4 Home Accessories That Improve Your Space Instantly

People like us who live abroad for work assignments, also known as expats, often don’t get to have much say about a type of home we live in. For example, in hot countries, it’s very common to see tile or marble floors rather than carpet or hardwood floor. The space configuration varies countries to countries. You may find that the way houses are designed in foreign countries don’t make sense to you. After having lived in 14 cities in 7 countries, I can say with confidence that even in different cities in your home country, finding a rental home that meets your ideal design can be a challenge.

In this post, I would like to demonstrate how simple accessories can instantly transform your space to look better. If you live in a rental furnished home like we do when we live overseas, you understand the difficulty of personalizing your home. When buying a new set of furniture, remodeling or fixer upper is not an option for you, what do you do?

There are different types of DIY’s you can do. I know. However, I don’t want to invest my time and energy into doing DYI’s in our expat life only because my family and I move every 3 years. By the time I finish creating something, I have a year and a half left to enjoy until the time I would have to dismantle the home again. That is too much. Our lifestyle is a marathon, not a sprint. Thus, I prefer decorating our spaces with home accessories rather than doing DYI’s. It’s feasible and economical.

I would like to introduce you to 4 simple home accessories which I like to use to improve a space, using my best friend’s home in Manila as an example.

BLANKETS

You don’t like a couch you have in your home? Reupholstering would be expensive in most countries. I’m not a fan of surefit slipcovers. One expat decorator also told me that using surefit (one fits all type) slipcovers is not recommended in this post. (Slipcovers custom made for your sofa are fine, but they are expensive.) I’d rather use a nice blankets and pillows to soften the look of a couch. Pompom blankets and blankets with tassels are trendy these days. They make the space look more whimsical. I highly recommend it!

RUGS

Since a rug takes up a big space in a room and jumps into your sight, it leaves a big impression of a room. Investing in a rug is a good way to improve the space for those who rent. Using rugs will personalize a space easily and instantly. Make sure you get a right size rug for each space.

PLANTS

One of the things I love adding in our home is plants. My friend bought plants right away and added them to her space. I love both plants she selected. I have artificial plants in my house, but hers are real. They add life to the space, don’t you think?

PILLOWS

I am a big fan of pillows. You can tell that probably from this Instagram post of my bed that has 9 pillows. I may have an obsession with pillows, but it’s only because they are ideal decor pieces for our nomadic lifestyle. You can move with pillow cases which pack small and light (as long as you don’t own 100 of them.) They are the best way to decorate your chairs, couches, floors, and beds in my humble opinion. The ones with tassels are so fun!!

HOME DECORATING

Fortunately for us, one of our closest family friends moved to Manila in August 2020. In the midst of the pandemic. They are troopers. She asked for my decorating advice and she listened. She did most of decorating at this stage shown in this blog post on her own. I applaud her for her ability to learn and execute it.

Eventually she hired me to decorate her home once her household goods arrived in Manila. I hope to take photos of her current home after having been decorated and write about it in the future. My very first project tasked by her was reorganizing her pantry. I absolutely loved the project. I had a great deal of fun shopping for containers and organizing. I’m forever grateful for her for investing in me by trusting my ability to decorate her home. Thank you, Anita!!

RELATED POSTS

You can also see how my former American expat neighbor and another American friend, Amber, who is a blogger and used to live in Manila, decorated their previous homes in Manila.