The Latest: 2012

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.

Rhonda has the kind of friends we all need — friends who give away beautiful solid wood desks on Facebook. Desks like the one above that have strong bones despite the visible wear and tear caused by years of hard use. Rhonda and her husband knew this desk would shine up to a become a showpiece in their home, and boy were they right!Rhonda’s husband took charge of this project, removing all of the old chipped veneer before sanding the wood smooth.

Many years ago a teacher told me that you could steam out a dent in a piece of wood (one where the wood fibers had been compressed, not where they had been removed) using a wet rag and an iron. This technique was meant for unfinished wood, but unfortunately, most of the wood we deal with in our homes has some sort of finish on it. With some research I learned that this technique can work with finished wood but it depends greatly on the type of finish you are dealing with.

Courtney and her husband are lucky enough to have a wonderful outdoor deck, but weren’t sure how to best use this odd empty corner. Inspiration struck and they decided to construct an outdoor day bed to provide some much needed lounging space for a party or a quiet afternoon. Using a combination of new and reclaimed wood, they built a custom seating area to fill up that empty corner.

Back when she moved into her new condo, Michelle decided the time had come to replace the IKEA dresser in her bedroom, a dresser purchased back when she was in middle school! After scouring Craiglist and thrift stores for months, she finally found the perfect piece for her new home, and picked it up for only $50 delivered.

Wood panelling doesn’t always do great favors for a space and this room is an example of that. With heavy furniture this room was a dark and oppressive space, but with some brighter furnishings and white paint the room is completely transformed.The wood panelling really brought down the mood of this room, but I do love the look of panelling on ceilings, so we kept that and painted it out white.

When Tammy picked up this dresser, it was already painted a soft blue and the drawer fronts were already sanded down to the bare wood- clearly this was someone’s unfinished DIY project. Never one to back down from a challenge, Tammy immediately had a vision of a coastal vibe dresser honoring her family’s annual summer trip to the beaches of North Carolina.Tammy left the blue paint on the frame of the dresser, but sanded down the top to match the bare drawer fronts.

This master bedroom needed a modern update and some TLC in order to transform it from drab 1980’s tract style into a sleek and sophisticated sanctuary.When you live in a home for awhile, it is easy to get used to certain architectural elements that may not be helping a space out. This space had a large soffit surrounding the room that seemed to enclose it in a negative way.

This snores-ville cabinet could definitely use a slap of paint to liven it up a bit. There is no question about that. But to give it even more personality, more pizzazz, what can you do?We’re reminded once again at the power of adding the right hardware; look at what a pair of mismatched, unexpected knobs does for this piece.Want to customize your cabinet in similar fashion? The brass finish Secret Key Handle from Anthropologie is available for just $4.95.And those lovely numbered knobs?

Most of us have a set of shelves that are decidedly more functional than they are fashionable. This shabby set survived the move into our new house and managed to look even shabbier sitting on our brand new tile floor and adjacent to a freshly painted wall. It only took me three years but it finally got a makeover more befitting its new station in life.The epiphany came as I was sketching plans for a cabinet and realized that, duh, a cabinet is basically a set of shelves with a back and a door!

As Brittany herself says, this story began (as so many here do) with a trip to the thrift store. Celebrating the sale of an old white coffee table, Brittany was delighted to find this sticky, smelly, and admittedly in need of repair chair for the bargain price of only $5. With a little elbow grease and gold leaf, Brittany created a marvelous addition for her home.After removing the seat, Brittany sanded the whole chair with 400-grit sandpaper, then wiped it down to remove any dust.

In the past I’ve tried several times to turn an old trunk or camp box into a filing system. Sure they work and I had things inside to keep all my papers and accessories organized, but I was missing out on some serious structure that makes it all truly come together. Check out this great before and after that makes this thrifted object into a serious piece of office organization.

With a $20 price tag and simple design, the Lack table from IKEA is just screaming for customization. Ssshh … listen carefully. Can you hear it? Please, dear DIY diva, take me from a cookie cutter cheap-o table to a beautiful, one-of-a-kind piece of furniture! Lucky for you, little table, Lizzie heard your pleas. Oh, humble IKEA Lack coffee table. How we do love to see what clever DIYers can do to enhance your simple little design.

Bathrooms are something of a catch-22 when it comes to remodeling. On one hand, unless it is one solely intended for guests, not many people see it besides you and your family. But on the other hand, since it tends to be the room where contemplation occurs most naturally, thoughts often drift to how much better it could look with a bit of work.

When Ann Marie decided to take on a project for her son’s school auction, she was lucky to find this old entertainment system for free on Craigslist. After some hard work and for only a $15 investment in supplies, she transformed this unwanted piece into a showstopping French kitchen that any child would love.