Once first time homeowners close on their house, they may think the hard part is over, but decorating that new home is the next big challenge. There’s more space to fill, an apartment to clear out, and that college futon to toss. First time homeowners searching for decorating tips can’t go wrong with a couple of key ingredients for creating a beautiful home. Use these five tips to go from apartment dwelling to home living:

Pick Your Showpiece

A well decorated room has one piece that is the star attraction. Whether it’s a brightly dyed couch or a meaningful piece of wall art, starting with the centerpiece and decorating the room around it is a concept homeowners shouldn’t ignore. More than one showpiece and the room will look cluttered but with no showpiece at all, a room looks dull. Find one item to be the star of each room and decorate around that piece.

Start Small

First time homeowners often think that their new home needs to be showcase ready on move in. Unfortunately, the costs of buying and closing on a house can eat into even the best laid budgets for decorating. A good piece of advice is to start small. If you’re hiring professional movers, you can request that they keep at least one room empty of boxes, so you can begin the decorating process in there.  It will be easier to decorate and bring in desired items while the room is empty. Once you’re satisfied, you can move on to the next room.  Trying to redecorate an entire house is costly and the finished product will generally be less impressive when constrained by a tight budget. Try to relax and don’t feel as though the entire home needs to be decorated the day you move in.

Go with the Flow

Many homeowners color coordinate in a vacuum. One room is yellow while another is red but there’s no thought to the transition between those two rooms. First time homeowners looking for decorating tips should consider the color flow between rooms to ensure their home looks polished rather than patchy. Ensure that all room and hall colors look good against one another by placing test patches of paint in areas where you can see them from other rooms. This will allow you to ensure that the flow of colors between rooms looks good.

Don’t Forget the Outdoors

While the interior of a home is often the primary focus when searching for decorating tips, first time homeowners should also decorate for curb appeal. Inexpensive solar path lighting can make a huge difference to guests who want to visit in the evenings. Learn about the flora surrounding the home and how to edge and trim it. Decorating for curb appeal is a great way to increase the impact of your home for practically nothing.

Do It Yourself

First time homeowners looking for decorating tips can improve their new home and make it look great by taking a do-it-yourself approach to repairs and upgrades. From something as simple as changing kitchen cabinet hardware to refurbishing an antique dresser. With the help of a local home improvement store and some ingenuity homeowners can cut costs on home decorating and ensure their pieces are unique. Don’t be afraid to use some elbow grease and creativity when decorating your home.

While no first time home owner is going to have a camera ready home immediately, following these simple decorating tips will help you optimize what you’re working with.