Renovating & Remodeling Skills & How Tos

After getting burned by Eisenhower-era pinks and olive greens, we’ve been playing it safe, color-wise, in the bathroom for a long time. Subway tile and white walls dominate modern bathrooms, with maybe a little grey tile on the floor for contrast. But that may all be about to change. More and more now I’m starting to see bathrooms that embrace the darker, moodier colors that are already so popular in other parts of the house. Take a look at these nine stylish examples.

When Sarah and Oleg connected their Prospect Heights apartment’s galley kitchen to the living room, and turned the adjoining dining nook into an office, they had no idea how perfectly timed their renovation was. They found out they were expecting soon thereafter and the newly separate office became a perfect new home for two baby girls. The apartment was set up with a long, narrow kitchen running parallel to the living room, and separated by a wall.

Minimalism is officially a thing right now, with people (and especially millennials) cutting back their possessions, moving into tiny homes, and living with a whole lot less. Kitchen appliances have followed suit, and more small stoves and fridges are available than ever before. If you’re living in a wee kitchen — or just want to save space without sacrificing style — then consider one of these compact designs for your space.

Welcome to The Stacked Barn project where I lead you through a year-long odyssey that I’ve never been on before: the building of a new house. I’m going to show you how my new home gets built – step by step. Chapter Six is here. This is Chapter Seven. Today I’m going to take you on a very exciting run through the last three or so months. Between December and March the house has really come together and the end is in sight.

Project by: Ariela Najman of Stripe Design Services Location: Santa Cruz, California Interior designer, Ariela Najman, was tasked with adding some light and breezy style to her client’s California ranch house. Along with other smart upgrades, she added a calming and eye-catching blue in the kitchen giving it a timeless look with a twist. From Ariela: Stripe Design Services was approached in 2016 by a local couple wanting a makeover for their kitchen, dining room and living room.

Until we received this submission, we just kind of assumed that a dark and bland laundry room is sort of par for the course when you’re renting. If you’re on the lucky side it’s clean and not spooky and those of us on the other end of the spectrum truck it to the laundromat. Well throw out what you thought you knew about laundry rooms and deep dive into this laundry room makeover! From Cat: Laundry. It’s loads of fun, right?

Range hoods might seem like a utilitarian, boring way to spend money in a kitchen, but they can be essential for odor removal and ventilation, plus they’re often required by building codes. Upscale designer kitchens with big industrial range hoods or bespoke built-in covers prove that done right, they can be a beautiful focal point. First you need to pick out the hood, though. This guide will take you through some of the many options you may have when buying a range hood.

Chrissie’s kitchen in her historic Victorian home was dark, cramped and sans-dishwasher. After living with the kitchen for a bit Chrissie, her husband, and her helpful brother revamped the space almost entirely themselves. From Chrissie: We bought our 1870 Victorian in Salem, Massachusetts in October, 2010. We purchased it from a lovely family who had owned the house for more than 40 years. It hadn’t been updated in many years so we spent a month updating it. Thank you, Chrissie!

Shopping for a new appliance can easily feel like an overwhelming whirlwind of features and rebate offers and extended warranties, bringing up crucial questions like, “Do I really need a wifi-connected fridge?” and “Why do I get a free knife set when I buy this dishwasher?” To help you navigate all of the deals and dodge the hidden fees, here are seven simple tips for saving money on appliances.

IKEA has long been a strong option for kitchen cabinets, and now they offer appliances too, so you can order your entire kitchen from the Swedish retailer. How do IKEA dishwashers stack up against other models at similar price points? We did a little research to find out. IKEA makes their appliances in partnership with Whirlpool, and all of their dishwashers come with a five-year warranty (except for the LAGAN, which has only a one-year warranty).

Well, this sure is something. We strongly suggest you hit the zoom on the wallpaper…we’ll wait. Now that that’s out of the way, Sophie’s bathroom was dark and crowded but after smartly adjusting the layout and changing basically everything about the “before” room, she now has a light and adorable space. From Sophie: When we bought this house, seven years ago, we felt in love with its potential. Its layout and location are fantastic.

Ranges — which integrate both oven and cooktop into one appliance — are big purchases that impact the day-to-day functionality, style, and usability of your kitchen. They vary widely in features — and cost — so it’s worth asking yourself how you’ll actually use your new appliance, before going out and blowing your budget. Avid bakers, for example, might prioritize a convection oven, while home chefs gleefully eye a gas cooktop.

Chelsea’s black and white bathroom makeover incorporates classic elements into her family bathroom that keep the space feeling crisp and light. She also teaches us that one way to inspire even more tub envy is to paint said tub black. From Chelsea: This was a bathroom remodel that my husband and I completed on our small upstairs bathroom in our 1918 Craftsman bungalow located in Columbus, Ohio.

Renovations can be a royal pain — unless, of course, you’re the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. With a move to Kensington Palace scheduled for the fall, Prince William and Kate Middleton have proposed a massive extension, which includes a two-story “iceberg basement,” to the 400-year-old property, the Daily Mail reports.

Wow! Wendy’s kitchen makeover was renovation free and budget friendly. She went from standard issue to a colorful, customized tile wonderland in 30 hours. Check it out! From Wendy: For my kitchen makeover we worked to a pretty tight budget but man I gotta tell you, I love it. You know when you go to a party and everyone winds up in the kitchen? Yeah, that’s basically me – every single night. Party for one. This is my most favouritest space.

I’ve heard it said that it’s helpful to live in your home before renovating, to get a feel for how you actually use the space and what you really want from the renovation. Well, this Upper East Side homeowner lived in his apartment for 40 years. So he had a pretty good idea. What he did want: A fresh new kitchen, but one whose traditional feel would integrate seamlessly with the rest of the apartment. What he didn’t want: a completely open-concept kitchen.

While we’ll never know the exact number of marriages that ended over fights about dirty dishes left in the sink, it’s safe to assume it’s not zero. Some of the more enlightened among us claim to love doing dishes, but for many people it’s a chore that’s avoided as much as possible. If you have the space and ability to modify your kitchen, nothing can save you from time hunched over a sink full of dirty dishes like a dishwasher (except takeout).

You might pick up bathroom essentials at J.C. Penney, but now you can get a new bathroom. The department store announced that it will start testing remodeling and other home services later this month. J.C. Penney’s CEO Marvin Ellison was on CNBC’s Power Lunch Thursday talking about the new initiative, which will also include services like installing home heating and cooling systems, quick-ship and installed blinds, whole home water solutions, awnings, and smart home technology.

I don’t envy appliance companies. Designers and marketers have a tough job, constantly trying to innovate new fridges, dishwashers and ovens —anticipating which features consumers will actually use and love, all without getting gimmicky or too niche. Because the current trend involves connecting to other smart devices like Alexa and iPhones, they now must also keep the technological horizon firmly in mind.

Who hasn’t dreamt of falling in love with an old house at the bottom of a mountain in France? Tiina is living our collective dream while tackling the very real problem of a non-functional kitchen. Her temporary solution keeps the romance while adding an affordable usability until its time for a full kitchen reno. From Tiina: We, my husband and I, fell in love with a floor of a crumbling old kitchen in a crumbling old house by the foot of the Montagne Noire in the autumn of 2016.

Shopping for a fridge can be overwhelming – it’s such a big ticket item. It’s not something you replace often and it’s such a huge part of your every day life, so, of course, you want to pick the right one. It’s one of those pieces where you look for a balance between form and function — a mix that depends on your lifestyle, routine and decor style.

Shara’s old bathroom, while not totally on the cutting edge of design trends, was still pretty cute and seemingly livable. Turns out there were some structural issues with the bathroom (discovered during a kitchen remodel), so Shara jumped at the opportunity to rethink and upgrade the small space. She switched around the layout, built her own beautiful wooden vanity and added some sleek design elements that turned the bathroom into a spa-like space of serenity.

We love the look of a vintage-style mosaic tile floor in the bathroom. Like all true design classics, it matches with pretty much anything, and never really goes out of style. Compared to a lot of other options, it’s quite inexpensive — and when it comes to patterns, your choices are almost limitless. Here are some of our favorites. 1. Victorian Basketweave Black and White Porcelain Mosaic Tile, $70.99 for a box of 10 from Overstock 2.

It seems like just yesterday I was bemoaning the ubiquity of granite, hoping and praying it would go the way of the dodo bird and I’d never have to see its speckled self in a kitchen again. Now, after several years of declining use, the day has come: another surface has officially surpassed granite in terms of popularity. Any guesses as to what the new countertop du jour might be? It’s quartz, otherwise known as engineered stone.

Kari was charged with upping the glam and functionality of the master bathroom for a pair of empty nesters. After re-thinking the layout she added some black and white drama with some seriously high impact wallpaper. From Kari: My company, Kari McIntosh Designs, was hired by a couple whose youngest son had just left for college. They loved their classic Victorian home, but had always dreamt of renovating it to give it a contemporary makeover.

Avery’s 1980s kitchen was dark and dated, but all of the appliances were perfectly functional so she figured she could make some quick and inexpensive updates to transform the look of the space. After much internet research, she decided to go with her gut and chose a color and style that matched her personal tastes. From Avery: Our craftsman style parsonage is full of beautiful, original wood trim, built-ins, and doors from 1910.

Cate’s living room was closed off, outdated and the victim of some curious decisions made by previous owners. She set out to make the most of what she had, salvaging what historical details she could and making smart upgrades where needed. From Cate: Before our living room and kitchen were two separate rooms.

One of the fun things about working at Apartment Therapy is seeing how much potential there is in even the smallest of spaces. At 25 square feet, this barely-there kitchen is, I think, the smallest kitchen we’ve ever featured in a Before & After — which makes the end results even more impressive. A home with a 25 square-foot kitchen might sound a little insane to people from anywhere else, but in New York, you take what you can get.

After a bit of a vagabond lifestyle, Johanna was ready to put down her roots and settle into a home she could love. She found her house soul mate, and while it needed some improvements, she saw the home for what it could be. And as a reward she got to live out our collective dream of ripping up carpet to discover beautiful hardwood floors. From Johanna: Growing up moving every three years made it difficult for me to find a place where I felt I could settle down.

IKEA’s new cabinets are literally garbage. Kungsbacka, the Swedish furniture retailer’s latest line of kitchen cabinets, is made from reclaimed industrial wood and recycled plastic bottles. IKEA collaborated with Swedish design studio Form Us With Love to create a sleek collection of anthracite cabinets with a matte finish (you know we love a black kitchen!). Each 15.75-by-31.5-inch cabinet uses 25 plastic bottles.

Jennifer’s pink tile bathroom was a little outdated aesthetically, but more urgently, it lacked function. Like, didn’t have a door, lacked function. For under $3k Jennifer and her husband were able to add style and useability to the space. From Jenn: Our 1961 ranch only has two bathrooms, one of which was this sad pink nightmare. We’d spent six years in a pink bathroom in our previous apartment and 12 with another pink bathroom in this, our first house.

This tiny living room was the first challenge for sisters Kate and Jennifer when they were preparing to move into their condo, a home they wanted to be able to share with visiting friends and family. Unsure of how to make their limited space as functional and stylish as they hoped, the sisters hired design team Margo Haines and Jill Finney at Margo Inc. to help solve their space and style dilemmas.

Megan’s kitchen was dark, didn’t feel like her and was completely lacking storage. She decided to banish all the brown and open the space up to make it brighter and more functional. The result is a charming kitchen that was totally DIY! From Megan: Our ten year old kitchen (new to us) was dark, tiny and unattractive. Dust would settle on the eaves and required us to get on a ladder to clean them, which never happened. Our cabinets were very small and allowed for only minimal storage.

We got a glimpse of Ruth’s home in her House Call but her bathroom reno deserves some special attention. While the old bathroom was not horribly offensive aesthetically, it wasn’t fully functional (and a little stinky). After bumping the project up on her to-do list and getting to work, Ruth found herself with a darkly dramatic space that didn’t break the bank.

Welcome to The Stacked Barn project where I lead you through a year-long odyssey that I’ve never been on before: the building of a new house. I’m going to show you how my new home gets built – step by step. This is Chapter Six. I have to apologize for not posting in awhile. While the house has been steadily moving along, the last three months were not nearly has dramatic as the previous ones, and I kept looking for something visually amazing to post.

Nina helped a family turn their vacation property kitchen from a claustrophobic and kitschy space into a fun and open gathering space. By removing the divider, adding some unexpected color along with classic elements, she breathed new life into the room. From Nina: The owners, a young family, wanted a vacation apartment (that they could also rent out), located in a town adjacent to a European ski area.

Danielle added style and interest to her living room with a few simple and small touches: replacing the curtains, adding some light fixtures, and slapping on a new coat of paint. And then she made a big change, adding color and interest to the space in a major way. From Danielle: When we first moved into our family home, the living room was covered in brown and beige from floor to ceiling.

Lindsay and her family moved into a wonderful new space in a neighborhood they loved. But there was one snafu: the old and outdated kitchen. Lindsay has a food blog so a clunky kitchen just wouldn’t do. They gutted the entire thing and started from scratch, and the results are a fun and functional space that’s perfect for family life and blog life. From Lindsay: The biggest change we made was to the location of the sink and the removal of the existing island.

It’s hard to describe the color of the kitchen in this historic Craftsman in Oakland, pre-renovation. Turquoise blue? Sea-foam green? Whatever the exact hue, it wasn’t quite the right shade for homeowners Brett and her husband Brandon when they purchased this house in March of 2016.

This little kitchen was in need of a lot of spiffing up and a little bit more space. Christina gave the space a fresh new look with a smart layout, some classic tile and a coat of paint in a lovely light color. From Christina: We recently finished up our project in Redondo Beach. This was a smaller house that was in serious need of a face lift. It had so many colors happening as well as some issues in the kitchen.

This master bath had plenty of space but not a lot of function. Kendra set out to not only upgrade and maximize the utility of the space, but to create a calm and serene atmosphere. From Kendra: This master suite had taken on minor renovations before, but nothing that allowed it to shine and become a truly functional and relaxing oasis. This space had an outdated standing shower, no access to the walk-in-closet and overall lack of functionally.

Sure, we might all want to freshen our living room or bedroom, but no room can get dated, dingy, and even dangerous as quickly as a kitchen can. These 10 amazing makeovers, ranging from $200 DIYs to splashy professional jobs, show the power of paint, paring down, and—for crying out loud—new cabinets.

Ashley wanted a bathroom update that was stylish, full of storage and helped maximize the space of her small bathroom. By pulling in a surprising piece of furniture and painting the space a calming color, she created a bathroom that blends form and function. From Ashley: The tiny half bathroom connected to the master bedroom was original to the 1972 house and in desperate need of an update.

A dreary bathroom seems dirty no matter how clean it actually is, so giving it a fresh coat of white paint, additional lighting, and sparkling tiles can completely transform the look and feel of the room, all while making the weekly cleaning feel less Sisyphean.

Right before Thanksgiving we posed a question to readers — “If you had $200 to surprise someone with a gift, what would that gift be, and to whom would you give it?” Brigid Barjaktarevic’s response — some supplies to spruce up her non-profit workplace — caught our eye. We thought we could do more than just provide paint as the gift; we wanted to go all in on an Apartment Therapy makeover.

IKEA Pax wardrobes can be a godsend for creating closet space out of nothing and here is an exquisite example of how they can not only provide a massive amount of storage but appear like they were built just for your space.

When Sophia and Leon bought their 3-bedroom, 1.5-bathroom Manhattan apartment, there wasn’t a lot going on in the petite second bathroom — but what was going on looked a little like a gas station bathroom: fine for a gas station, but not for a home. The yellowing wall tile was distinctly uninspiring, and dingy grout made the floor tiles look dirty no matter how many times they were cleaned.

Heather’s kitchen was outdated, but not unlivable, so she and her husband opted for a few smart and thrifty updates to add some style to the space before a big kitchen remodel. From Heather: My husband and I recently purchased a 1960s home. It’s in great condition, but most everything is original to the house.

Natalie’s home was originally divided into apartments, so she had the not-so-small challenge of turning it back into a cohesive space. After experimenting with new paint colors, and switching up the floor, she finally found herself with a moody library full of quirky, personal charm. From Natalie: This room has changed over time as my husband and I have lived in the house. We bought our circa 1870s Pittsburgh home nearly three years ago.

An interesting trend in kitchen design, as of late, is the movement towards kitchens with open shelving, or even little or no storage above the countertop at all. It’s a lovely look, but also results in a bit of a quandary as to where to put things, especially things that you use fairly often, like pots and pans and little kitchen tools. Enter the kitchen rail. It holds all your stuff, it hardly takes up any space at all, and it can be surprisingly beautiful, in a very utilitarian way.

When Marti set out to revamp her bathroom, she knew that a full tile update wasn’t in the cards. She didn’t let that deter her, however, and went ahead and made some really smart and stylish changes that created a less dated, more classic space. From Marti: My goal was to replace the glaring features that made the bathroom look really dated/cheap: most notably, the paint, mirror, and sink.

When Kate and Emilio purchased their Spanish Revival house, the kitchen was small and broken up into two separate rooms — an awkwardly long mudroom/pantry and an inefficiently small and dated kitchen. The cabinets and countertops were installed right in front of the windows, and there was little workspace between the range and sink.

Debra’s home had gorgeous mid-century bones, and her renovations made the most of them. With some stunning tile and beautiful pictures, she turned her bathroom into a breathtaking beauty. From Debra: We recently finished renovating two of our mid-century home’s bathrooms. Since they are adjacent to one another, my first inclination was to combine them into one large space.

Karyn and Jessica’s beach bungalow is an ever-evolving small space. This is what Karyn had to say in 2013: I had just moved to the island of Coronado and had the perfect bungalow apartment in mind. I envisioned something small but homey with a comfortable outdoor area. The universe must have been on my side because not two minutes after making my wish list I found the perfect studio apartment. Being a designer has its perks, especially after walking into this place.

Courtney and John’s guest bathroom was outdated and had a funky layout, so they set out to open up and update the space. From Courtney & John: To complement our recently renovated guest room, we decided to tackle the attached guest bath as well. Overall, the bathroom was functional with a stock vanity and prefabricated shower/tub combo. But the space lacked style and was not utilizing the square footage to its maximum capacity.

Heidi’s kitchen got a sleek and storage-minded upgrade. Taking cues from her building’s style —and her own personal aesthetic — she created a space that added a lot of functionality, without sacrificing affordability. From Heidi: The design was conceived around cues from my 1959 building’s clean aesthetic combined with a Scandinavian modern/folk influence.

When it comes to kitchen cabinets, hardware is a little thing that can make a big difference. We’ve rounded up ten of the best online sources for knobs, pulls, and everything in between, helpfully sorted into ‘High,’ ‘Mid’ and ‘Low’ categories so you can find the best store for your budget. My Knobs: A huge, almost overwhelming, selection of cabinet hardware at very reasonable prices. Cabinet Parts: Low prices and a large selection.

When her sister-in-law was ready to update her kitchen, Cathy knew she could make an impact while keeping most of the kitchen intact by painting the cabinets and making the biggest update to the floor. From Cathy: “Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.” I am a firm believer in trying to make the most of the existing elements in a space before considering replacing or changing them.

Chrissy’s bathroom was standard, outdated builder grade blah. She transformed the space into something warm and welcoming without any major renovations. From Chrissy: The bathroom before consisted of builder grade oak cabinets and a mirror with no frame. The cabinet over the toilet was bulky and made the bathroom feel smaller.

Minna’s gorgeous cabin is a stunning and serene oasis, but it wasn’t always that way. When they first bought the cabin it was far from what Minna had envisioned. But after some impactful changes, she transformed the space. We’re ready to move in! From Minna: I remember how lucky we felt when we bought this place four years ago. Our “dream cottage” was quite a wreck.

Remember Sophia and Leon’s Manhattan apartment? Last week we witnessed the transformation of their kitchen, and this week we’re looking at the overhaul of the unit’s main bathroom. While the old bathroom wasn’t yet completely falling apart, it had poorly installed, mismatched fixtures — and the fact that it needed to serve for three people meant extra storage space would be welcome.

Kelly’s kitchen was dark and outdated with baffling pops of color. She felt the only way to save the space was to start over completely. From Kelly: Our original kitchen was just terrible. It was a hodgepodge of multi-colored wood and metal cabinets. Some were missing doors, drawers and handles. I found out that the oven was broken and leaking gas in the house, and the refrigerator matched the avocado green walls. In summary, this kitchen was a hot mess.

Courtney & John’s bathroom was the height of ’80s glamour: a Jacuzzi tub AND a gold trimmed shower? Choosing not to live in a Gordon Gekko fever dream, they stripped the bathroom down and opted for a space that played up the historic interest of their new home. From Courtney & John: For basic necessity, the master bathroom was the first space that needed to be tackled FAST in order for us to move into this foreclosure property.

When tasked with updating a kitchen for a family with six kids, Syd and Shay of Studio McGee wanted to create a “next level” monochromatic kitchen, that could still house a large brood. From Studio McGee: When it comes to a bright, monochromatic kitchen, it’s all in the details. All-white kitchens are the number one request we receive. You might see a lot of people churning out white kitchens, but it’s the subtle design decisions that can take a kitchen to the next level.

I think part of the reason shipping container houses are so appealing is that building a house from shipping containers is like the grown-up equivalent of making a really sweet fort from cardboard boxes — you have succeeded in making something awesome from something that you just found, something that would otherwise be in the trash. (Of course, the actual reality of shipping container homes is a bit more complicated than that — but there’s no denying they have a certain draw.

Katie’s RV kitchen was functional but cookie-cutter. She wanted something that was unique and warm, and she took a chance on black paint in a small space and it totally paid off! From Katie: When we first purchased our RV the interior was in good condition, it just wasn’t our style. Not to mention every single person that owns the same model has this exact kitchen. We needed a space that felt like ours, ya know?

Sarah and Nick purchased their 1924 traditional island cottage in 2013, and spent the next five months renovating much of their new home. They were working with a very tight budget and a very real deadline; baby number two was on the way and the couple had made a pact that the kitchen be completed before his birth. Naturally, this made tackling the project a particular challenge.

Carrie, a serious Disney fan, has always fancied living Disney’s Haunted Mansion After trying to fix up her small bathroom she finally decided to let it go and follow her dream (which is a wish your heart makes) of a Disneyland-inspired bathroom. With a lucky wallpaper find (definitely not a poor unfortunate soul) and some smart internet shopping that let her remain one jump ahead of the design, even the bare necessities were on brand.

Prior to their renovation, Laura and Matthew’s kitchen had a few problems common to lots of NYC apartments: a tiny footprint, not enough storage space, and cabinets caked with years’ and years’ worth of paint. As you can see, the cabinets in their galley kitchen had taken on an unusual texture, and the oven was positioned about 18 inches from the opposite countertop. Definitely time for a change.

Kylie’s kitchen is also her office, so while the original was livable, it wasn’t really blog-worthy. After about six months of hard DIY work, she got a gorgeous, open and photo-worthy space. From Kylie: Our house is 1,500 square feet and was built in the 1950s. We love our location and want to stay here for a while, but the kitchen had to go.