Before and After: You’ll Want to Warm Up in This Sunroom ASAP

If it’s as cold where you live as where we live, then you know a warm and cozy sunroom sounds freakin’ phenomenal right now.

Alena Avdeeva and her husband have a fantastic one, but it didn’t start out that way. When they bought their 1960s sidesplit, they had to give the entire home a makeover. And the sunroom—with its stained wallpaper, grimy carpet, wood wall paneling, and falling-off ceiling tiles—particularly needed help. “We were not impressed with this space when we first saw it,” says Alena, “but once the renovation started and everything was removed, we saw its potential.”

By “renovation,” Alena means a total overhaul. The couple purchased new windows, replaced the old floors with engineered hardwood, got rid of that crumbly ceiling, and swapped the wall paneling for drywall—plus added new baseboards and trim, all painted bright white (Simply White by Benjamin Moore). They thought at first about painting the red brick, too, but Alena’s happy they held off: “It adds character to this room,” she says.

Alena’s husband did all of the work with the exception of replacing the windows, which significantly cut down on the total costs for the reno. All together, it came in at about $12,000.

“This space turned out better than we expected,” Alena says. “This is everyone’s favorite room in our house. It’s bright and airy yet cozy. It looks different but equally beautiful any time of the day, any time of year. It gets a ton of natural light.”

Between that emerald sofa, hammock chair, and so much light, talk about #sunroomgoals!

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