how are we adding whimsy to our spaces recently? Want to decorate my apartment on a budget!!

Question

Tori · Answer

Paper chain as a permanent installation: Very affordable, very dopamine 💗

(I made the one pictured for my daughters bday and now it lives in our dining room) slightly more expensive option: buy a nice card stock variety pack in a color way you enjoy!

Big Night · Answer

Spiral Coasters: Something beautiful for everyday living! The shape is just wonderful and these are quite possibly the chicest coasters we’re ever encountered. These are one of our bestsellers for a reason — just fab!

Janet Wallace · Answer

All Y'all Are Welcome Camp Flag: This, on the front door.

Janet Wallace · Answer

Give the Rooms in Your House Names: We've named the rooms in our house. The living room is called the "Fox Den" (there's a fox figurine on the mantel that oversees the room). The den is called the "Camp Room" due to the summer camp vibes/decor. We also have a "Gun Room" even through there are no guns--it is a weird room in the center of the house with no windows. Someone told us that, when building houses, people requested such windowless rooms for storing guns, so, now we have a (gunless) Gun Room. We'll say, "oh, the extra blanket is in the Gun Room" or "let's eat dinner in the Fox Den." Give the rooms names and they take on fun/weird/interesting personalities! Even our friends refer to the rooms by their names!

Miranda · Answer

Whimsical lamps are cool but...: what about lightbulbs with whimsy?

Hannah Harvey · Answer

Paint and gumption: my last apartment (pictured) was the first place I’ve lived as an adult that really felt like mine, and it was because I threw caution to the wind and slapped paint on the walls. I did murals in the living room/bedroom, and used the same paint to make Wayfair/Ikea/Urban Outfitters furniture more joyful. It makes the single biggest difference and you don’t need that much of it to transform a space. Intimidating as a renter but it IS reversible

Dylan · Answer

SPETSBOJ table lamp, light blue: So cute! So cheap! I love this shade of blue :)

Dylan · Answer

IKEA KONSTRUNDA decoration, orange: ok we love her

Dylan · Answer

NATTHÄGER Cushion blue/tiger 50x50 cm: this feels like the hit of dopamine i require... once again, the IKEA kids section reigns supreme

Dylan · Answer

Dolly Parton and Tina Turner Tea Towel x Kaylene Whiskey: Yankunytjatjara woman Kaylene Whiskey makes such delightful art that this is too beautiful to even use as a tea towel, but it's my way of buying art more affordably.

I particularly love this one of the two iconic divas, Dolly Parton and Tina Turner. Go check out Kaylene's other works & support Indigenous creatives!

Dylan · Answer

Opening Hours Tea Towel x David Shrigley: another tea towel i have framed as art because it's called making lemonade from lemons ok

Dylan · Answer

Text Me Yeah Tea Towel x Magda Archer: i have this framed on my living room wall as art <3

yeah i love cats ok, it's called a green flag

Dylan · Answer

Miffy Bundle of Light: this adorably whimsical super cute subtle lamp healed my inner child!!!  you just touch on then it turns off after 30 mins or if you're like me you forget to use the lamp component and just appreciate her for the work of art that she is

Dylan · Answer

Slinky: Ahh, the humble slinky. A childhood simple pleasure and an adulthood stim toy. I personally love the sound and feel of the metal ones, but you can also get plastic ones, which my cats are very fond of.

Dylan · Answer

Smiley Bundle of Light: a bundle of JOY is what this is. super cute paired with the Miffy lamp. a playful addition to my home.

Dylan · Answer

Miffy Cushion: should i get this miffy cushion to match my miffy lamp? yes.

am i using retail therapy to soothe the pain in my body and soul? also yes

Dylan · Answer

Evil Cat Door Mat: hehehe this is fun and silly and looks like my cats when they are trying to manipulate me into feeding them a second dinner

Dylan · Answer

FRÖVÄXT vase: i like silly whimsical stuff and the colour orange, need i say more

Dylan · Answer

Cat Tea Towel: adorable!

Dylan · Answer

BLÅVINGAD Soft toy, octopus/yellow: my cats are obsessed with bunny kicking his tentacles. its nice for humans to fondle the tentacles also. very enjoyable sensory experience.

Dylan · Answer

KÄLLARHALS vase: the shape & colour are fun & i enjoy the contrast of the orange against the green monstera cuttings living in it

Dylan · Answer

Cloud Cushion: i maintain that the IKEA kids section is the best

Dylan · Answer

Blue Melamine Plate x Jon Burgerman: in case i haven't made it obvious yet, i like to incorporate a sense of whimsy into my everyday life so that mundane activities become a little more joyous :)

Dylan · Answer

FAMNIG HJÄRTA cushion, red: a whimsical and silly addition to your home. sure, it's from the kids section, but childlike whimsy has no age!!!!

Dylan · Answer

Banana Lamp: saw this Seletti lamp for a zillion dollars many years ago, then reverse image-searched it and found a dupe on AliExpress or something (sue me), and when it arrived, it was like... fancier than expected. it even had the Seletti logo on it and everything lol... is this actually a Seletti lamp? who the fuck knows, nothing is real.

he's gorgeous, he's phallic, he's large and in charge.

i don't actually use this as a lamp because the white light is too bright for my sensitive lil retinas and spicy lil brain BUT it looks sexy as a dramatic art piece on top of my bookshelf.

amanda · Answer

garlands!: lots of different styles/vibes, adds some color, and cheap (snapped before leaving for work so not the best pic but i swear it’s charming!!)

Shannon · Answer

Twinkle lights: I added white lights to my window five years ago for Christmas and never took them down. They are on the wall plug connected to the light switch, so I just flip them on every night. It now looks grim if they are off.

Eric F · Answer

Happy Hat Hanger by Elmer Gomer 🧢: A good friend makes these in Austin, TX. “The Hat Hanger is about three inches tall and made of steel, painted yellow.”

Eric F · Answer

Fine Art Simpsons Wall Calendar 🍋: We get one every year from The Best Damn Pet Shop in Town. The web store is only open every couple of months. Sign up to the mailing list to get notified when they re-open.

Eric F · Answer

VHSGIRL Woodblock Paintings and Prints 📼: Every time we go to New Orleans, we stop by Leroy’s Place on Royal St. and grab a couple VHS woodblock prints made by VHSGIRL to add to our collection. It’s like having all of our favorite movies on VHS, and on our walls.

amy hagedorn · Answer

children's art!: if you like myself are childless then source from a friend with a kid or your own work in your parents basement or from your best friend's parents basement etc. FRAMING IS KEY! Found this act of self expression in my parents basement for example and had to get her on the wall <3

Taryn · Answer

Printing out favorite memes: There’s something I find so funny about a hard copy of a meme. Some are on my fridge but I also like to stick a few in surprise spots, like the inner door of my medicine cabinet. Whimsy for cheap!