Even when you’re renting, it’s important to make your home environment feel like it’s uniquely yours. If you’re looking to step up your decorating game and make your mark, try out one of these accent wall ideas that will say to your guests and the voice inside your head, “I’d love to do more, but this is about it – I will never own a home!”
A pop of color
The most traditional way to execute an accent wall is by painting one side of an otherwise white room with a beautiful color. You can go bright with a turquoise or coral, or set off the white with a deep and dark hue. Either way, you’ll create a polished look that says, “The more work I put in, the more of a false sense of ownership I will feel, because false ownership is the only kind I’ll ever have.” At least you’re making your landlord’s building nicer!
A funky pattern
For the brave of heart, try out a patterned accent wall! The easiest way to accomplish this look is with wallpaper, and there are tons of gorgeous prints out there to choose from. While you go through the painstaking work of putting up your wallpaper, you can contemplate impermanence: the impermanence of your time in this apartment, the impermanence of this very wallpaper that will be torn down when you leave, unless of course the next tenant likes it! Go big with a palm frond patterned wall that says, “What’s a mortgage interest tax deduction?”
Add some texture
To really go the extra mile, create an accent wall with wood paneling or a crisscrossing pattern of boards. This option may be a little more expensive, but think of it as an investment! Just not a literal investment, of course. More something you will pour money into so you can exist near it, then eventually walk away having gained nothing — just like your apartment! This unique and eye-catching wall will say, “Homeownership was for the boomers! I’m happy to just have this cool wood wall for a few years until my management company drives me on out of here!” Someone call House Beautiful!
Most importantly, have fun and get creative! At least buying supplies might help your credit score for your next apartment application.
