We redid our living room and kitchen last year. We had a HORRIBLE floor to deal with, so we did the area rug thing, and it turned out really well. We got slipcovers for all of the furniture so it matched in something dark but neutral. We painted the living room lavendar, with grayish taupe slip covers in a damask pattern. Then one of the sisters MADE pillows for them, just like on trading spaces

We got a beige/taupe area rug as well. It turned out really nice. For the kitchen, we painted it butter yellow, and the sister who made the pillows made curtains to match for the windows in both rooms! We put new hardware on all the cupboards and painted them white and put new counter paper on all the counters. Again, it turned out nice! Watch HGTV's Design on a Dime and BBC America's House Invaders. Both give you good cheap ways to fix things up.