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    12 Home Upgrades That'll Make Renters Say "Why Didn't I Know About This Sooner?"

    Conceal boob lights with lampshades and hang plants without drilling holes.

    Emily Shwake
    by Emily Shwake

    BuzzFeed Staff

    BuzzFeed

    1. Dress your walls in fabric if you love patterns, but hate contact wallpaper.

    funcheaporfree.com

    Tape the fabric along the top of the wall to hold it while you work. Spray the wall and back of the fabric with liquid starch, then carefully spread the fabric out, watching for bumps or wrinkles. Spray the top of the fabric, as well, to soak the fabric through. You'll want to work in sections to make sure the fabric lies flat before it dries. Use a rotary cutter to trim away the excess fabric along the ceiling and baseboards, and any that's covering the light switches and outlets.

    When you want to remove it, just press a damp sponge on the fabric and it'll peel right off without leaving any residue. Throw the fabric in the washing machine so you can use it again in your next home. Learn more here.

    2. Stick light strips underneath your cabinets to give your kitchen a heavenly glow.

    thriftydecorchick.com

    You can even buy an adapter with a timer if you don't want the lights on all night. Learn more here.

    Get 16 feet of lights from Amazon for $10.50+ (available in seven colors).

    3. Hang strands of fake flowers along the wall so you don't have to buy a fresh bouquet every week.

    sweetteal.com

    Cut flowers off a plastic bouquet, and glue the stems to the buds. Tie fishing wire around the top flowers and hang them from small command hooks. Learn more here.

    4. Conceal an ugly light fixture with a large lampshade that's more your style.

    greyhouseharbor.com

    Cut out a piece of acrylic and glue it to the inside of the lampshade. Put earth magnets on each of the spider wires (the things that you usually use to attach the shade to the bulb), and align them with the existing light fixture. The earth magnets are strong enough to hold the lampshade up. Learn more here.

    Get a six-pack of earth magnets from Amazon for $8.99.

    5. Suspend a rod across your cabinets so you can hang plants without drilling holes in the ceiling.

    morganours.com

    If you don't already have plant hangers, you can easily make one out of a pretty bowl! Just drill three small holes around the bowl and tie a cord on each. Pull all of the cords to the length that they will hang, then loop and knot them. Use s-hooks to hang them from the rod. Learn more here.

    6. Or roll in a garment rack to hang the plants closer to the window.

    kmart.com.au

    It can snuggle into a bare-looking corner of the room or literally stand right in front of the window. They'll get all of that light without blocking too much of it from the rest of the room! Learn more here.

    Get a garment rack from Ikea for $9.99.

    7. Prop a ladder against the wall to hang towels, blankets, magazines, or accessories.

    themerrythought.com

    Not only does this ladder create a whole bunch of extra storage space, it's so pretty and easy to build. All you need to do is drill holes in two thick dowels, and slide through the thinner dowels. Learn more here.

    8. Cut out and paint foam sheets to add a funky pattern to white walls.

    akailochiclife.com

    Foam boards are super cheap so it's an easy DIY to experiment with, and they are very lightweight so you can hang them up with a few pieces of tape! Learn more here.

    9. Decorate your backsplash with patterned tile stickers.

    10. Hang string lights over your dining room table if the lighting in there just isn't as cozy as you'd like.

    Gabriella Herman / Via thekitchn.com

    Use command hooks — or tape if you can disguise it — to hang the lights. Learn more here.

    11. Disguise outdoor eyesores with a wall of fake ivy.

    thecraftedlife.com

    Fake ivy is great for concealing ugly chain link fence or even just making a balcony feel more like a fancy garden. Learn more here.

    Get 84 feet of fake ivy from Amazon for $14.75.

    12. Collage your photos with magazine clippings and cool posters so they can still look cool without frames.