The Latest: Sep 2016

Erin’s old kitchen looked straight out of Stranger Things and she knew before she moved in that she’d be going to battle with the demigorgon of outdated design (end of reference, I promise). By knocking down the cabinets and updating the kitchen with crisp, modern design she was able to make her galley kitchen functional and beautiful. From Erin: I recently bought a dated condo with hopes to make it my own. The obvious issue in the small galley kitchen was the lack of natural light.

Emma and Matt bought a home in Ipswich for its old world character and its affordability. But most of the time “character” often comes with a huge list of DIYs and needed renovations. This home had a particularly dated living area and kitchen that, despite the big windows letting light in, felt quite dark. The living area and kitchen of their home was very dated with the yellow walls, green trim, not to mention the dark wooden ceiling and kitchen cabinets.

We can’t all live in a gorgeous Haussmannien building on the left bank of the Seine. In fact, some of us have to live in effective but uninspiring homes with little to no architectural detail whatsoever. But that doesn’t mean there’s nothing you can do. In fact, there’s a lot you can do, even if you live in the most boring of houses, to add a little character to your space. Check out these 7 DIY projects. Add a ceiling medallion.

Tamsin’s charming old Victorian blessed her with a renovator’s dream come true — gorgeous hardwood floors just chilling underneath carpet, waiting to shine. After setting her floors free, she set about creating a warm and charming living room. From Tamsin: Our home here in Connecticut is a Victorian house and was built in 1900. There are beautiful features that come with a house of this age, all of which make for an interesting space to decorate.

Lauren’s a big fan of cooking and entertaining, but her cramped galley kitchen was getting in the way of her following her bliss. So she enlisted some professional help and totally transformed her kitchen into a stunning, open space. From Lauren: I recently completed a 3.5 month apartment renovation. The driving force behind the project was my kitchen. I enjoy cooking and entertaining and the confines of the original galley kitchen was not conducive to the way I lived and entertained.

Barbara was tasked with creating a living space that reflected the personality and interests of her clients, all while making sure it was baby friendly. She added pattern, texture and soothing color to create a welcoming family living room. From Barbara: The clients who just moved into this space really wanted their vibrant and eclectic personalities to shine through into their new home just outside of Boston.

Regine had a blank slate of a room and wanted to maximize the utility of the space while crafting a cool and beachy look. With some smart shopping, she was able to transform this space into a chill and welcoming spot! From Regine: Originally this room was a closet and storage for things that didn’t quite have a place, but it came time to make it an official guest room while also making it possible to turn this into a sewing space where I can make clothes.

When they bought their co-op apartment in Brooklyn, Casey and Kumar had a particularly ambitious project in mind: transforming a one-bedroom to meet the needs of a family of four people. Doing so involved some pretty clever solutions along with a full-scale overhaul of the unit’s very small, very outdated kitchen. Since space in their small apartment was at a premium, Casey and Kumar wanted the kitchen to flow seamlessly into the rest of the living area.

Krystal looked at her beige fireplace and saw a blank canvas. She got to work painting tiles to bring some pattern to her living room. From Krystal: I started with a piece of wrapping paper, it was the best paper I had to cut to the size I needed for the tile stencil. After priming and painting the tiles white, I worked on sketching the pattern on the paper which took quite a while, and trust me it’s not perfect! I used a razor blade to cut the stencil out.