Lights, cushions, action

Paint and wallpaper can create a completely different effect and mood. Picture / Carolyn Robertson

Instead of sitting back and waiting 20-something years for your grey and pink 80s decor to have another interiors moment, take action and update your home. It needn't be anywhere near as drastic as getting the builders in to demolish a good section of the house though. Interior designer Sarah Eaton shares 10 ways to revamp the house without breaking the budget - or your back.

1. It's curtains for windows. New curtains or blinds are another way of instantly freshening the room. Don't make do with a fabric you quite like because of price. Eaton favours using fabric as more of a flat screen, rather than a full, pleated curtain, which happily, means less fabric is needed. "Work out what is the best option for a window or door's size. Put a blind, not a curtain, on a short window as short curtains look awful. Also, consider a combination of blinds and curtains in a single room."

2. Paint and paper. Painting can create a completely different effect and mood. "It's a bit like Botox. An injection of paint can make a room look 10 years younger," says Eaton. With wallpaper being respectable again, there's so much choice from retro prints to stylised florals. "I hate the word feature wall but if you paper two walls in a room, it really can have a huge impact." She suggests wallpapering the back wall of a bedroom or doing a small toilet in big stripes for dramatic effect. To keep continuity throughout the house paper at least three rooms.

3. Get a professional in. Of course she would say that, but Eaton points out, interior designers do listen, help prevent costly mistakes and really do want to make a beautiful space for their clients.

4. Dye job. Instead of ripping up grotty old carpet and starting again, dyeing carpet is a way to bring it back from the brink. Eaton recently took a dated blue carpet and had it dyed dark chocolate at a cost of between $25-$30 a metre. It only works going from lighter to darker though. You can also do the same makeover on curtains.

5. New order. Rearrange furniture and objects to lose any clutter. "Only keep the pieces you've got affection for and that are functional and always consider proportion and scale." Try adding a screen, mixing the old with the new to create a less predictable look and add a few mirrors to create space and, if it's done well, bring the outside in.

6. Art house. Reframe and rehang existing art and photographs to freshen a room. "Or create your own art by mounting wallpaper on to board, stretch fabric over canvas, paint a canvas, use text such as a poem, quote or words with signwriting transfers or stencils." Buy some new art from up-and-coming artists and recent art school graduates.

7. Handle it. Change handles on anything that bothers you - from doors and kitchen joinery to furniture. All can be revamped with a more interesting handle.

8. Rug up and cushion the blow. Rugs and cushions are just about an extreme makeover in one hit. "Change cushions seasonally. It sounds extravagant but they really can completely change the feel of a room." You can afford to go crazy with cushions as they're relatively inexpensive. Right now, Eaton's using a lot of ochre and chocolate toned cushions. "Try going against the grain and putting a Persian rug into a contemporary setting or a modern rug into an old villa."

9. Flower arrangements. No room is complete without them, says Eaton. Whether you opt for an artistic sculptural statement or just go for a wander through the garden picking some flowers and leaves to plonk in a vase, they add colour and texture.

10. Lighting up. Without effective lighting, no room stands a chance of looking good. Consider feature lighting as well as main lighting. To create impact in an unexpected space such as a hallway or landing, hang a dramatic oversized light. A chandelier works. "I often cover a huge drum shade with an interesting material and, more recently, wallpaper."

* Sarah Eaton runs her own interior design company, Sarah Eaton Design