The Latest: Mar 2012

Fusty light fixtures are a surefire way to show that you haven’t freshened up your decor in a while. A long while, in some cases. When Kristine, the talented Aussie behind The Painted Hive, wanted to brighten up a little nook off her parents’ master bedroom (a “retreat” for her mum), she knew this fixture needed a serious makeover.It’s hard to believe it’s the same wall sconce!

After taking a break from furniture refinishing for a year to have a lovely baby, Cathy decided to get back in the game when she found these wooden nightstands listed for sale online. Solidly built but not very attractive, these nightstands were crying out for a makeover.Cathy sanded everything down to remove the old finish before using her paint sprayer to cover the bases in Benjamin Moore Moon Rise. She chose to retain the original wood tones of the top, staining it with Minwax Red Oak.

Crystal loved the price and concept of IKEA’s CIRKUSTÄLT play tent, but she wasn’t a fan of the loud primary colors especially to use in her daughter’s softer-hued bedroom. She picked out fabric she did like and got busy with her sewing machine…Voila! She used the same “bones” of the tent, but completely new fabric that is more her style.

When the folks at Fixing It Fancy bought their home in Hudson, Wisconsin, they knew they had a lot of work ahead of them. They powered through the wood-paneled home room-by-room. Here’s a look at what they dreamed up in their bedroom… They began with tearing down the wood paneled walls. They decided on keeping the panel on the ceiling and painting it white, which really gave a nice, open and airy quality to a once claustrophobic room.

When Alisha and her husband decided the time had come to rearrange all the bedrooms in their house to better suit the needs of their growing family, they were lucky enough to have some old family favorites to help set up a new room for their toddler son that could double as a guest room when necessary. Alisha knew she wanted to reuse the beds that had belonged to her husband when he was a child, but also knew they needed an update to fit with her vision.

Many of the ‘Befores’ of our Before and After posts are hopeless spaces where any bit of attention would be a marked improvement. But sometimes the room itself is fine and it is the needs of the occupant that dictate the change. In this case, a little sister was moving into her big brother’s room. To make things interesting, the makeover was a birthday surprise and had to be completed in just one day. The suspense is killing me!Voila!

When David found this drab little dresser, he immediately had a vision of a kid-friendly makeover involving chalkboard paint. That plan lasted right up until he had a conversation with his sister, a mom of three who was not a fan of the idea of chalk dust anywhere near her kids clean clothes. David immediately switched gears and came up with a wonderful backup plan involving vintage graphics he found online.

Like many of us, Weiya was searching for an affordable solution for her storage woes, searching for a piece which could work as a landing strip for her personal belongings (keys, diaper bag, etc), while also provide additional storage underneath, and surface area for her laptop.

Katie picked up this bruised and battered table from her favorite thrift store for the unbelievable price of $16.91. Despite the peeling veneer and the damaged finish, Katie knew this table was solidly built and had a lot of life left in it.With no way to fix the damaged veneer on the edge, Katie was forced to remove it using a damp cloth and a hot iron. She then used lacquer remover and sanding to take off the finish and the gold foil design on the top.

Jonathan Lo, who is no stranger to DIY, interior design, and making things beautiful, is at it again with these painted nightstands. As an addition to his handmade (of course) headboard, he wanted a sleek pair of end tables to contrast the weathered look of the bed. I think he achieved his goal…This crisp and classic navy blue adds such a handsome appeal to these nightstands. Often folks will cringe at the thought of painting any wood, whatsoever.

Think you need to spend a lot on new furniture to give your space a total overhaul? Think again. This compact kitchen office gets a 180° makeover from the pros at Martha Stewart using a new color and a few inexpensive additions — a task chair, acrylic desk organizers and a rolling window blind (really!).

As you can see from the photos, these lovely lucite tables were already a wonderful component of this fun turquoise living room. Of course, sometimes we tire of even lovely tables after looking at them day after day without change. Thankfully, there is an easy and inexpensive way to update these tables without making any permanent alterations.Blogger Meeha Meeha spent only 12 euros on hot pink adhesive film to transform her tables for to help fight the winter blues.

Another great project from one of my favorite DIYers, her projects are always creative and impressively well-executed. She doesn’t disappoint with her latest project, refurbishing vintage Leg-o-matic chairs. Had you ever heard of these chairs before? I hadn’t but totally want some now! See her amazing results after the jump.The craftswoman is Janine from Salvage Love. She found these 1962 vintage Leg-o-matic chairs at a local thrift store and was smart enough to snap them up.

Just off of Washington Square Park in Philadelphia, there’s a small art gallery called the Bridgette Mayer Gallery. A champion of innovative contemporary art, owner Bridgette Mayer exhibits international artists from around the world. She also just finished an amazing year-long renovation of her gallery. With it, the exhibit space has more than doubled in size. However, it’s the basement (or Level A, as Bridgette calls it) remodel that really struck me.

I’ve happened upon several card catalogs at auctions in the past, but truth be told, I could never figure out what to do with them. They’re a little small for CDs and a little low to the ground to do much good, but this family in Portland had grander visions than I.This library card catalog has come a long way with a few simple add ons and is now a practical piece for any home.