Bold, beautiful...and cheap
April Gangestad, left, and Renee Norman lead a Luverne Community Education class on home decorating Thursday, Feb. 20, in Gangestad’s home. They are pictured on a $7 chair purchased at a thrift store. The class saw how simple principles of design can be applied without spending a lot of money.
By Sara Strong
You don’t have to hire a designer — or pay designer prices — for your home to look like it.
That’s the message from April Gangestad and Renee Norman, who hosted a Luverne Community Education class Thursday to show students key ways to decorate inexpensively, starting with what’s already in the home.
"We try to introduce various things, like sitting arrangements that don’t put people 10-feet away from each other when they’re trying to have a conversation," Gangestad said.
She and Norman don’t know it all when it comes to decorating, but being self-taught comes with a sense of pride.
Watching as many TV shows and reading as many decorating magazines as possible was a place for them to start individually. But Norman and Gangestad decided to share their hobby (and some furniture) in a sort of informal club. They share ideas and use their group of friends as a sounding board for all sorts of ideas.
During one productive gathering, they made large wire balls, wound with light strings to hang as chandeliers. It worked, and it was cheap.
"I bet in my living room, I’ve spent about $500, and some of it was stuff I got off the curb," Gangestad said.
Gangestad and her husband, Mike, have lived in their home for six years. In that time, they’ve painted all the rooms and gone through a few different styles.
Gangestad now says she knows her style better than before. "I used to hang these long shelves and cram a lot of things all over them, but I’ve come a long way," she said.
Some of the class participants said they were stuck in a rut and needed new ideas and others came to get courage to paint their walls something other than white.
Gangestad said paint doesn’t have to be permanent and shouldn’t be considered a grave decision. "These walls were white when we moved in here and now that we painted everything, nobody has died because of it."
Getting the courage to make a change can come after inspiration. Norman and Gangestad suggest reading books and magazines and browsing the internet to get ideas.
Gangestad keeps a binder full of her favorite ideas and magazine clippings. (This also saves storage space by not having to save entire magazines.) By doing that, she realized her consistent style was a warm, eclectic blend of various styles.
Norman, on the other hand, said she likes to keep her decorating simple, with just a few choice accessories. "Less is more, I think, and there’s less to dust that way too," she said.
No matter what style homeowners like, Norman and Gangestad said thinking of the practical side of things can help make design work — like the old adage, "form follows function."
Gangestad said, "You have to live before you can create. … If you have all white furniture and walls and carpet, you aren’t going to want your kids or pets in the room."
Cheap and chic
Most people know enough to shop for sale prices, but Gangestad said some of her favorite pieces have come from local discount centers.
Just for fun, Norman and Gangestad went shopping in Luverne before the class, to illustrate the treasures that could be found locally.
Class participants were surprised, for instance, at the candleholder with beaded shade and wall sconces they found at the Bargain Center. "I bet I go there at least once a week," Gangestad said.
Auctions on rainy days, rummage sales and salvage, or junk stores are also good places to snag a deal.
Rearranging furniture or borrowing from other rooms is a free way to freshen up the look of a home as well.
Gangestad said it’s also important to keep unattractive things out of sight. Group magazines in a rack instead of on top of tables, and toss remote controls and similar clutter in a small wicker basket. From there, it’ll be easier to see the real accessories of a room.
For women who still don’t know where to start with their dreams of beautifully decorated homes, Gangestad said this — husbands don’t have to know about projects until after they’re completed.
From the class…
Find a theme: it could be anything, including country, simple, modern, Oriental.
Rearranging furniture: Make a plan. It helps to use graph paper and draw to scale so you can move furniture without using a muscle. Establish a focal point where you want people to focus their attention. Don’t block the traffic patterns — allow 3 feet for pathways in and out of a room; chairs and sofas should be no more than 8 feet apart; coffee tables should be 18 inches from the sofa.
Mix living and dining: people like to gather with family and friends in one room.
Television and stereos: You do not have to have a TV in every room. Create an area for watching TV, and if you can, put the TV inside of an armoire or shelving unit. Or make it possible to move it out of the room when it’s not needed.
Changing furniture: Slipcovers, changing hardware and painting are ways to revamp furniture inexpensively. Used or thrift stores are a good way to get unique pieces. Be careful when considering purchasing an item to upholster because that can be almost as costly as new.
More resources: The library has lots of books, and the internet is full of home decorating sites.
