5 Decorating Project Ideas for 2023 & The Sales to Snag NOW So You’re Ready to Knock Them Out!

The last few months of the year are always crazy busy so one of the last things on your mind may be the home improvement projects that you plan to knock out in 2023. But it’s so worth it to give some thought to your upcoming projects and snag a few key pieces now when you can get them at a great sale price and be ready to jump right into your projects in the new year.

And while one of the best home sales of the year, Way Day, has come and gone, for the first time ever, Wayfair’s big sale with massive markdowns is back! Today & tomorrow (Oct 26th-27th), you can shop Wayfair’s Way Day sale with deals up to 80% off, flash deals, doorbuster sales, and free shipping sitewide. Woo hoo!  To help you prepare for the sale, today I’m sharing five decorating projects to knock out in 2023 and the home accessory & furniture deals to snag NOW to get the job done right! Let’s jump on in… (post includes affiliate links & is sponsored by Wayfair; full disclosure statement available {here})

1. Say Bye-Bye to Builder-Grade Lighting

Every house we’ve moved to has been filled with lighting that’s either super dated or dirt cheap builder-grade with zero style. It continues to amaze me what a difference replacing light fixtures with more stylish options can make! It’s why changing out lighting is always one of the first things we do in a new home (as of two weeks ago I have officially changed out every single overhead light fixture in our NC home – there were no survivors!).

The price point for lighting is all over the place but there are lots of stylish options even if you’re on a limited budget. For example, one of my go-to flush mount light fixtures is {this simple flush mount light} with a classic design that works with just about any design style. It’s on closeout deal for over 50% off!! In our last home, I used this fixture in both our guest bathroom and laundry room in the warm brass finish:

Other Sources: Acrylic drawer pulls  |  Over the door ironing board hanger

It also comes in Bronze, Polished Nickel, and Satin Nickel. I’ve gathered together some of my other favorite flush mount lights too including the glass star flush mount we have in the laundry room of our current home (light #1), the brass drum semi-flush mount we had  in our home office (light #3), the scalloped fabric flush mount we had in our CT bedroom (light #4), and the budget-friendly flush mount we have in our powder room (light #8):

Links to lights:  1. Star flush mount  |  2. Clover shape semi-flush mount |  3. Drum semi-flush mount  |  4. Scalloped white fabric fixture with black trim  |  5. Quatrefoil fabric + metal shade  |  6. Simple bowl flush mount  |   7. Low profile star flush mount  |   8. Simple white flush mount

In addition to flush mount and recessed lighting, consider adding additional sources of light in a room to increase the functionality of your space and add style and ambience! This can include a combination of recessed lighting, pendants, chandeliers, table lamps, floor lamps, and/or sconces. As an example, in the primary bathroom of our CT home, we had recessed lighting but we also added {this rattan pendant} over the bathtub and {these vanity lights} over our double vanity:

A lot of my other light fixtures are available on Wayfair too including the table lamp on our entryway console (light #3), the chandelier in our CT family room (light #5), and the globe light ceiling fan in my girls’ bedroom (light #8):

Links:  1. Oversized rattan pendant  |  2. Blue & white table lamp (set of 2)  |  3. White column table lamps (set of 2)  |  4. Double sconce  |  5. Two-tiered chandelier  |  6. Open circle design floor lamp  |  7. Lantern pendant  |  8. Globe light ceiling fan

2. Swap Your Pedestal Sink for a Small Space Vanity

Looking to update your powder room? If it has a dated pedestal sink, consider swapping it out for a small space vanity. Not only will it update the look of your bathroom but it adds extra storage space too for extra rolls of TP, hand towels, tissue boxes, and more. I recently made the swap in the powder room of our NC home, switching out this pedestal sink that didn’t even have enough space for even a soap pump without the faucet handle bumping it:

to {this small space vanity} with a ton more countertop space plus two drawers and a shelf with storage space beneath:

I did the same thing in the guest bathroom of our previous home:

Wayfair no longer carries the exact vanity I bought for our guest bathroom but {this 24″ gray vanity} is very similar (I swapped out the knobs to a dressier option!). These are some other pretty options in 24-30″ sizes that are perfect for small space bathrooms:

Sources: 1. Gray 24″ two-drawer vanity (also in blue & white)  |  2. White 30″ scalloped edge vanity (also in blue & gray)  |  3. Blue 30″ vanity (5 color options)  |  4. White 24″ crosshatch design vanity (also in blue & gray)  |  5. Driftwood 30″ vanity  | 6. Light gray 30″ two-door vanity (7 color options)  |  7. Green 24″ vanity  |  8. White 30″ vanity with bottom drawer (also in blue & gray)  | 9. Blue 30″ two-drawer vanity (also in gray & white)

And if you’re looking for a great widespread faucet, I bought {this faucet} that comes in four finish options for the primary bathroom in our old house and again in the powder room of our new home – I love the gooseneck design and the chunky cross handles:

3. Say Goodbye to Skirts

While I’m definitely not saying that you need to kick all of your bed skirts to the curb, if you have a bedroom that you’d like to update, investing in a complete bed with side and footboards is definitely worth thinking about. I did just that in our guest room a few years back, swapping out my standard headboard + bed frame for {this upholstered bed} and it was EXACTLY what this room needed, giving it a more clean-lined, tailored look:

I was so happy with this bed that when we needed a new king bed for our primary bedroom in NC, I bought the same exact one (my sister was the happy recipient of our queen guest bed which we no longer needed after going from a 4-bedroom to a 3-bedroom home). There are several fabric options to choose from but both times I went with the Zuma White fabric. It’s a great not-too-white, not-too-yellow color. Our bedroom is still a work in progress but from when we moved in.

but we’re getting there! It definitely feels more bright and airy than it did before:

Along with my go-to upholstered bed, these are some other favorite skirt-less bed options:

Sources: 1. Tufted upholstered platform bed  |  2. White bamboo-inspired metal bed  |  3. Black canopy bed  |  4. Grooved border gray upholstered bed  |  5. Notched border upholstered bed  |  6. White washed wood platform bed

As a tip when shopping for upholstered beds, note that some require a box spring while others don’t in case that changes your preference.

4. Add Stylish Storage

Adding extra storage space to your home doesn’t have to mean sacrificing style! There are plenty of consoles, cabinets, & sideboards that are full of storage space and are also beautifully designed pieces. When we first moved into our NC home, we were in dire need of a storage piece for this wall on the right in our dining room (in our old house, we had a built-in cabinet for storing everything):

Not only did I need something with a ton of space inside, but it also had to be a beautiful piece since it’s the only furniture in the room other than our table and chairs. I ended up with {this sideboard} in the matte white/brass option and absolutely love it:

These are some other favorite stylish consoles, cabinets, & sideboards that I found in my search:

Sources: 1. White rattan sideboard  |  2. Black 2-door cabinet  |  3. White fluted 2-door cabinet  |  4. Natural cane sideboard  |  5. White 4-door cabinet with wood handles  |  6. Gray 2-door cabinet  |  7. White paneled 2-door cabinet  |  8. White scalloped cabinet

If you need a long storage piece on a budget, consider two side-by-side 2-door cabinets. Cabinets #2, #3, and #6 would all work well when used as a pair side by side to create the look of a single long piece.

5. Fill Your Bare Floors

A simple way to add both style and warmth to your home is by adding area rugs! I love hardwoods and we have them throughout most of our home but I don’t think there’s a single room that doesn’t look better with an area rug layered on top. This is especially true if you have wood furniture – rugs are a nice way to break up the “wood on wood” of furniture on hardwoods.

One of my favorite area rugs is {this blue striped rug} in our family room (a rare 20% off for Way Day!):

It adds some great color and pattern to the space but at the same time doesn’t limit what I choose for pillows and other accessories in this room. And like other Dash & Albert rugs I’ve had (including {this area rug} we had for years in the family room of our previous home), it’s worn well and cleans up well too.

Now I’m the hunt for the perfect rug for our “circus room” after having the carpet replaced with hardwood floors last week (I’ll be sharing pics soon!). These are a few of my favorites I’m considering:

Links to area rugs: 1. Geometric gray & white rug  |  2. Terracotta Oriental rug  |  3. Charcoal & light beige patterned rug  |. 4. Ivory Oriental rug  |  5. Oriental navy blue rug  |  4. Black plaid area rug  |  5. Blue denim indoor/outdoor rug  |  6. Geometric flatweave patterned rug  |  7. Denim Oriental rug  |  8. Chevron indoor/outdoor rug  |  9. Natural/ocean Oriental rug

I hope you found an idea or two that got your wheels turning on decorating projects to jump into in the new year! In addition to checking out the favorite finds I’ve shared, I’d also recommend clicking through the Doorbuster Deals on Wayfair’s site {HERE} – there are tons of great one-day buys!

Don’t forget about looking for deals on holiday decorations too. Wayfair is a great source for mercury glass Christmas trees including {this tree} and {this tree} that I recently added to my collection:
They have LED lights built into the base that make them look so pretty at night!

I love that mercury glass Christmas trees can by used in so many places – I’ve used them to decorate our fireplace mantel,
our holiday table,
and many other spaces throughout our home.

Along with mercury trees, these are some other pretty Christmas decorations you can score on Wayfair:

Sources: 1. Lighted wreath  |  2. Starburst tree topper  |  3. Trio of hanging bells  |  4. Bow stockings  |  5. Mercury glass tree  |  6. Mercury Christmas tree  |  7. Plaid ribbon  |  8. Windowpane plaid throw pillow  |  9. Red striped bow pillow  |  10. Outdoor lighted deer  |  12. Artificial spruce Christmas tree