How many times have you been shopping and fallen in love with something only to be crushed when you saw the price on the tag? This can be incredibly frustrating and disappointing, whether it be clothing, furniture, or the perfect decorative touch for your living room. I’m going to give you some ideas for how you can find a similar and affordable alternative to those dream items you simply can’t afford. I will also show you some examples of this to give you an idea what to look for. So, the next time you find a to-die-for and extremely expensive piece, keep these tips in mind and seek out a more affordable twin for that amazing mirror or beautiful bedspread.

Here’s our first example. Imagine you’re looking for a nice neutral sofa and you come across this one from Pottery Barn. You instantly love it: the color, the rolled arms, the cushion back and the wooden legs. Then you take a look at the price. GASP. Disappointed sigh. That’s the one you want, but you definitely don’t have that kind of budget, so you’re going to have to settle for a sofa that’s just “okay”, right? Wrong!

Just because this PB sofa is out of your price range, doesn’t mean you can’t get the look you want with a more affordable option. We’re not going to get into whole the quality, you-get-what-you-pay-for argument here. In some cases that may be true, but sometimes your budget trumps all else and you simply can’t afford what you can’t afford. So, instead of the sofa you first fell in love with, perhaps you could be just as happy with this Serta sofa from Amazon.com. It has a very similar neutral color, rolled arms, cushion back and wooden legs. The overall style is basically the same as the Pottery Barn sofa, but with a price under $500 which is way more budget friendly!

Now, you want to pick out a mirror to hang on the wall over your new sofa. You absolutely love Crate & Barrel, so you figure that’s a good place to start your search. As expected, they have a fantastic wall mirror that would look perfect in your living room. But wait… it costs $349. Ugh. Do you want to pay your car payment this month, or buy this mirror?

Let’s try a little Google search for “round gold wall mirror.” Would you look at that! We have options! Target has a very similar mirror, almost the same size, but for only $60. Bingo! We have a winner! Expressing your style and saving money at the same time feels good, doesn’t it?

Your new sofa is comfy and looks fabulous, but it needs a little something… Got it! A cozy throw blanket is just the thing you need. Perigold.com has a luxurious cable knit throw that’s inviting you to curl up with your blanket and a glass of wine. Unfortunately, if you purchased this $650 throw blanket you wouldn’t have any money left over for wine. That’s not an option!

You love the cable knit look and the grey color, so another google search (“grey cable knit throw”) will find you tons of other options to look at. Here’s one you may choose for the classic cable knit pattern and soft grey color.

You’re now snug as a bug on your sofa, with your soft new blanket, but you need a place to put your glass of wine. Time to search for an end table. A quick look at perigold.com turns up this adorable pedestal table and you know it would look amazing next to your sofa.

Unfortunately, that $739 price tag is out of the question. At least now you know you love the pedestal style for your new table. But how are you going to find another pedestal table like this one? You guessed it! You’re going to pinpoint what you like about it and turn that into a google search. You obviously like that it’s a pedestal table. You may also want to include the color that you like. Try the search a few different ways if necessary. First try “off white pedestal table”. This option brings up a lot of dining tables, so you need to be more specific. “Off white pedestal end table.” Perfect! You found a smaller version in the same color for only $51! Yes, it has four legs instead of the single flat base, however the overall look is still a pedestal with a round top. Sometimes, you’ve gotta make compromises if you wanna avoid paying top dollar. This will still look fabulous in your living room.

The last thing you need to complete your dream living room is a table lamp to give you the perfect mood lighting while you enjoy your glass of wine and a good book. Horchow.com has the most amazing gold lamp and you want it. NOW.

For $325, though, you’re going to have to keep looking. Perhaps you can find a lookalike with a friendlier price. Besides google, there is another search tool that can come in very handy when you’re looking for the perfect duplicate. Pinterest! How? It’s practically magic. The first thing you want to do is find your dream item on Pinterest by searching for it. In this case, you’re going to search for “Horchow Mirrored Capiz Lamp”. If you don’t find your item on the first try, modify your search a little and try again. Once you find your item, click on it to open up the pin. Now, in the bottom right corner of the image you should see the magic button. (A magnifying glass with for corners surrounding it.) When you click on this button, Pinterest is going to do a search for any other pins with similar looking images. Voila! You now have tons more images to look through that can lead you to your perfect, affordable dupe! Another easy way to search is to simply scroll down after you click on a pin and look for the section titled “Products like this”. Using these tools, you can find this World Market lamp and buy your own lampshade from Amazon.com. Done and done.

I hope these tips will help you the next time you’re shopping for a particular item. If you find yourself drawn to options that are out of your price range, think about what it is that you specifically love about them and search out alternatives that share common traits. Chances are, no matter what you love, you can find a budget friendly duplicate that will make you just as happy as the higher priced item.