Home is where the heart is—or so the saying goes. But what if your heart is just not into the hand-me-down, burnt orange, retro couch with greasy brown handprints on the arms or the flimsy particle-board desk you fit in the tiny corner of your first apartment?  

In my 18 years of marriage, my husband and I have lived in seven different homes. Each time we moved to a new place, I was determined to make that unfamiliar setting feel as warm and cozy as my childhood home—the one I grew up in, nestled in that small familiar hometown amongst family, warm handmade quilts, cozy armchairs, and freshly picked tomatoes sliced on an ancient bread board.  

The idea of making your house a home is grand, but the execution doesn’t have to be. It’s normal for newlyweds or young parents to look around their small, economical digs and wonder if this mismatched hodgepodge will ever feel like a cozy, homey space without spending the great amounts of cash it would take to furnish it like a hip and trendy department store dream.

But with a little ingenuity, an even smaller amount of money, and a trip to Deseret Industries, your house can feel like a home without you ever having to hand over thousands of dollars for an end table. Even those of us with aging furniture and dated decor can update simply and fabulously.

There are a few tricks to furnishing a thrift-item-filled home without making it look cluttered and disjointed.

Chief among them is this first rule: trust your instincts! When rummaging through all the options in the brass, wood, or china sections of DI, ask yourself this one question: “Do I like this?”

Chances are that the more you collect things that appeal to you, the more your house will begin to feel like your home. The things that are unique to your home are what appeal to visitors and help you gain that settled and at-home feeling we all long to create.

Patience is another essential virtue of thrifting, since, admittedly, thrift shopping is hit or miss. Sometimes it takes a few visits to the thrift store to find what you’re looking for. However, there are a few items you can always count on finding.

Cutting Boards

A big-ticket item in many homes these days is a stack of old wooden bread boards balanced against the backsplash of a stylish and expensive kitchen. DI usually has some good cutting boards, but the trick is being able to recognize them.

In the late ‘70s and ‘80s, moms everywhere could be found tole painting mustard yellow flowers or chubby-cheeked children onto cutting boards to hang on the wall, and these types of boards aren’t exactly trendy today. It’s easy to pass up such a dated piece of decor, but don’t do it! For a buck and the cost of some paint stripper, you can join the new cutting board trend. After stripping the old paint, just apply a coat of beeswax, coconut oil, or any other food-safe oil to your perfectly aged treasure. Just like that, you’ve got a small piece of your old home inside your new one.

Baskets

I recently created a unique gallery wall using flat, round baskets I found on different DI trips. You’ve probably seen this trend here and there. It gives off sort of a boho/farmhouse vibe. The basket section of DI is brimming with unique possibilities that you can use to make a gallery wall of your own. The best part is that it requires very little reworking—all you need are the baskets, a hammer, and some nails to create a custom-decorated wall in your home.

Frames

I also always head over to the frame section when I’m at the DI. You can spruce up a wall or the top of your fridge or bookshelf with interesting picture frames. And you don’t even need the glass or the picture for that matter! Empty colorful frames stacked and layered create a visual texture that can be achieved for just a few dollars. Look for carved wood picture frames and frames in various sizes and shapes. Don’t worry about ugly colors or weird-looking stains; you can cure a multitude of ills with just a little paint!

My home is filled with the treasures of thrifting. A DI shopping adventure is like an Easter egg hunt for adults. Yes, there may be some less-desirables to sift through. But when, after your patient search, you finally discover an old cookie jar just like your grandmother’s, a favorite old book that is no longer in print, or a worn basket that is perfect to hold an heirloom quilt . . . well, let’s just say those treasures sure do help to make a house a home.  

Maggie Judi started her DIY journey by dumpster diving in Kentucky. She soon upgraded to all things thrift store and has turned her gift for finding treasures into a biannual vintage market. She hosts a vintage furniture and decor sale in a barn by her home in Coalville, Utah, where locals can reap the rewards of her DI shopping skills. Maggie and her business partners search for broken, free, or dirt-cheap furniture to refurbish into lovely pieces and resell at reasonable prices. When she’s not repainting furniture, Maggie runs the Instagram account @i.like.big_books, where she reviews the many books she loves to read. Maggie and her bestie/husband just celebrated 18 years of marriage. They are the parents of three hilarious boys and one even funnier little girl. If Maggie looks familiar, it might be because you’ve seen her in our #WeAreDI shopper video.