Easy ways you can save on home decor & accessories

Soft furnishings, tableware and other accessories help create a stylish, individual home. There are plenty of stores where you can find great prices, and a do-it-yourself approach can be gratifying and inexpensive.

• Department stores: Wait for the sales and pay attention to flyers and newspaper advertisements for one-day sales. You could save upwards of 60% off linens and other household items.
• Discount stores: Kitchen and bath stores carry a limited supply of quality home accessories for great prices. Some stock changes and turns over quickly, though, so you have to check on a regular basis.
• Ethnic shops: Why pay for designer home fashions that are based on Asian influences when you can get the real thing? Canadian cities have large ethnic communities with stores full of household items at very reasonable prices.

• If you like art, why not paint your own canvas? Don't be intimidated — find a colour scheme and modern design that appeals to you from any magazine or art book borrowed from the library.
• Acrylic paint is inexpensive and deep-framed canvasses don't need decorative framing if you paint the outside edge to blend in with the front of the canvas.
• Make your own curtains and wall hangings. You won't be limited to ready-made choices, and fabric stores often have clearances on end-of-bolt items.

• Items marked as seconds often have imperfections that are almost invisible. But still examine pieces carefully for chips and cracks before you buy.
• Buy in bulk. Boxed sets of china or glassware usually cost less than buying individual pieces.
• If you are buying a matching set, check whether it is being discontinued. If so, you may still be able to get replacements through a china-matching service, though these can be expensive, especially if shipped a long distance

• Check fabric carefully for quality when you buy at a discount. If you're buying seconds, look out for loose threads, crooked edges and other flaws.
• Make sure colours of separate items such as towels are a good match.
• If you particularly like a fabric and think you might find various uses for it, buy more of it than you need — you're unlikely to find it again.

A well-decorated home pays attention to the little details, but they don't have to be expensive. You can find great household accessories at amazing prices, if you know where, and when, to look.