When I first saw what Emily could do freehand painting a closet, I said to myself 'this lady's got some mad skills'! So I dug a little deeper into her blog and noted this before and after of Emily's living room that pretty much sums up her talents. It's also a testament to the power of a design in transforming a space!
Now, granted, the before picture is pretty sad. It would be easy to dismiss this makeover by saying that just about anything would have been an improvement on that. But when you look around at all the details of Emily's makeover, you can see that even the subtle changes help the home feel more lovely and livable.
Of course, the first thing your eye is drawn to in the room is the fireplace. I wouldn't have thought to paint the fireplace white but it really cleans it up and makes it a focal point of the room. It also make the mantle, which Emily decided to leave in its original finish, pop. Installing the french door where there was formerly a solid door brings more light to the room and makes it feel bigger. And the high horizontal line of the two-tone walls helps the space feel taller, too. Lucky for Emily, the hardwood floors were laying under the old carpet you can see in the before photo. It cannot be left unsaid that the refinished floors with their dark stain go a long way in warming up the space.
You can see all of the changes Emily has made to her home over on her blog — Merrypad.
Images: Merrypad
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Comments (52)
Wow. Just wow.
I would have been totally stuck on what to do with the before room.
wow it looks beautiful
Wow! While it's true that just about anything would have been an improvement over the before, I'd have loved the after even if I didn't know what it used to look like. Nice work!
I need those paint colors! Especially the yellow!
This is fantastic! I love the paint (for both the wall and the fireplace) and the floors. It makes a HUGE difference.
is the before picture
from the previous tenant??
looks amazing
You can never go wrong with hardwood floors and crisp white moulding. Nice!
The new door makes a huge difference. Not crazy about the new paint colors, but the new room as a whole is great.
Beautiful! I think I may have said "wow" about five times.
I made an account here just now after about a year of lurking, just to say, Wow, that looks fan-freaking-tastic! I literally yelled "Holy crap!" at my computer. So, yeah, nice room :)
Haha! The first word out of my mouth when I saw the after photo was "WOW!" - seems to be a theme. Great job!
I LOVE the after! So fresh and pretty! I'd take this living room!
Hellooooo my lovely room!! Great job!!
Nice redo. I like the added warmth and more variety in colors & textures but also appointed zones, so everyone has more options. Before, it felt undefined and kind of blah. Kudos!
Sorry, I find the white on the fireplace sterile and cold.
Any ideas where the sofa came from?
Love this make over!
awesome job!
I love the white brick and I think it's a huge improvement all around. It looks fresh and cozy and confirms my belief that you just can't beat a sunny, cheery yellow to warm up a small space like this. Very nicely done!
Thanks to everyone for the nice comments - the couch was bought from Value City a few years ago.
This is one of the very best transformations. I would never have picked those paint colors and yet... beautiful job!
HOLY MOLY.
I would have really struggled even with the layout, but what a transformation! I am partial to that lower goldy greeny yellow; it's nearly the same color I painted my open kithen. It looks just gorgeous with the wood floor and painted brick.
Nice work!
Definitely joining the 'wow' brigade on this one. I like her gutsy color choices.
YAY so nice!
I really love how everything is perfectly scaled to the room. You have seating positions that are almost facing each other (and that is a hard one in narrow rooms, as I am sadly aware); the art pieces are perfectly scaled to the walls, so is the coffee table.
I'm with the wow brigade !
Terrific transformation. Thank you for the perfect demonstration on how a light filled front door can completely change a space. This is exactly what I want to do. Tell ne, did you have any hesitation touse a glass front door for security or privacy issues?
Now that's a true makeover. The proportions are great now, the artwork is great, the room is well edited and I love that charming little vase with the pink flowers.
Wow. I mean wow. It is hard to believe they are the same room! I love that the two tone is 2/3rds up the wall, very clever and helps the room looks bigger. Plus all of the white really pops now. It is so cozy yet fresh feeling and that candelier looks great! Well done.
Looks awesome. I mean, even though I don't really like the new wall colors--I'd never pick them myself--everything works so well together and is so well done that even the wall colors look awesome to me in this context, which is saying something. Nice work.
Way to go, Emily. The room looks so much larger now. What a great transformation.
Emily is absolutely amazing and I LOVE all her handiwork! She's a serious risk taker!!!
Usually not a fan of painted brick but here I give it a huge thumbs up. Great makeover. Love how it makes the wood pop.
I would prefer the word design rather than style. Emily is an outstanding interior designer.
Very smart placement of furniture. I agree with "Village".
wow! great job
Ya done real good! (I just couldn't add one more "wow", but that's what I was thinking!)
Thanks everyone for the kind words! Glad you like my living room + home.
Wow !!!
ughgh, how do people ever actually cover up wood floors with carpet?? tearing out ugly horrible ridiculous useless carpeting (yes, I hate carpets, they're basically inexcusable) and finding delicious hardwood floors must feel like striking gold. mmmm.
The before has got to be the previous apartment dwellers things.
Why is everybody still painting nicely stained or natural wood trim? The new furniture and hardwood floors are an improvement but, I'm so tired of makeovers that do not improve upon or complement the house's character.
wow great job!
Spectacular. Wonderful vision and execution.
Looks Fab!
Such a transformation--lovely!
Very lovely! I painted my brick fireplace white and it really worked quite well too.
i adore painted fireplace surrounds - especially in white.
nice trunk, too!
Impressive!!!
AMAZING. All these posts provide much needed inspiration as I begin house hunting. Thank you everyone for sharing!
REALLY LIKE THE TWO TONED WALLS. EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS RE-MODEL IS SPOT ON. GREAT JOB!
The before was absolutely depressing, the after is absoluteIy stunning! Love the courageous and imaginative use of the colors. I also love the boards on the walls. I would never have conceived of those options! Bravo!
Absolutely picture perfect.