How I find budget decor - 5 ways to bag yourself a bargain

You know the feeling. You come across that 'must have' item, the one that's going to change your life and you promise you'll never want anything else as long as you live. However its way over your budget and there's no way you can stretch to it - well, not unless you sacrifice eating this month anyway. So what do you do? Forget about it and move on? Well for me, that's when the trawl to find an alternative begins - and there isn't many things I've not found for a fraction of the price.

So I thought I'd share my tips for finding the bits you want, at the prices you can't resist...

Shop around
An obvious one to start, but I never buy something the first time I see it, I always have a scour around to see if I can get something similar elsewhere for cheaper. I'd definitely recommend using the shopping tab on google to do this if you haven't before - saves so much time.

eBay 
This is my number one tip. I've found SO many complete bargains on eBay - its not just for second hand stuff that's seen better days, a lot of the things I've bought have been new or made to order.

I'd wanted a footstool for so long, however couldn't justify paying hundreds for some of the beautiful ones I'd seen, so turned to eBay. I found a seller on there making them bespoke using Laura Ashley fabric, and picked this one up for just over £100 - over half the cost of some of the others I'd been looking at! Over two years on its still going strong, even with dirty dog paws and sticky little fingers! 

eBay's also great for finding second hand furniture to upcycle - my latest buy being this vintage bureau for an absolute steal at £7.50, which I upcycled using chalk paint.

Bargain stores 
If I'm on the lookout for something, particularly a really on-trend item, I always try the bargain stores (think B&M, Home Bargains, Primark) first, as they're great for little accessories. I'd been looking around for a beautiful letter board after falling in love with them on Instagram, however didn't want to spend £40 on one, and stumbled across this one for £5.99 in B&M! For me this is great as when I, inevitably, move onto the next must-have trend, it doesn't matter as I've only spent pennies on it.

My favourite B&M find of all time is this mirror - £4.99, an almost exact replica of a £70 mirror I'd been eyeing up somewhere else! Naturally, I bought two - the other one lives in our bedroom. 

I'd also recommend the supermarkets for beautiful, budget accessories - Sainsbury's in particular are great for seasonal bits (have a look at my Spring Updates for under £20 post here for my pick from their new Spring/Summer collection).

DIY your own 
There's not many things I won't have a go at making myself - from cushion covers to upcycled furniture, I'll gladly attempt to recreate something before shelling out. I've preciously made a upholstered headboard for around £40 - costing a quarter of the cheapest one I could find, a bar cart for just over £20 and have practically repainted nearly everything in my house instead of replacing them!

Think outside the box 
Don't overlook stores or departments that you're not sure will have whatever it is you're looking for. These ladder shelves which have transformed my bathroom were an IKEA find, but in the outdoor section, not the bathroom - I didn't let the fact that they were intended to hold plants in the garden stop me from snapping up a steal!

What tips do you have for grabbing yourself a bargain?