The Latest: Sep 2014

Shehzeen tells us, “I love a home with personality. If I had all the time in the world, I’d probably even make all the furniture for my house (I could be in need of therapy).” We feel you, Shehzeen. Just look at what this crafty lady did with these blank walls.

The refresh of this little shelf shows off the power of small changes. Odile recently moved to a new home and while searching for new furniture came across this piece at a local thrift shop for 40 bucks. 40 minutes (and one long journey with a borrowed cart) later, Odile had it safely home. Subtle yet powerful changes just makes this whole project a win in our book.

Emily called it “love at first sight” when she found this upholstered chair at a flea market. She’d been in the market for a new desk chair that she could fix up. Just what did she do with it? (Hint: those tools seem to be Emily’s favorite color). So fun! Emily needed to add some color to her all-white office so she really went all out. And that is one professional-looking reupholstery job.

We love a good rescue and that’s exactly what John gave this Heywood Wakefield Gateleg table. His journey included Craigslist, ebay, lots of research and even more elbow grease but his results will blow you away. From John: I had been wanting one of these tables for a long time. They’re not so rare that you can’t find them, but in nice condition, they can be over $800. I found this one on Craigslist listed at $250.

The paint on Jen’s house was peeling in patches, and even non-existent in certain spots. Jen definitely felt her house looked dilapidated and unloved, and wanted to increase its curb appeal. Although she was daunted by the prospect, she and her parents stepped up one weekend, and used a little elbow grease. See what they were able to do for only $125…. In addition to the new paint job, Jen swapped out the door handle, and changed the mailbox.

Ashley experienced a happy situation we all find ourselves in from time to time: she made one change to her small, three bedroom home and she was so inspired that the improvements just spiraled from there. From Ashley: We needed to make the space feel bigger and allow for us all to feel at home. We decided the best way to convert the space on a tight budget was paint. We used Dulux Natural White Wash and Wear, it’s a soft and warm white which keeps the space bright but peaceful.

This kitchen was almost a deal breaker for Lauren when she was searching for a new rental, but her landlord gave her permission to make a few updates so she signed that lease and did this. Wow! And we especially love how much change Lauren accomplished on such a tight budget. Talk about bang for your buck.

Twenty-three years is a long time to sleep in a room that looks the same, but that’s exactly what this couple have done. Until recently, of course, when their compact bedroom got a fresh makeover and a much-needed new look! From Marty: We had lived with the same furniture arrangement in our bedroom for 23 years. Yes, that’s right. 23 years. That’s a long time to wake up on the same side of the bed!

When you’re faced with a bland, beige rental kitchen in an apartment you otherwise love, what do you do? If you’re Kerry, who has a gorgeous New Orleans apartment, you infuse your rental kitchen with some color! From Kerry: I’ve lived in my 800 square foot French Quarter apartment in New Orleans for five years now. I have the perfect combination of low rent and a hands-off landlord. This summer I decided to make some big changes.

Are you a list maker? Then you’ll love this list of lists. And if you’re not a list-maker by nature, you might enjoy this list of lists to make (and keep) because they’re designed to make your life and home run smoother. This weekend, consider employing the use of one (or all) of these lists to really up your organization!

Renovation by: Mike (you may remember his bathroom renovation) Location: Chicago We live in a typical Chicago apartment with a really long skinny layout. When you enter our apartment the foyer and hallway are the first things you see so they really needed some TLC. When we first moved in to the apartment the foyer and hallway were painted in a yellow glaze and the only light fixtures were flush mounted glass domes from the 80’s.

Danielle and her family just finished six months of renovations (phew!) and moved into their new, old 1942 home. This is what their kitchen used to look like. Wanna see it now? From Danielle: My favorite room, by far, is the kitchen. We refinished the original hardwood floors, chose natural cherry wood cabinets with a brown glaze, bright white Corian solid surface countertops, a farmhouse sink, and subway tile with charcoal grout.

Kirsten tells us that her fiancé thought she was slightly crazy when she brought this hideous chair home one drizzly afternoon. He thought it was even crazier that she’d paid $25 for this eyesore. Guess what? He loves it now. And this from a reupholstery newbie! Amazing job. From Kirsten: The first thing I did was strip the chair down to its stuff, which was in surprisingly good shape. Next, I painted it with two generous coats of Annie Sloan’s chalk paint in Graphite.