Buying home wares is a tricky process - creating your own, personal style can turn out being fairly costly, but just sticking to low-budget stores and items can leave your home looking a bit like a low cost hotel. When we moved into our first flat together 18 months ago, money was most definitely tight and a combination of Ikea, charity furniture shops and kind donations from friends and family helped to kit us out with most of what we need. Now, however, we are looking back at some of the items we picked up and wishing we could show a little more of our personal taste and style in our home. Ikea is most definitely the first stop for many home owners, and its easy to get swept up in the bargain price coffee tables and chests of drawers. Recently I've been looking through Ikea's online catalogue for pieces that don't cost the earth, but allow you to show some individuality at the same time. TRENDIG Side Table, EKBY Wall Shelves, FABRIKOR Glass Cabinet, RASKOG Kitchen Trolley, HEMNES Consol TableI'm so in love with all of the above pieces; the green trolley would be a great way to get some extra storage space in our kitchen, and the basket-style side table would look great in a living room or bedroom. I've also become completely obsessed with TK Maxx and Home Sense for their huge range of home wares at bargain prices - particularly great for cooking utensils, bake ware and the like. I can easily spend an hour mooching round and checking out the incredible discounts on every item!We're hoping to buy our first place this year, so money is definitely tight and we're trying to hold off on buying anything new for the time being. But I do want to have a look round local junk and charity shops, as well as some car boot sales, to see if I can find any gems. I wish I was more creative and could have a go at 'upstyling' items and making them home-worthy. Maybe this is the year for learning some new skills!
