Fast, Easy, Cheap Ideas to Decorate Your Home for Summer (Farmhouse Style!)

If you love decorating for summer but need some ideas for how to do it on a budget, I can help! Working on a tight budget is my wheelhouse! Here are fast, easy, and cheap ways to get the farmhouse style look without spending a lot of money! In a short amount of time, you can transform your home into a summer oasis! Clean, serene, and relaxing! Come find out how!

Decorating for Every Season? OK, Twist My Arm

I don’t have a lot of memories of my mom decorating our house for every season. For sure, Christmas. Maybe some Thanksgiving napkins on Thanksgiving Day. I can’t remember anything else beyond that. I’m not sure that was such a big priority for moms in the 80s… too busy watching soap operas and talking on the phone?

I’m not sure when decorating for not just all the holidays but all the seasons as well became a “thing” – probably with the advent of social media and sharing every detail of our lives. But I have to admit. I’m not sad about it.

I walked into spring with every intention of leaving things be until the fall, but….

Spring to Summer? From the Inside Out

It all started with the porch. We bought our house – a 1960s brick ranch – after the woman who owned it passed away. We got a great deal, but it needed updating.

The porch was painted light blue and had a dark red door. While I loved the idea of a red door, the only decor it matched with was Christmas (the door).  I could get away with spring (the walls), but it seemed to clash with everything else.

So I finally got around to painting it this spring and had to take down all my spring decorations in order to paint (you can read how I did my spring porch on a budget here!). 

I ended up going with white walls and a charcoal grey door – enough contrast to keep it interesting but neutral enough to go with every season.

So….once it was painted, I just wasn’t feeling the spring decorations, so I set out with a whole new look for summer (you can read how I decorated the porch for summer in modern farmhouse style on a budget here plus 35 more summer porch decorating idea here!)

I really loved the look and then all of the sudden, I just wasn’t feeling the spring decor in the house anymore, in the middle of June.

Which brought me to my indoor summer refresh.

Indoor Summer Decor Refresh On a Budget

Now, if you’re anything like me, I’ve got 2 major things to consider:

1. Money
2. Kids

As a SAHM with just one full-time income, I’m ALWAYS budget conscious. I use my same cheap decorating tips just about every season, and today I want to share how I specifically incorporated really cheap ways to decorate my house for summer.

And, I really need to keep it somewhat simple with 5 year-old-twin boys running around the house. I want it to look nice, but it’s their house, too – so to keep us both sane, it’s gotta be kid-friendly, to some degree.

 

Easy & Cheap Ideas to Decorate Your House for Summer

My go-to methods for decorating ALL THE TIME – for every holiday and every season –  are shopping my house (seeing what I have and moving things around), DIY projects, and upcycling. Once you get into the habit of doing those things every season, decorating is easy, cheap and gives you a fresh look.

Specifically, here’s how I did those things in addition to a few easy ways you can do the same in your home:

1| Greens over Flowers

You can get faux greens very cheap! There’s something very clean about having greens around your home as opposed to flowers. It’s just breezy, outdoorsy, but stylish. I do throw in some flowers, but they are usually white or very pale.

Here are some examples of some cheap green that I found:

These ferns and stems were at Dollar Tree. You can also get onion grass for $1.

These were from Walmart for $1.50 each.

These were also from Walmart for $1.50 for 2 stems.

Here are a few images of how I styled them:

You can also make the rope vases you see on the dining room table with Dollar Tree materials -see how here!

2| DIY Planters

I also like greens outside the house as well as inside, too – and for that, I like to use real plants instead of faux. Hostas, ferns and the like are hardier and take less care than flowers.

This year, I kept it simple and got a fern, a hosta, and another I don’t know the name of! lol. The plants aren’t too expensive at all.

What really makes this a cheap idea is the DIY rope planter, which you can read about here! All you need is rope and a glue gun, and you don’t even need to transfer the plant to a planter! So cheap and easy!

And what I really like about this is that I can plant them at the end of the season, so it’s landscaping as well!

3| Jars and Bottles

I might have a slight obsession with saving jars and bottles. I feel like I never have enough. But really, any jar is perfect to display. I’ve used apple juice bottles…

and maple syrup bottles…

Starbucks bottles…

As well as pesto, salsa, tomato sauce – even an oversized pickle jar!

Bottles are free and look amazing with faux greens and stems, seashells, beach glass, rocks…all go along with a fun summer theme!

Dollar Tree also has a lot of different kinds of jars you can use to fill with those fun items as well. The jars are amazing as stand-alone decor, but if you want to take it up a notch, you can make these fun apothecary jars, which I put on my coffee bar!

4| Baby’s Breath

I’ve found that baby’s breath gives the most bang for the buck. They look amazing in a pitcher (or bottle! Hello! See above picture for baby’s breath in the Starbucks bottles!) and they dry so nicely and last forever!

As my baby’s breath started dying out, I hung them upside down on my mirror and I just love how they look.

5| Terra Cotta Clay Pots

I love, love, love these. I have them everywhere in my house and I love the effect. I have 2 smaller sizes that I got from Dollar Tree – they come in packs of 2 and 3 for $1. A little chalk paint roughly swiped on, stack them, and you’re good to go. They are perfect for filling those little small spaces that just need an extra something.

6| No-Sew Placemat Pillows

Pillows are a great way to add a burst of color and fun without making crazy changes to your whole decor. Pillows can be expensive, but placemat pillows are NOT! You can get placemats at Dollar Tree for $1 in a lot of fun patterns – like these paisley ones. Placemat pillows are great for both indoor and outdoor pops of color!

I also found some at Hobby Lobby for $2.50 (50% 0ff). They are so easy to make – (you can see the tutorial for no-sew placemat pillows here!) and a super-cheap, super-cute accessory!

7| DIY Summer Signs

What is summer decor without a few summer signs? Summer signs can be as easy as finding a fun graphic and printing it out and putting it in a frame. You can also make your own signs without any fancy equipment by using this tracing method (you can see details on how make a sign using the tracing method here!)

I love to make printables, and here is a watercolor farmhouse printable set I made just for summer! They add a festive theme that focuses just a little more on the summer!

 

And here’s how I displayed them in my house:

{If you lean a little more cottagecore in your style, you can grab a free printable summer wall art design to complement that vibe!}

The Final Summer Home Decor Set-Up

So, here you can see all my summer displays, combining a lot of these elements, working together:

(Yes, toys on the coffee table in the mirror reflection! No perfection here!)

 

 

(Yup, and that’s toys sticking out of the bottom basket! Real house with real kids living here!)

(And for more summer mantel ideas, be sure to check out this post, too!)

Farmhouse Summer Decor on a Budget: TOTALLY DOABLE!

After living in a tiny house, being packed up and ready to move for several years, I’m a firm believer in a serene space to call home. Now that we all are at home so much more these days, I believe your environment contributes to your peace even more so. Doesn’t replace Jesus, but having a peaceful space you love does wonders for your mental health! And creating a summer theme in farmhouse style can totally be done on a budget! I’m proof!

For more inspiration, be sure to check out my 2022 version of a spring to summer refresh, with before and after pics!

And if you need some inspiration for backyards, take a look here:

Absolutely Fabulous Backyard Deck Ideas on a Budget

Cozy Backyard Decorating Ideas on a Budget

21+ Affordable Outdoor Dining Sets for 2022!

I’d love to see what you come up with! Please tag me on Instagram @100affections with your summer home decor – or leave a comment on Pinterest! I’m so wanting to cheer you on!

Thoughts? I’d love to hear them! Leave a comment below!