Rooms

Name: Graeme & Rebekah Molloy Type of Project: Kitchen Remodel Location: Chautauqua Park, Des Moines, Iowa Type of building: 1920 Tudor The Renovation Diaries are a collaboration with our community in which we feature your step by step renovation progress and provide monetary support towards getting it done in style. See all of our Reno Diaries here. Rebekah and Graeme are now totally in the thick of their kitchen reno.

Updating old laminate countertops without having to completely replace them can be a big challenge. Faux finishes can often look, well… faux, and tackling a DIY project (like pouring your own concrete countertops) can be tricky and exhausting. That’s why I was so impressed with this project from interior designer Kara Paslay.Kara managed a realistic concrete look without the hassle and weight of fully-formed slabs.

Most of our Renovation Diary projects involve transforming an existing space. This one was different because Faith and Mike chose to create a bathroom in their 1920s Columbus home where before there was only a sleeping porch. Originally the space was only 7 feet tall, with a sloping floor that would have to be replaced. It was a unique project, and a unique challenge. (You can see many more photos of the original space in the post that introduced Faith and Mike’s bathroom remodel.

Nancy was recently faced with the challenge of completing a quick and affordable bedroom makeover for a couple who is adopting three siblings. She transformed a guest room into a bright and airy girl’s room in only five days, and while there are plenty of lovely touches in the space, it’s her simple and cheap solution for a wall treatment that really stopped me in my tracks.

Stacy had a great home office. The question was, would it be a great nursery, especially if she wanted to re-use many of the same pieces? Let’s see what this room looks like reconfigured as a nursery and which items Stacy kept in the space: Sweet, right? As you can see, Stacy kept the gray paint along with the colorful turquoise shutters (re-repurposed from her wedding). The fetching tissue paper artwork is a DIY project.

The apron-front, or farmhouse, sink has been a popular fixture in all kinds of kitchens for some time now, and with the rise in popularity of kitchens that mix traditional and modern elements, it feels more appropriate than ever. If you’re considering adding one of these big beauties to your space, here’s everything you need to know. Searching for a farmhouse sink? See all of our best picks here.

If you’re looking for a relatively painless, low-cost way to update your kitchen, and have ever been on the internet, you know that painting your cabinets is the way to go. Honestly, I can’t think of better dollar-to-dramatic improvement ratio on any other project. And the news gets better: It’s way easier now than it was the olden days, before the miracle of chalk paint.

That trash is treasure.

I had no idea that my little kitchen overhaul would yield such a response, ranging from “awful” to “amazeballs.” Thanks for all the great comments, both good and bad. By the way, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Dr. Kevorkian, and stem cell research combined have nothing on the “brass knobs with stainless appliances” debate. I’m not sure which issue will take longer to resolve. And that brings us to the bathroom.

My kitchen Before.. just two-three months ago. Name:Type of Project:Location:Type of building:Whenever I am asked how you learn to make good interior design decisions, how to trust yourself or how to just plain have style, I say the same thing. Start by copying. I don’t mean the type of copying where you cheated in high school by looking at someone else’s answers.

Name: Ursula (7 years) Location: Soho, NY Making a room for Ursula in our new home together took awhile but it was a joy. For her first room to herself in our new life (we were sharing a one bedroom for a year), I was able to take a white sheetrock box with a high ceiling and make it airy but cozy and have plenty of storage for her growing lifestyle of clothes, dolls, costumes and toys. Before! During!

Your kitchen is only so big, so if you’ve run out of storage room, it’s time to make the space work harder and be more efficient. It’s easy to miss potential, but look closely and you’ll find lots more opportunities to store essentials and clutter. Here are five ways we often get it wrong, and how you can quickly remedy your kitchen mistakes.

Butcher countertops are still having their moment. They can add warmth and character to an otherwise sterile kitchen, and the natural and classic look of wood can simultaneously upgrade a kitchen and give it a timeless feel. But as with any trend, you should be wary of adopting it unless it’s a style that truly and personally brings you joy. When it comes to butcher block countertops, which require extra maintenance and can pose unique challenges, this is especially true.

On the floorplan, it’s listed as “Auxiliary Room,” a vague definition that falls far short of inspiration. What to do with this space, with no windows, no definition, and to be honest, no saving grace? Not to worry. Enter gentleman designer Matthew Patrick Smyth, who manages to turn slightly vague into totally specific. Through the lens of the talented Mr. Smyth, it’s part Kasbah but pure Kismet. And it stole the show at Hearst’s Designer Visions.

Last week we discussed about getting started on wrangling our cords and cables in our home office, a project that required us to get moving on painting the interior before installing the cable channel guides we purchased. And painting we did!

I was sitting around the other day, thinking about pairing gold kitchen cabinet hardware with stainless steel appliances, and I suddenly remembered: I never showed you all any photos of the finished World’s Ugliest Condo bathroom!These photos were taken with an iPhone, but you can still see the what’s what. Enjoy.

Before: The kitchen, although graced with beautiful large windows, left a little something to be desired. After: A new kitchen from the studs inward, including a new Kohler sink and industrial task lighting above the windows for more functionality.From Andi: Possibly the most luxurious thing is the increased square footage (we went from 95 to 170 square feet).

For all of us who have been following along with Claire and Jeffrey’s renovation, the ultimate moment has finally arrived. That’s right — the kitchen is finally complete, and it’s time for the big reveal. Before: The space viewed from the living room entry. After: Now, the kitchen is wide open, with an uninterrupted view of the window to the backyard.From Claire:We spend all of our free time in this room.

One of the most important kitchen design decisions you’ll make, both for looks and functionality, is the layout. You have a few options—the tried and true U shape, or the elegant and functional galley shape. But if you love entertaining, and love the look of an open kitchen, there’s another kind of kitchen layout that’s worth a look: the L shape. An L-shaped kitchen has just two runs of cabinetry, arranged at right angles to each other. (The name pretty much says it all.

New year, new kitchen.

They may be some of the smallest details in a kitchen, but a change (or addition) of cabinet hardware can totally update a room’s entire look. Available in a disorienting array of finishes, shapes, sizes and materials, the sky’s the limit when it comes to choosing what to adorn your cabinet doors and drawers with. But perhaps you’re not entirely convinced that a few knobs can make a big visual difference in a kitchen? Check out the Photoshopped images below.

I am beyond thrilled with the result of my Style Cure and today I share my “after” photos! We went from a gloomy, unused, unfinished sunroom to a bright, open, and warm lounge area and office. There are so many elements in this new space that make me extremely happy, but just the fact that I can edit the photos for this post while sitting at a real desk in front of cheerful windows is enough to send me over the moon.

Soffia bought two of these tall, imposing pieces at an Icelandic Goodwill—I’ve dubbed them “bookdenzas”—and wanted to lighten them up and give them some personality to use in her son’s bedroom. Here’s what she came up with: Soffia tells us: The tall book case is an old piece of living room furniture that was very popular in Iceland in the 70s and 80s. I bought it for around $40 at a local Goodwill.

Short on space and lack a headboard? Pegboard, our favorite kitchen and workshop workhorse, may just be the solution you’ve been looking for. Carmel from Our Fifth House transforms her boy’s bedroom from bland to brilliant with a Union Jack paint job and inexpensive material.Carmel’s 8 year old son needed some easy access storage, so when she planned to DIY a headboard, pegboard won.

“Before and After” makeovers are such guilty pleasures—what’s more gratifying than fast-forwarding through all the hard work, and just seeing (and getting to comment on) the final result? Throw in a very small budget, and they become especially delicious food for thought. These bathroom projects don’t disappoint. As transformations go, they are pretty incredible for the money. Scroll through, and by all means, enjoy.

Erika’s young and doesn’t spend an arm and a leg on rent. Sure, her bathroom is functional, but all those shades of off-white are a style travesty that could make even the most stalwart of tenants cry beige tears. It’s a rental, so nobody wants to go nuts and spend a lot of money to renovate it, but Erika wanted something a little more fun and befitting her age. So, the goal is to give her an entirely new, bright, amazing bathroom for $500. Think we can do it?

This is what Tara’s kitchen looked like when she moved in this past year. Not too pretty, eh? With her landlord’s approval, we did a light reno that didn’t cost a lot, but made a major difference in both appearance and function. Spending money on a rental isn’t for everyone — but for those of you who love to cook, have a horrible kitchen, and plan to stay put for awhile, then a little investment may well be worth the time and expense.

All this week we’re talking about bathroom renovations, starting with Ashley’s recent remodel, and following up with tons of helpful posts about the process! So you’re thinking of remodeling one of the most necessary rooms in your home – not an easy task to take on! Luckily, there are ways you can prepare to take the pain out of a bathroom remodel. Here are just a few to get you started: When it comes to a remodel, always make sure you have a contingency fund.

Some IKEA hacks go so far above and beyond the standard “coat of paint and new handles” that they somehow become whole new pieces of furniture. This one, for example, started out as the ubiquitous Rast dresser and a salad bowl, and was transformed into an elegant, modern bathroom vanity with plumbing and everything. I for one am impressed.

Name: Mike and Sandie Type of Project: Foyer renovation Location: Saskatoon; Saskatchewan, Canada Type of building: 2 1/2 story single-family home, built in 1919 The Renovation Diaries are a collaboration with our community in which we feature your step by step renovation progress and provide monetary support towards getting it done in style. See all of our Reno Diaries here.

Last week, you got to see the updates and tiling work we did in our kitchen. However, we also had a very fun time doing some updates to our bathroom. This before photo (taken quite a bit before we started the project) doesn’t show the vertical angle, but allows you to see the most important elements: the old, dingy, salmon-colored tile, and original toilet and vanity. Fast forward three days (we were on a tight schedule) to our brand new bathroom!

Atmosphere is the je ne sais quoi ingredient to interiors. You can’t really put your finger on it and it’s not really something you can buy in a box to add to your home. But it’s the thing that differentiates a great home from just a good one, and it’s the thing that makes guests want to stay and linger in your home as long as possible. How do you get it (or make your existing atmosphere even better)? Well the answer to that isn’t easy.

Name: Meg and Josh Type of Project: Mudroom/Breakfast Nook remodel Location: Chinook, Washington Type of building: Single-Family Home, 1,000 square feet For all of you good people who have been following along with Meg and Josh’s mudroom renovation, the big moment has finally come: all the work is complete, and it’s time to take a look at the finished space! From Meg: Any renovation project is special, but there’s something extra special about a DIY renovation project.

At this budget range, kitchen renovations mean less actual physical labor for the homeowners, who are able to leave most of that work to the professionals. That doesn’t mean a total hands off approach however. The owners of these kitchens either acted as their own general contractor, designed the space themselves, and shopped vigilantly for the best deals out there.

The office chair above is unfortunately more common than we’d hope. It’s the home office equivalent of the big, dumpy (yet comfortable) big leather couches that weigh down a space. Does form have to be sacrificed for function? “No!” says designer and upcycling blogger, Joy of How Joyful…check out how she gave this chair a whole new personality… Last Christmas my in Laws gave Ken and I matching Desk chairs. We only had one and it was pretty broken.

Name: Jennifer Pade Type of Project: Kitchen remodel Location: West Village, New York, New York Type of building: 300 square foot apartment in a co-op building For those of you who have been following along with Jennifer’s NYC kitchen remodel, and who saw the truly dire state of her original kitchen, this reveal will be especially satisfying. The work is done, the dust has cleared, and now it’s time to take a look at the finished product.

Shortly after moving into their Chinook, Washington home, Meg and Josh decided to tackle a big project: transforming their existing laundry room and breakfast room into a single, open mudroom/breakfast nook combo. Before the project began, the breakfast room and laundry room were separated by a wall, making the small house seemed more cramped. Meg and Josh envisioned a single, open space the would serve as breakfast nook, laundry room, and mudroom all in one, with lots of built-in storage.

This plain kitchen was sort of… fine? We’ve seen gross kitchens and this one was far from it. If anything, it was a little sterile, with various off-white shades paired with some unflattering lighting. Here’s another view, where you can see that there weren’t any accent colors, textures, metal-mixing, or any of the other design elements that give a space interest.

Dealing with this closet and salmon painted floor was high on the priority list of things to do to begin turning this basement into the modern family room it was destined to be. It had been on my mind since the moment we got the keys to the house. It took a few months to get around to it but we finally did. Follow me after the jump to see the result…We didn’t have much use for the closet but we did have hundreds of books that needed to find a home.