Okay, so sometimes, when you’ve scoured all the thrift stores, flea markets, garage sales, antique malls and Ebay…

 

And when you’ve embarrassed yourself by perusing all your neighbors roadside bulk trash discards in a five block radius, rummaged through your friends and family’s basements, and still haven’t found something that will work…

 

You might actually have to… (gasp) buy something new.

 

But don’t worry. You can get some great decorating items for not a lot of money. Again, I can’t guarantee you have all the below listed stores near you. But they all have web sites, and many of them let you order online.

 

I like this place in particular for their curtains. They stock an amazing amount of quality velvet and heavy-textile curtains at decent prices, and in colors that work well with romantic décor.

 

Decent decorator items for a romantic home, with lots of lush throws, interesting lamps, candles, repro clocks, etc. Some items lean toward being a bit too resin-looking for my taste. But they get new merchandise regularly and you won’t break the bank.

 

Weird stuff. I like weird stuff, and I can find weird stuff here. My last purchase at Marshalls was an art nouveau-styled business card holder with an enamel dragonfly on it. They also have such an impressive array of art deco, nouveau, and exotic picture frames, I also found an art nouveau replica bust here; she was $9.99. ‘Nuff said.

 

Excellent for interesting colored bottles and vases. Also good for pillows and curtains made of sari fabric-- to add an extra bit of the exotic to a room.

 

Target is a rather dangerous place for me to visit. It tends to separate me from my money. And largely this is because it is home to the Rachel Ashwell “Simply Shabby Chic” line they sell. I admit, I am total hypocrite about it, too. Because throughout the “Shabby Chic” TV series, I ranted about the over-pastelness (pastelocity?) of her designs. Then I saw her mass-marketed textiles in Target, loved a particular pattern, and bought some for my spare room. The key for me, though, is balance. The walls in my spare room are painted very dark, and the Shabby Chic brightens it right up. So I was wrong. There, I said it! Admit you’re Shabby! Embrace the Shabby! Be Shabby, be free! (Ahem.)…

 

It’s gotta be a cult.

 

As far as I can tell, this is precisely the same store as Marshalls, run by the same company. If I’m looking for multiples of something in the discount area—say, wine goblets—I will go to both stores and find the same items. So, really, anything I wrote above about Marshalls, ditto that here for TJ Maxx. Thank you.