These are the home decor elements I'd never scrimp on, plus the ones that truly aren't worth splashing the cash

Home decorator and content creator Grace H is one of Ideal Home's new Open House contributors, sharing her thoughts on colourful home design, mixing vintage pieces with new and making personality-filled spaces. See the rest of her articles here.

Let me begin by saying that I’ve learnt the hard way when it comes to the spend vs save battle. My main lesson learned is not to waste money on buying the ‘it will do for now’ piece, the placeholder, the ‘it’s good enough’. Call it what you will but it’s a false economy. You will end up replacing it in the future and then you’re paying twice.

So where should you splash the cash and where can you save those pennies? The spending part is easy. You’re never going to regret investing in a well-made sofa and a comfy mattress for starters. You’ll likely have them for years so buy the best that your budget will allow. Statement ceiling lighting can pack a punch but may cost a pretty penny. I’m also a massive advocate of fancy hardware, taps that feel weighty and bespoke pieces of furniture/upholstery mixed in with the high street for that high-low life. But let’s be honest, I highly doubt that anyone reading this needs much help with how to spend their well-earned cash.

So where can you save? Cushions, lamps, rugs, artwork, furniture, textiles and ceramics are pieces that give your home personality, but they don’t need to cost the earth. Let’s break it down, shall we?

Vintage furniture can be picked up from online marketplaces for a steal and is often better made than modern furniture. Paint it, sand it, stain it - do whatever you need to but buy old. You’ll thank yourself years down the line.

For those of us not blessed with the ‘let me just whip up a cushion/curtain in my lunch break’ gene then find yourself someone that can make you maybe one fancy bespoke cushion (bonus points if you find designer fabric remnants online) and mix in with two off the shelf cushions from the high street and you’ve got sofa jewellery that looks polished without the price tag.

I will stand by the statement that you can never have too many lamps until I’m blue in the face (just know that I will spar with anyone that regularly turns on the big light as standard) but one quick search of oversized statement lamp and the only thing statement is the price. The only drama that we want to achieve is the look on a budget.

Buy a vintage base from a charity shop and spend a bit more on a fancy shade to get a look that doesn’t look like page 5 of the catalogue. Or buy a massively oversized vintage vase and get yourself a DIY kit to turn it into a lamp base (search ‘rubber bung’ and you’re halfway there to creating your statement lamps that looks like it belongs in a country mansion).

Never skimp on lampshade sizes though. If you generally follow the rule of thumb that a lampshades width should be roughly the same size as the height of a lamp base, then you can’t go far wrong. If in doubt, always go bigger. Same with rugs. Yes, it costs more but it will look like it’s floating in the room if it’s too small. Rugs should always be big enough for at least the front legs of a sofa to sit on otherwise it’ll look like it’s been lost at sea.

Don’t get me started on artwork (another passion of mine). It can cost a fortune and whilst an original oversized piece by an amazingly talent artist can instantly elevate a room, it’s just not possible for everyone and that’s ok, we can’t have it all. Instead of buying generic artwork that everyone has, raid the charity shops for frames, Instagram and Etsy for independent print sellers and combine the two and you have something more unique. I also can’t stress the importance of a custom mount that is cut to size or a bespoke mount that offers something a little more unique.

One thing that is very rarely worth spending on in my opinion is a tablecloth. Yes, there are some stunners out there but whilst it may look beautiful, do you really want to be holding your breath at a dinner party in anticipation that someone spills red wine? Homes are supposed to be lived in, well-loved and dare I say a bit worn. Life is too short to be waiting with anticipation for the dreaded red wine stain. Buy the cheaper version and you’ll thank me later.

And last but certainly not least and my personal favourite, ceramics. Get thee to a charity shop! The stuff that people throw away never ceases to amaze me and most of the second-hand vases in my collection cost me the price of a takeaway coffee (ok maybe two takeaway coffees for the good ones). A lonely little plate gathering dust on a shelf could be living its best life on your wall as part of a collection for instance. A glazed trinket dish may make a perfect place for your keys, and a vintage plant pot is always more interesting than new. The possibilities are endless.

One thing I feel I must mention, and this is a controversial one as there’s loads of conflicting advice about colour matching paint. Sorry to the thrifty people reading this but I’m firmly in camp ‘colour matching is never the same’. I see paint as the coat of the fashion world; it’s the thing that you see the most of so make it a statement and spend.

The key is always a high-low approach. A room full of vintage can look like your stuck in a time warp. A room full of new can feel a little two staged or unfinished. A mixture of the two is a match made in heaven.

What have I missed?