I  am passionate about decorating.

As with most indulgences these days, decorating is an expensive endeavor.

For Fancy Free Fridays this week I am exposing my deep dive into creatively inexpensive ways to zhuzh up your home.

Your living room deserves to look like it reads Proust, even if you only skimmed the back cover.

Let’s talk décor…not the kind that requires a second mortgage or a personal visit from an interior designer named Chad. No, we’re talking budget brilliance. The kind that involves charm, a bit of creativity and a dash of faux-vintage flair.

Books, like women, multitask. Not only can you indulge in the written page, but you can use books as decorating items.

Start with vintage books. Or at least books that look vintage. Think cracked spines, gold leaf embossing.

You can find them cheap at thrift stores, estate sales or Home Goods which I just discovered. Amazon also offers large coffee table books and small format books in a plethora of colors again at very reasonable price points.

Stack them in threes, remove a few dust jackets for that raw linen look, or arrange them by color to fake a well-traveled, well-read connoisseur.

Now for the pièce de résistance, the metal sphere.

You’ve seen it. Maybe in a high-end catalog. It is sculptural. It’s industrial and it instantly adds sophistication.

Position it atop the book stack, nestled in a tray or sitting smugly on a sideboard. Suddenly, you’ve got depth, texture and a focal point.

One of my favorite items on Amazon is the metal sphere. They cost approximately $20 and are sold in high end stores for more than triple the price.

Sprinkle in a ceramic vase, a plant or flowers with personality (real or fake—no judgment), and, voila, you have visual intrigue.

Decorating with vintage or faux-vintage books or sleek new editions and one striking metal sphere is about more than just budget, it is about story. These are not just objects. They’re conversation starters. They are eye candy with a plot twist.

I must admit I do purchase books that accentuate the room’s color scheme.

You do not need to leave home to decorate your abode or break the bank purchasing expensive pieces. You just need a dash of creativity and a sense of color.

Enjoy, experiment and have some fun!