Living in a temporary home has been a challenge for me these last few months. I haven’t rented since my college days and back then my first concern wasn’t exactly decor, color or organization. It’s been hard living in a space that doesn’t allow the opportunity to add paint to walls or hang photos or add built-in organization systems. For the first two months, I have to admit it was kinda re-freshing to not be a homeowner. But now I find myself itching to do something – anything – to make this rental reflect our family…And the spring season. Even if it’s just for a little while until our move to California this summer.

Then I got to thinking that many of you reading along may be renting as well and have found yourself in a similar position. Some rentals don’t allow for you to make permanent changes or add paint. And if you do hang anything on the walls, you might end up feeling the burn when the landlord takes some money off your deposit during move out. I’m going to venture to guess that you might even feel that since it isn’t your permanent home and you don’t own it, you sorta don’t feel the pressure to make any improvements.

Today I’m sharing the little spring touches and color I recently added to our home. And I’m also sharing inspiration found around the web that shows how you can add color and character to your space….Even when you can’t do anything permanent.

First of all, let me say that I can’t believe I managed to easily locate some of our spring decor in our storage space. We are using the 3rd garage stall in this house to store all of the items we didn’t need for the 6 months we are renting. Here’s a look into the storage space…

It’s packed, but fairly organized. So I thought I would (safely) poke around to see if I could find my pink spring bin…

Wouldn’t you know it, I found it…

After living in a pretty bland environment, I was excited to find the bin so easily.

I’ve been able to add spring color and little touches around our rental house without doing anything permanent.

Pillows are a great way to add color, texture and comfort to any space. since our couch is light in color, we change out the throw pillows each season – just the cover. It creates an instant update to any room. since winter is now behind us, I removed our red throw pillow cases and picked up a few new pillow cases that reflect spring…

I love this light blue color. It’s so soothing…

Our new pillow this season is this adorable lumbar pillow found at pottery barn…

I love the pillow shape and it’s message…Doesn’t matter that this isn’t our home. But it is where we currently live and love lives here.

On our buffet/bar, I added a few springy touches…

Our 8 year old painted the bird house in his art class…

In our spring storage bin I found the handprint art we created last spring…

When you create something like this on your own, you are able to pick and choose the colors you enjoy most. We go for the lighter, softer colors in our space which is why I chose the colors shown above in the handprint art. But you can go really bold if you prefer.

Also found our bright, white bunnies. I missed them!…

On our console table…

The oversized starfish are from our trip to florida 4 years ago…

The shells in the tall vase are actually potpourri from pottery barn…

And the shells in the smaller glass vase are a mix of potpourri and the shells we brought home from our spring break trip to clearwater, Florida…

My little treat to myself (and the kids) this season is this sweet bunny cookie jar…

Isn’t he adorable?…

He’s on the kitchen counter full of cookies and surrounded by flowers in a vase of river rock…

Adding just a few little touches brightened up our living space…And makes me feel lighter and happier. I’m looking forward to next spring once we are settled in our new house…Can’t wait to really decorate for spring again.

There are countless ways to add color, texture and life to your home without doing anything permanent.
I found plenty of inspiration on the web and am sure you’ll find something here to inspire you as well.

Even the smallest touch of color and pattern wakes up an otherwise plain white space…

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Throw blankets add a fun splash of color too…

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Arrange your books by color – this is really pretty…

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Add a bold headboard…

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Add color and life with fresh flowers…

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Fruit can add color too!…

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The flowers don’t have to be real – faux flowers are just as colorful and last longer…

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This is a gorgeous color combo!…

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I love the peachy pink accents…And for added color you can lean photos against the wall, instead of hanging them…

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A few more colorful leaning frames…

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Add temporary color to the back of bookcases with foam board covered in pretty fabrics or papers…

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You can even create your own sweet, colorful printables…

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There are so many ways to add color and life to your rental or temporary home – think about pillows, plants, flowers, area rugs, artwork, temporary wall vinyls, colorful furnishings, throw blankets, and more! you can even add some wall hangings by using command adhesive strips…Or decorate with your children’s colorful artwork.

Now that we have a little more life and color in our rental, we are ready to host friends and family later this month during our son’s first holy communion weekend. We’re hosting family for a few days and having a big party…Along with the party decorations, our home is going to feel a bit more warm with the small touches I added for spring.

If you have any great temporary ideas for adding color or life in a rental home, feel free to share!

(I linked up with home stories a to z, savvy southern style, someday crafts, the 36th avenue, liz marie blog, house of hepworths, a bowl full of lemons)