After the entire roast is shredded, mix it with the sausage.

This is good enough to eat plain, but it’s even better over cheese grits. Here’s how to prepare them…

Prepare grits according to package directions, then add in desired amount of butter, shredded cheddar cheese and parmesan cheese. For 4 servings, I use about 2 tablespoons butter, 1/2 cup cheddar cheese and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese.

 

Now just pile the meat on top of the cheese grits, and serve. This looks and tastes like you worked all day on it, when the crock pot actually does all of the work. So easy, and so GOOD!

Thanks y’all!

– Nikki