Luxurious Victorian Bedroom on a Budget

You may not be able to afford a four-poster bed (unless you inherit one or visit a really good estate sale), but there are many ideas for a headboard that can hold its own in your room. You can have a strong visual impact by upholstering a large piece of fiberboard and adding buttons for a bit of elegance. Attach lace or sheer curtains to an inexpensive, suspended frame and drape them to the side for the look of a coronet. These ideas will give you the look of a bigger bed, at a small price.

One of the best sources for trims and upholstery for a Victorian bedroom is the thrift store. Old damask or velvet drapes can be used to make rich upholstered chairs or pillows. (Even a dress—remember Scarlet O'Hara?) And lace doilies or remnants from projects will trim pillows or lampshades. You can even find hand-embroidered pillowcases that will add to the nostalgic feel of your room.

Accessories can make or break your room. For Victorian rooms, lace trims, roses, crochet, and vintage or reproduction vases can be arranged on tables and bureaus. Buying reproduction pieces at yard sales or thrift stores can help with the budget, but adding a little do-it-yourself project such as the rose print lampshade. But be sure to follow principles that will ensure that your accessories successfully walk that fine line between design and clutter.

The look of Oriental rugs is part of the Victorian style, but authentic antique or even reproduction rugs can be expensive - way out of your budget. However, you can still get the look with a solid-colored carpet remnant and small reproduction area rugs. The carpet remnant can be bound with an oriental print or damask or brocade from a thrift shop curtain sewn together in long strips.

So go ahead and plan that dream bedroom. If you look to reuse, repurpose, and recycle in a properly Victorian kind of way, your bedroom will look and feel luxurious without undue damage to your piggy bank.