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Hope Taylor is a photographer specializing in senior portraits serving both Charleston, SC and Savannah, GA.

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How I Decorated a Studio On a Budget For Photographers

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I think some of the most frequently asked questions I get are ones about where pieces in my studio were purchased. And then, last week as I was driving to the studio, I realized I’ve NEVER done a blog post about HOW I decorated the space!!! I’m crazy!!! After quite a few months of adding new pieces, changing things around + finalizing details…I feel like I can FINALLY do a blog post about decorating!!!

One of the best things about decorating my new studio space was that I did it AFFORDABLY! Without painting/remolding costs, I spent LESS than $3000 to decorate the ENTIRE space!!! Crazy, right!? I found all of the pieces for super low prices at places like Home Goods & Ikea, then found low-cost accessories to dress it up! Today’s post is going to be all about HOW I did it + WHERE I found the pieces!!!

When I was shopping for the studio, I knew that I wanted to keep my budget as low as possible while still making the studio match my brand and appear high end. I spent the largest amount of my budget on statement pieces like the couch, lighting + rugs then spent the smaller portion of my budget on the remaining furniture pieces + detail accessories. Luckily, the shelving in my space was already built into the walls-so I got lucky there!!! Here is a list of everywhere I shopped for good deals:

HOME GOODS:

This one is probably obvious…but it’s  LIFESAVER! Home Goods has TONS of items for incredibly low prices. I probably went into Home Goods 10 different times during the 3 weeks I was decorating the space…they’re ALWAYS getting new items! All of my chairs, rugs, pillows and lamps are from Home Goods as well as some other small accessories. In total, I probably spent $1200 here!

JOSS & MAIN:

If you haven’t explored Joss & Main, you’re totally missing out! I have the free iPhone app that updates each day with brand new “themes” of items for sale. My couch + end tables are all from Joss & main + I spent less than $700 on those! Craziness!!!

IKEA:

Ikea is my BFF. Every time I walk in, I want to remodel an entire house. It’s the best ever!!! I got both of my desk tables (the corner piece + end piece) for less than $50 (I’m serious!!!) as well as my grey coffee table from Ikea for only around $120.

HOME DEPOT:

I purchased all of my chandeliers from Home Depot and they were less than $100 each!!! They look “real” and expensive…but they were CHEAP + easy to put together! I also purchased celling medallions from Home Goods which made my total here less than $500.

TARGET:

We found all of the smaller details (candles, accessories, pillows, etc) at Target and at Target online!!! If you haven’t looked here for decorating…you TOTALLY should!!!

Additionally, to keep costs down, I printed all of my canvases at CG Pro Prints + I partner with local boutiques for all of the clothing + accessories in the studio! You can learn how I partner with boutiques HERE!

I hope this helps someone else who is in the process of decorating a new space!!! Decorating at low cost is definitely do-able, it just takes some searching for the right pieces 🙂

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  1. I can’t WAIT to be here in 3 days!!! Hope Taylor Photography Workshop, here I come!!

  2. Nilo says:

    Love all the good deal! I am totally going to have to check out those place for some good deals. Where do you get the back drop? I seriously love it!!

hi, y'all!

I'm Hope Taylor, an international Senior Portrait and Wedding Photographer based in Charleston, SC. I'm also an educator, international speaker, and the host of multiple sold-out workshops each year!

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