For some reason bedrooms seem to be left as the last room in the house to be decorated. I’ve seen it a lot in friend’s houses and House Tours. I am definitely guilty of neglecting my own bedroom, as you can see in this before photo. I am the first to admit — that room is hella ugly! But in two days I was able to take this room from a decorating disaster to delightful with a couple coats of paint (and some major purging).

Reusing old drawers as shelving is something we’ve discussed here a few times before. In fact, you may recognize one of these drawers from a post on the subject. While I’ve been using drawers as shelving for a couple of years, I wanted to take the concept to the next level.I had already been using one of these drawers as a wall shelf in my bedroom and when I gave the bedroom a makeover, I wasn’t sure whether I would use the drawers again.

The washer/dryer hookup in our apartment is perfectly located right off the kitchen and close to the dining room, where we do all the laundry folding. Since this is our first apartment with laundry inside the unit, we’re quite happy to have it so centrally located. Although the location of our little laundry closet may be nearly perfect, the presentation leaves a lot to be desired. Those louvered bi-fold doors have got to go!

When I saw this little file box at a Salvation Army, it practically called to me from across the store. “Jason,” it called out to me, “please take me home and give me new life. I’m only five dollars!” How could I possibly pass it up?The original gray finish on the file box had definitely seen better days. Even after a thorough scrubbing, the finish was marred with years of tape and dings and scrapes. Nothing a little spray paint won’t fix!

This brass chandelier may have a lot of life left in it but it’s definitely a bit dated. Of course, that’s nothing a little paint and patience won’t fix!Reviving an old, dated piece is always the greenest option versus replacing it altogether. So I’m delighted to see that Diane, over at In My Own Style, was able to modernize this dated brass chandelier.

When Alissa received this lamp as a hand-me-down from her grandparents, she loved the shape but not the dated brassy finish. Spray paint and a little imagination to the rescue!I see what Alissa means about the shape of this lamp — now that it’s painted! I admit that I was too distracted by the old brassy finish on the lamp to appreciate its finer qualities! Now that its been painted white I love it — especially that tall finial!

At left, the affordable and handy Fräck mirror from IKEA. I’ve had one hanging in my bathroom for a few years and, now that I’ve seen what Daniel was able to do with his, I’m looking at mine in a whole new light… A whole new light! See what I did there? Daniel, from Manhattan Nest, is responsible for this brilliant IKEA hack. He was also kind enough to give us step-by-step directions on his blog so we can make one for ourselves!

This long, dark hallway was not being helped by the saltillo tile, ugly light fixture, and dark trim. But after stripping away all those dated features in the hallway, it’s now a lighter, brighter, and more welcoming space…We saw this snazzy before and after over on To the Moon and Back — a great little blog documenting a home’s transformation. This project is a true testament to the power of simple changes.

Nicole picked up this dresser as part of a three-piece set. The other two pieces, matching nightstands, got their own makeovers but Nicole wanted to do something a little different with this dresser. Check out the results after the jump…As Nicole reports on her blog, Scrap Me Baby, the dresser was in great condition structurally so it really just came down to a matter of painting it. Giving this dresser the black-and-white treatment makes great use of the piece’s details!

Linda has a lovely home, outdoors and in, but her entryway was not feeling very welcoming. Besides being on the bland side, this entryway was also seriously deficient in functionality. Fortified with a whole lot of DIY ambition, Linda turned the entryway into a welcoming (and useful) space…As you can see in the ‘after’ photos, Linda went with a more dramatic palette for her entryway.

This chest of drawers was plucked from an alley near some student housing. In its original state, it was a bit boring and beat up. That’s nothing a little paint, paper, and elbow grease can’t fix…Diana over at Fine Diving saw the potential for new life in this dresser. She started out with this gorgeous patterned paper from Paper Source, which she used for the drawer fronts.

I love the story of this chair makeover, largely because it sounds a lot like my own DIY projects — an equal mix of inspiration, serendipity, and hundreds of staples…Back in mid-November Christine, of Bijou and Boheme, blogged about picking up these lovely-lined but shabby (and pink!) chairs, along with an inspiration photo of similar chairs covered in fur. Then Christine lived with the chairs while she decided what exactly she wanted to do with them.

Jill picked up this old dresser for $25 with the intention of refinishing it as a gift to her brother. In order to match some of the other furnishings her brother already has, Jill decided to go dark with this blond dresser…After removing the old handles from the dresser and doing a little patching, Jill stained the dresser a bit darker. To further modernize the piece she replaced the old handles with new, shiny drawer pulls.

We love it when readers send us their projects to be featured. Kelly emailed us about her fabulous kitchen makeover, taking it from the dark and dated room you see above to the bright and updated space you can see after the jump…When Kelly and her husband bought their 100-year-old house that needed renovating, she was thrilled to get the chance to design her dream kitchen. And a dream kitchen it is! Kelly had the old kitchen torn out and started fresh.

Sean has been transforming his white box of an apartment into a stylish and personalized home. In one of his recent blog posts Sean shows off this DIY bathroom lighting makeover that works around an existing awkward location in a creative way.This lighting over the double basin sink in Sean’s bathroom was unattractive – both as a light fixture and in the shadows it cast on the folks under it.

Well hello there, ugly old dresser. You have some mighty fine bones but oooh boy are you a dated mess. Time to grab the paint and transform you into something more modern!The folks over at Young Nesters were in need of a sideboard for their dining room. After searching in vain for an affordable option, they spied this old dresser in a grandmother’s basement and, since it was free anyway, decided to try their hand at an ombre makeover.

Our readers don’t just come to us for home inspiration – they also share their own projects with us, bring the inspiration around full circle. Jude emailed us this sofa transformation that we think is a great lesson in patience and DIY chutzpah.Jude’s small apartment requires a slim sofa, one that is no longer than 56 inches.

When most people see wood pallets they think only of garbage or maybe even kindling. When Olga saw the pallet pictured above she saw possibility. She lugged the pallet home and set about finding a way to use it. After it sat in a corner for a month, Olga finally gave the pallet new life.The cracks, knots and other markings on the pallet were part of what Olga loved about it. So when it came time to make use of the pallet in her home, Olga didn’t want to change the character of it too much.

In last week’s post declaring the Wassily Chair a modern classic we looked at the chair in a variety of interiors. Now it’s time to look at where to buy one – whether it’s shelling out almost $2G for an authentic Wassily or choosing one of the budget-friendly reproductions.New Authentic Wassily Chairs — The authentic chair is produced by Knoll so it’s the same price ($1,924) at each of these stores.

Mekenzie was dreaming of the Restoration Hardware Versailles chair for her basement but at almost $2400 it was out of her price range. Like a true DIYer, Mekenzie decided to mock up her own version of the chair using this tiki chair as a base…The first step in Mekenzie’s makeover was applying a custom blended gray paint over the chair’s original finish.

With some rehabs you want to strip away all the years and start over with clean, modern space. With others, you want stay true to the home’s original design period. For those times, there are stores out there that offer antique and reproduction hardware and lighting. These are a few of our favorites. House of Antique Hardware This Portland, Oregon-based company stocks everything from door and window hardware to lighting and electrical supplies ranging from Colonial to Mid-Century.

When I shot Andrew’s Vintage Berwyn Bungalow house tour, the kitchen was in the early stages of being torn apart for a rehab. It took almost two years but Andrew finally put the finishing touches on his new kitchen and is ready to share it with the world. Before I show you the “after” photos, let’s take one more look at the dated old kitchen that Andrew inherited when he bought his house: Those cabinets! That ceiling fan! Oof!

Back in 2009, FLOR launched this Lincoln Park location as their first foray into brick and mortar retail. Since then, FLOR has launched stores in a number of other cities across the country. Now they’re turning their attention back to home base and giving their Chicago store a new look. The new layout feels more modern while also giving the store a homier vibe.  Gone are the old white concrete floors and walls lined with tiny samples.

While Anna’s mid-century house has a fair share of closets, they weren’t exactly outfitted to store much stuff. Faced with the predicament of storing two young boys’ clothes and other belongings, Anna decided to build out the closet herself.A lot of us have faced a similar problem with our own closets — one measly shelf and a long hanging clothes bar do not exactly make the base for an organized closet.

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.

We just love simple solutions to customize everyday items. In this case, the item in question is a simple roller blind. Take a look at how Steph dressed up the blind after the jump…Steph, from BirdHouse, painted this tree silhouette on the IKEA Enje roller blind in her bathroom. This is a fun way to create a one-of-a-kind window treatment. If you like the project but think you lack the artist’s touch, you could also stencil a pattern onto a roller blind.

Jen and her boyfriend recently moved into this standard grad school apartment and immediately got to work making it their own. This before and after is a true testament to the fact than even the most boring of apartments can be spruced up with a bit of DIY know-how.It only took two weekends for Jen and her boyfriend, Tim, to put together this stylish living room.

We’re all very familiar with these little black office chairs. They’re super convenient for a home office but they’re certainly lacking in the style department. Take a cue from Mindy and dress up an office chair with just a little fabric and a staple gun…Melinda Ann had actually relegated this chair to the donation pile, where it was destined for a one-way trip to Goodwill. And then, at the last minute, inspiration struck.

Jen emailed us a link to the office she dressed up for her friend Natasha. As a rising star in fashion PR, Natasha needs a space that exudes simple style. So over a weekend, Jen turned Natasha’s sad space into a stylish office. AFTER! Jen describes herself on her blog as a DIY enthusiast who is “gradually turning into an Asian Martha Stewart”. So it’s no surprise that when her friend Natasha needed help dressing up her fashion PR office, she turned to Jen.

The stairs in Andrea and Cliff’s house were looking a bit dated. Wrapped in berber carpet, they looked more like a giant cat scratcher than the beautiful floating stairs the couple hand in mind. With some hard work and a lot of sanding, the crafty couple updated the stairs while also creating a more open, airy feel to the space.Andrea and Cliff emailed in to share their stair makeover and the minute we saw what an undertaking it was (and what a difference they made!), we had to share it.

I’ve been trying to come up with a pun on this door-to-bookcase project — you know, something like opening the door to a new bookcase or some such cleverness. But, well, as you can tell by that sentence alone, i have not had much success. So let’s just make it simple: this project is totally rad!I love a project that re-imagines stuff that would have otherwise been bound for the junk heap. And Gail, from the blog My Repurposed Life, is the queen of such projects!

When Ashley’s aunt brought her this old rocking chair, which she had rescued from a dumpster, it was an ugly sight to behold. Still, Ashley was confident she could give it new life and, $10 later, she did just that…The first thing Ashley did was peel the fabric and foam off the chair. After removing the fabric, Ashley sanded the chair frame, then primed and painted it. Once the paint had dried, Ashley replaced the chair foam and then applied new fabric, using small finishing nails.

I bought these bar stools at Target about ten years ago, when my husband and I were renting an apartment with a little breakfast counter. Since then, I’ve used them in my studio, where they’ve gotten beat up and paint splashed. I moved out of my studio but I’m still not quite ready to part with the stools so I decided to give them new life…It was immediately evident when I brought the stools into our little apartment that I would need to cut them down.

Do you remember the days when televisions came in these giant wood consoles? Now that we hang our flat screens on the wall, it may be hard to imagine that televisions were furniture. Nowadays these old console sets end up getting set out for the garbage man. Here’s a clever re-use of one of these anachronisms:Beckie, from the site Infarrantly Creative, picked up an old console television the night before trash day and turned it into a cute new table!

This chair looks like it’s on its last leg. Um, literally. The leg on this chair had rusted through and the whole thing was bent out of shape. No wonder it was sitting out on the curb, waiting for the garbage collector. But wait! This chair hasn’t quite reached the end of its life just yet …Rachelle, from Adventures in Creating, saw this old metal chair on the curb and decided to rescue it from its garbage heap fate.