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Although the idea of raffia accents may bring a seaside cottage to mind, this charming woven fabric is quickly making its way into the urban home. Whether you want to decorate your walls or your sunroom, try adorning your humble abode with raffia this summer. Even if you can’t escape from your apartment, the rustic material will quickly usher in island energy. Here are our favourite ways to decorate with raffia at home this season.

Bring new life to your dark blue walls with a raffia-edged mirror: For the ultimate finishing touch, try beautifying your cobalt or royal blue walls with a large, decorative mirror trimmed with tan raffia. The look of the raffia detail can bring a contrasting effect to a striking statement wall, while pale wooden shelves finish off your space.

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Use raffia mats to contrast against your blue and white living room: To instantly revamp your living room, turn to raffia mats placed on end tables. Arrange a series of blue and white patterned accent pillows on a basic beige couch, and add a simple light wooden coffee table. For a finishing touch, use a blue and white striped area rug, white lampshades and ivory painted windows to illuminate the room.

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Accessorize a funky raffia cushion on a wicker chair: If you find that your sunroom or living room is looking plain, try accessorizing a large wicker chair with a woven raffia cushion. Use a green and white leaf printed pillow, fresh tulips and luscious greenery to truly breathe summertime spirit into the space.

With the era of disco chic reigning supreme in both the fashion and interior design worlds, it’s clear that the 1970s are back and bigger than ever before. While it’s easy to take the decade of maximalism and over-the-top prints to extremes, there is a correct way to bedeck your home in Seventies glamour. This season, draw your decorative inspiration from the past and find a tailor-made and modernized way to bring 1970s décor into your own space.

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For the bohemian: If you’re a boho goddess at heart, this blast from the past should lie perfectly in line with your personal interior design tastes. Try channelling the mystery of the Seventies in your living room, with tapestries in warm shades of tangerine and light brown. The look of patterned woven curtains and patterned wallpaper is a natural combination with wicker furniture, beige couch cushions and a vintage inspired white lampshade.

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For the rebel: Perhaps you would have been a rock and roll kid back in the day, had you only existed in 1976 instead of 2016! If that’s the case, capture the restless energy of this decade with frenetic colour and zany prints. Turn to a neon patterned sofa, contrasted with grey walls adorned with funky vibrant artwork for the ultimate effect. Add a graffiti printed coffee table, and create the perfect creative space for all those good vibrations.

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For the fashionista: If you think the runways of ‘70s era Paris and London would have created a retro street style star out of you, approach the trend with sophistication. In other words, decorate a plush orange velvet sofa with fuchsia and leopard print cushions. Add fierce hot pink leather ottomans, an area rug in luscious sorbet tones and imposing potted plants. Whether you plan to use the space to sip tea and gossip or host the house party of the century, you’re sure to feel right at home.

Now that you have finally moved out of your college dorm, it is time to decorate your new apartment. While it’s exciting to start decorating your own place, it can also be quite tricky to create a cohesive design. Moving into your own place is a big deal, yet it can come at a high price. Having an apartment that is trendy and chic at an affordable price is totally doable. Here are some tricks to help you save some money without missing out on style for a chic apartment:

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Create a gallery wall: Decorate your place with all kinds of images and art pieces in order to create a gallery wall. There are many places that have affordable images, or you can even print images online that suit your interests. What will create a trendy look, is adding all sorts of frames (both thick and thin) to the images. Examples of frames to hang up could include cute quotes, mirrors, initial letters, or images of celebrities. With a wall filled of all different size images and frames, you will create a very eye-pleasing and trendy space to look at. You can create a gallery wall behind your desk to get you inspired, or place the images behind your couch in the living room.

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Revamp your furniture: While you are probably using your old couch from home, or your cousin’s end table in your room, there is an easy way to revamp these older, run down pieces. Spruce up these pieces of furniture by adding your own personal touch. Change the knobs of your dresser with new, chic knobs that have flowers on them or ones that are shimmery and glass. You can also glam up your living space by re-covering pieces like your couches or ottomans with alternate fabrics with designs and patterns on them. Another little trick is to paint your pieces of furniture to brighten up a room or change it up a bit.

Photo: tbrottura_nychomedesigns_ on Instagram

Dress it up with a personal touch: Once you’ve handled all of the basics, it’s time to express your creativity and personal style through decorative pieces. Try laying out some of your favourite books on your coffee table to act as coasters. Use mason jars to fill up all of your miscellaneous items lying around the house or fill them with pens or makeup brushes to make it look cuter. Another way to dress up your apartment is by investing in some pretty and good smelling candles to spread throughout. Candles look great in clusters, so try grouping a bunch together (all different heights) on top of your fireplace or on your coffee table. Picture frames of friends and family are both decorative and personable, which is nice to decorate your new apartment as well. Decorative pillows are also a great way to glam up a room that is more simple and understated.