The Latest: 2013

A staircase in the entry was a selling point for Cassity, but the builder basic quality left much to be desired. She decided to make the steps worthy of their prime location. Check out the results:From Cassity: Having a staircase in our entry was one of the features I liked about our new house, but the builder grade finishes, worn carpet and cramped entry really bothered me.

Jenna’s living room was filled with furniture that she loved, but that wasn’t working in her new home. Here’s how she transformed the space by letting go and bringing in some new color and pieces: From Jenna: Over the past 3 years since moving into my home, this space has been forever in transition. Much of the room was filled with furniture that was meaningful to us, but just didn’t fit.

The Portus House in Istanbul was used to getting high praise from guests, except for the bathrooms. Check out the how they transformed these beige boxes into rain shower retreats:From Portus House: We own a small hotel with a total of ten rooms in Istanbul and often are inspired by projects on this site. Last year, when yet another guest praised every little detail of our venue except the bathrooms, we finally decided to empty our pockets with brand new bathrooms.

I came across this project from a comment left in my recent post Brags! What DIY Project Are You Most Proud Of? It came from Julia from the blog Chris Loves Julia. They were looking to change up their living room for a more sophisticated yet casual look and Julia fell in love with some dramatic wainscoting images and got the bug to re-create it at home.It took them just a few hours over two days to put it up and then one day to paint it.

The closet in my guest bedroom never hosted much clothing, and I decided it’d be a perfect tucked away spot for sewing and crafting.My workspace in my last apartment was a craft cabinet, so a closet was a step up. I painted the bottom portion of the wall with leftover paint and built a desk with wood and metal braces from Home Depot. I hung acrylic shelves on the left wall and added a custom corkboard, task lamp, filing cabinet, and calendar.

You might walk by this unassuming stool at a thrift shop, but Charlotte saw potential. See how she gave this flea market find a fresh facelift. From Charlotte: Back when birds were chirping and grass wasn’t buried by 24″ of snow, I grabbed this wheelie stool at the Elephant’s Trunk Flea Market in New Milford, CT. The seller clearly thought he was getting the good end of the deal charging me $10. But a simple coat of spray paint later, and it has a new lease on life.

Harry Potter isn’t the only one with a cramped cupboard under the stairs. KariAnne Wood had a similarly awkward closet off the living room in her farmhouse. Previously it was just wasted, forgotten storage for random things, so she decided to make it a more useful and special spot in the house. See more of this project on KariAnne’s blog, Thistlewood Farms Thanks for sharing KariAnne!

I was a teenager once, and I’m sure my mother would have been beside herself with joy if my room were ever as neat as this before photo. But while uncluttered, this teen bedroom lacked a certain je ne sais quoi. A teen’s room is the one place where they can express a style that is truly their own, and this room wasn’t cutting it.

Joy and Corey loved their downtown Los Angeles loft, but its small footprint made finding storage space pretty challenging. So they figured out a way to take advantage of their 13′ ceilings by going vertical.From Joy: The whole project was inspired by the need to get stuff up and off the floor; with limited square footage, every inch counts. Also, I really wanted a way to consolidate all our media elements.