Home Projects

When the last of their kids moved out, Hafeeza and her husband decided to make a big change: they sold their 4,500 square foot house in New Jersey and moved to Manhattan. They were tired of the maintenance a big house requires, and wanted to be close to the city and all it has to offer. After a year in a temporary spot, they found the perfect apartment. The kitchen just needed a little tlc.

Lindsay scored this cool vintage wire chair with the help of her mom. It was destined to be a fluorescent accent in her home office, and it sure pops: From Lindsay: When designing my new home office, I had a very specific thing in mind. Unfortunately, I also had a very small budget for my chair. I scoured thrift stores searching for just the right thing. Ideally, I wanted metal, wire if possible and vintage was a plus.

Despite its peeling handles and faux wood shelves, Shannon had plans for this thrift store bar cart. With a little love and crafty touches, it now shines: Besides polishing the brass, she painted and stenciled the faux wood, and wrapped the peeling handles with patterned tape. From Shannon: Before the holidays I found a beat up little bar cart at a local thrift store. It was a little grimy and had lost its luster. Not to mention the ugly faux wood shelves and peeling handle grips.

The MALM line at IKEA is a true furniture workhorse: it’s inexpensive, it’s practical and best of all, it’s endlessly customizable. Just take a look at what these readers did to their chests, dressers and beds. You won’t believe the humble beginning of these unique pieces.

You’ve probably seen a lot of bathrooms like this: not great, not terrible, just so-so. First-time Manhattan homeowners Hafeeza and her husband were planning on a remodel of their kitchen, with updates to their bathroom to be made at a later date. But their contractor helped them realize that they could fit the bathroom upgrades into their budget right now — and that only a few small changes would make a big difference.

With chipping wood and torn silk, this bentwood bench was unloved. Lisa revived it into a total statement piece, where it turns heads and causes smiles: From Lisa: My friend fell in love with this gorgeous bentwood bench when it was languishing unloved in a workplace powder room! The original silk covers were torn and the strange olive stain to the timber was chipped and ruined. The boss said she could have it!! How lucky!

This vintage Danish chair didn’t make it through the ’90s unscathed, yet Lisa saw past its poor choice in upholstery and restored it with a more period appropriate style. From Lisa: I recently got this Danish modern lounge chair as a partial trade for something I was selling on Craigslist. It had been re-upholstered in a fabric that was not period appropriate, and it was missing two buttons, but I saw potential.

When Cate spotted this bamboo dresser, it was in bad shape, sporting a dual-finish black paint job and lots of wear and tear. But with elbow grease and a bold new hue, this piece sports a proud new look: From Cate: I found this bamboo dresser hiding behind a clothing rack at Goodwill on a furniture sale day. My first reaction was YIKES.

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Allow me to present our favorite Apartment Therapy Valentine’s Day tradition, the sex chair roundup. Introduced in 2001, the Tantra Chair is the best of breed (and I’ve put it below the fold this year), and has the most convincing argument that this thing is truly romantic. Its stated purpose: “The Tantra Chair is a modern chaise designed to enhance the advanced sexual positions of the Kama Sutra.

Whew, that was a whirlwind of a month! Did you finish your January Cure project? I’m happy to report that this wall is no longer bare, and my books are no longer in boxes. Check out my “built-in” bookshelves: This wasn’t the bargain project I was expecting it to be (it cost about $125 total, since I had to do some stocking up on basics like screws, sandpaper and paint brushes) but no out-of-the-box shelf would fit just like these do.

After Dana graduated from grad school, her plain IKEA desk was more of an embarrassment than something she enjoyed. With the trusty DIY combo of spray paint and contact paper, this blank slate goes glam: From Dana: I had this desk sitting in my apartment for years and while it was useful to do homework on, once I graduated from grad school, I didn’t really have a need for the plain desk anymore.

When a local mill was closing down, Ashley snagged their stock of industrial carts. See how she refinished one for her living room: From Ashley: These carts were in rough shape when I got them and were in desperate need of a deep clean. This was the kind of job for a power washer. However, it is important not to get carried away with the power washer to the point where it starts splintering the wood. Once the cart was clean I sanded the whole thing down.

This old dresser had lovely detail and potential, but badly damaged drawer fronts prevented a traditional restoration. Some fresh coats of glossy white later: From Nicole: This dresser had a badly worn veneer with chipped edges and deeply scratched surfaces. The drawers were in bad shape, so they were sanded, patched and painted. The top was in decent shape so it was sanded and oiled along with the legs and decorative trim on the drawer fronts.

Jenna Sue tackled this wall as part of a larger makeover of her entire master bedroom. The entire room lacked any special features, yet she wanted to make it a rich, interesting, and inviting space. With that in mind, she set out to make this wall a focal point of the room… Previously flat as a pancake, the wall now has texture and architectural interest, and elevates an otherwise bland bedroom into a sophisticated space. The gray adds a lot of warmth, making it cozy and relaxing.

Carroll really wanted a narrow cart in the kitchen to act as a coffee station. When finding something already made was going to be more than she wanted to spend, the decision was made to DIY, starting with this table that was a little on the short side. From Carroll: My projects almost always start with a functional purpose.

Aniko’s white IKEA wall unit worked fine in the dining room. But the second she saw West Elm’s reclaimed wood buffet, she knew she could refresh this basic piece into a showstopper—and save over $1,100 in the process. Aniko got the wood for free from a local business, and spent $17 on stain and lacquer. That’s a pretty hefty savings! Check out her blog, A Place of My Taste, for more photos and a tutorial on how she made the oversized art that hangs above her new buffet.

We know that some of you have very…err…strong opinions about painting wood furniture, but the owners of these dramatic before and after projects might disagree with all you naysayers. Especially on damaged or cheap wood, a coat or two of paint is an easy, cost-effective and super-cute strategy to refresh tired pieces. Watch me prove it seven times. Claire’s campaign nightstands got a new blue and a new purpose in another room.

Malcolm and his parents have been all over the world, collecting souvenirs like this Brazilian rug. When he moved away from home, Malcolm took it with him and initially hung it behind his bed as a pseudo headboard, then decided to find a more permanent home on the wall as art. The rug is pretty big, and somewhat heavy. Which raises the question: how does one hang it?

This children’s rocker had definitely seen better days… like during the bygone decades when marbled vinyl was a thing. Charlotte plans to reupholster a lot this year, and thought she’d literally start small and tackle this kids chair. See how she did: From Charlotte: I’ve had this yellow vinyl rocking chair in the basement for… a while. But 2015 is going to be the year of upholstery for me so I decided to start out on this little piece.

A $20 IKEA “as-is” bed frame had served its purpose, but Kerry decided to give it a new use. By adding cushions and wrapping the mattress, she now has a sweet reading spot: From Kerry: I’ve had this ultra bland Lillehammer IKEA twin bed frame for several years. I’d gotten it in the ‘As Is’ section for only $20 to help stage our home when we sold it.

After facing decades of moves and time in storage, Sheila decided to restore this chair her husband’s parents bought in the 60s. It’s now ready to take on another 50 years: From Sheila: My husband’s parents bought this chair around 1960 shortly after they were married. It eventually landed in my husband’s childhood room and then followed him as he grew up. During most of our life together the chair was stored away.

A simple shoe cabinet was becoming a dumping ground for recycling— and not much style. Jeremy decided to use temporary wallpaper to transform this little corner into something more rustic mid-century: From Jeremy: I bought the shoe cabinet from Wayfair to, obviously, reign in our (fab) shoe collection. While it’s been great and done its job admirably, it’s not very attractive (and it ends being a place to dump our recycling!).

Many might have passed over this sad vintage sofa, but not Janet. She had glam plans for this junk shop find, including a BIG seat refresh: That oversized seat cushion makes it all the more glamorous, don’t you think? From Janet: I found a fabulous, battered, worn out vintage French Louis XV-style sofa at a local junk shop. So I stripped it down, sanded and painted the woodwork and reupholstered, with a little help from YouTube and my Dad.

When Rachel found this chair in her parents’ garage, she just had to save it. Once belonging to her great uncle in the 1940s, this former home for mice had such stunning arms, it needed a new lease on life. From Rachel: I found this chair in my parents’ outdoor garage a couple of years ago. I was immediately drawn to it because, just look at those gorgeous arms! It looked like it had been a house for mice for a while.

Although her boyfriend was not convinced that this was the sofa for their apartment, Miranda had big plans. First to go, that dated skirt: With a black slipcover, a graphic black and white fabric, and an ottoman to match, the sofa feels fresh and modern with more room to stretch out. From Miranda: We looked for a couch for what felt like forever!

Janet was looking to replace her IKEA LACK coffee table with something with a little more style. She saw some potential in an unlikely find — the BABORD shoe rack. From Janet: I had just moved into a new place, and I was dying to replace my ever-ubiquitous Ikea “Lack” coffee table with something more unique. Seeing as how I didn’t have any funds to purchase the slat bench of my dreams, I used my old, beaten up (also Ikea) shoe rack to make this!

The kitchen in Sam’s new house couldn’t have been much worse. There were mice everywhere, the units were filthy, the cooker was condemned by the gasman, the back door could only be opened with a crowbar and worst of all, there was a mysterious smell, which they eventually tracked down to an open waste pipe running straight into the kitchen.

Claire scored a deal on a pair of campaign nightstands, that, despite the brass being in good shape, could use some refinishing. She didn’t really need the bedroom storage, so she put them to use in the living room: From Claire: I came across these two nightstands in a booth at the Mission Antique Mall in Prairie Village, Kansas. The booth’s owner was there and she gave me a great deal on the set (less than $150).

What to do when your place is a total blank space? Kristin overcame the unlimited possibilities of her white-and-concrete living room, and went big and bold with graphic wallpaper. See how it looks now: From Kristin: There are good things and there are bad things about moving into a house with white walls (not even a backsplash in the kitchen!) and concrete floors. The good: It’s a totally blank canvas.

These IKEA nightstands were still in good shape, if not particularly stylish. Aya tackled them with a quick and easy refresh that’s totally on trend: We can’t get enough white-and-wood mix, and it looks particularly great here. From Aya: I’ve had this Ikea nightstand for several years and since it was still in really great shape I didn’t quite want to get rid of it. It had turned a little drab and boring so to spice things up, I painted the drawer fronts a matte white.

With the laundry room in her new home visible from the front door, Tania made fixing it up her first priority. Adding functionality and style, plus a way to close off the space when it was less than company ready, were top of the list: From Tania: In the fall of 2014 I bought a 1960s ranch fixer upper house.

Lucia found this old wooden cabinet with sliding glass doors, and immediately saw an alternate use for it. Instead of a wall-mounted unit, she transformed it into freestanding furniture that better suits her needs, all for a minimal cost… The transformation wasn’t technically difficult, just time consuming. After sanding off all the varnish, Lucia spray painted the inside white. The exterior got several coats of water-based wood stain.

I spotted this gorgeous Thonet-esque chair while strolling through an antique mall a few months ago. It was in supremely rough shape, but I had a vision and at $8 I just couldn’t pass it up! If the chair had a makers mark I might have thought about restoring it and finding someone who wanted it in original condition, but it didn’t —so I grabbed some sandpaper and a can of spray paint and got to work!

Project by: Brittany and Justin Location: Springfield, Missouri The TV room in our 1930 bungalow is the room in the house that gets the least amount of natural light, so we wanted to create a bright space with a colorful touches to hang out in the with our three chihuahuas. The previous owners had installed several built-in pieces—including a desk, shelving, and a decorative room divider—so we started by clearing the room.

This summer, my husband and I embarked on our first renovation project — a 1950’s terraced house with what we like to call “potential.” It has been a long, hard slog with a tight budget but we are beginning to see progress. You may have seen the results of our efforts in the living room here recently. In the kitchen, the long-term plan is to extend the room to make a big bright kitchen diner with glass doors out onto the garden and a little bit more room to swing a cat.

It’s a definite skill to look at something boring and busted, and still see potential. Pair that ability with some actual time and hard work, and you get some truly remarkable furniture makeovers. Here are ten DIY furniture projects that inspired us… 1. Above, Before & After: 2 Contemporary Cabinets Age Considerably…Overnight 2. Before & After: Recycled Pallet Pops With New Purpose 3. Before & After: Rita’s Really (Really!) Amazing Closet Transformation 4.

In 2014, our Before & Afters proved again and again that you don’t need a ton of cash to have a fresh new kitchen. Here are ten of this year’s best budget kitchen remodels. Click on the slideshow to see the projects. To learn more about each project (and see more pictures), click the links in the captions. → Welcome to Apartment Therapy’s Best of 2014 roundup! From December 21 through January 1 we are rounding up our favorite (and your favorite) posts from the past year.

Parents are proven problem-solvers and potential-seers. That’s why some of our most amazing Before & After furniture transformations are for nursery and kids’ rooms. Let’s look back at some of 2014’s best rescues and restorations: Click on the slideshow to see the projects. To learn more about each project (and see more pictures), click the links in the captions. → Welcome to Apartment Therapy’s Best of 2014 roundup!

Amanda had a tiny extra room that wasn’t much more than a dumping ground for “old clothes, holiday decorations, paperwork, and hockey gear,” becoming pretty unusable. But with a guest visit on the horizon, she gave herself the challenge of transforming it into a room a guest could enjoy staying in! From Amanda: To brighten the room and add some life, I brought in color with the pillows and ottomans from Target.

Luann spent just $40 on this thrift store chair and a great deal on discounted fabric to boot, but you’d never know it. Check out the expensive-looking (and, dare we say, nature-inspired) final results. From Luann: The finish was worn down on the arms and gunked up with…gunk? I sanded the wood completely down and stained and polyed it. I got a good deal from a fabric outlet on this fabric which is, in my opinion, perfect for this MCM chair.

A lot of people have guest rooms that really just function as glorified storage spaces that collect the flotsam and jetsam of our lives. Sure they host visitors from time to time, and might serve as a quiet work space when needed, but rarely do they serve as the heart of the home. This was all about to change for Emily, who needed to convert this bonus space into a specific purpose. See what she did…. There was a good reason for the redo: namely, a brand new edition to the family!

Since Shehzeen picked up this media console for free, anything she did was gonna be added value. Even so, we never thought it could look this good. From Shehzeen: I had it for about two years before I decided that it needed a bit of a facelift; it was way too dark for me suddenly. I painted it over in a white, added some gold to the legs, installed them asymmetrically and I think I’m sufficiently thrilled. See more at The Desi Wonder Woman. Thank you Shehzeen!

This summer, my husband and I bought our first home. Having been living in a big flat with high ceilings and sprawling open plan living for the past five years, the reality of what we could afford as our first step on the property ladder hit us like a DIY toolkit in the face.

Tanya did something amazing to find exactly what she was looking for: she asked. She posted a want ad to her local classifieds and lo and behold, someone was looking to unload this beauty. We bet the seller wants it back now! Check out the transformation. From Tanya: I wanted it so much, I didn’t even haggle (she was asking $250). I saved up, and then spent $400 on a professional upholstery job. Years later, this is still a favorite chair.

Pam found this love seat in a thrift store and fell in love with its great bones. It was in perfect condition except for the dated, faded upholstery so crafty Pam gave it some love. Pam says, “All it needed was a good cleaning and a tailored slipcover in a sassy blue cheetah print to spring back to life.” Hear that, folks? This is a slipcover! Masterful work, indeed. See more at Pam Morris Sews. Thank you Pam!

If you’ve ever come across a painted wood storage piece and wondered how you could restore it to the naturally beautiful look of wood and do something fresh and unique to it, you’ll find inspiration in this credenza Martha got creative with. From Martha: The original finish on this piece was a fading white with many scratches all over it.

Nicolette found this old wood chest in a random shop, and viewed it as the perfect opportunity to test some new stencils she recently designed. Which means that wood lovers and purists, you might want to go and rearrange your sock drawer for a few minutes. I can tell you without hesitation that there is hyperventilation in your near future if you click through. You have been duly warned… Nicolette took a couple of days to paint and stencil the trunk.

When Katrina moved into her 1952 Portland bungalow, the area that needed the most attention was this really teeny bathroom. It was sponge-painted (gasp!), had a bathtub that nothing short of nasty (ugh!), and it was hard to even turn around in the tiny space. She and her husband decided to gut it and start over, taking over an extra closet to create more space.

Sam, a friend of the blog Flutter Flutter, wanted to change up her chairs and table in her dining room. She mixed together some old cans of chalkboard paint she had lying around and purchased a bundle of wood from her local hardware store. The whole project cost her under $10 to complete. Check it out below. You can find more of the project details over at Flutter Flutter. Thank you Sam and Rosa!

Have a spare room that you want to turn into a creativity-inducing craft room the likes of which have never been seen? You just might find some inspiration and ideas in Tasha’s DIY craft room that features bold colors and patterns as well as stylish supply storage solutions. From Tasha: We transformed the remnants of our twin girls’ nursery to my craft room/home office. I selected a neutral gray for the walls and a black and white color palette.

Lauren is on a tight budget so when she found this sofa at a thrift store for $60, she knew its makeover would also have to be a thrifty affair. From the look of the final project, you’d never know just how much she saved. From Lauren: I ripped out the old fabric, stripped the speckled varnish on the wood frame, sanded it down but kept the bare wood instead of varnishing again. I like how it looks more rustic that way.

Reeves was drawn to the simple style and gorgeous hardware of this dresser on Craigslist, but when she saw it in person it was a little more beat-up than she anticipated. So how did she cover the damage without being boring? Check it out. From Reeves: The top was extremely worn and scratched and a few places had pieces of veneer missing. I wanted a look for the piece that had clean lines, but wasn’t same old same old. Something new and different.

Last week, we witnessed the transformation of Elizabeth’s tiny bathroom, and today we’re taking a look at the rest of her tw0-bedroom co-op. When Elizabeth bought the place, she originally planned to only remodel the bathroom, but her contractor helped her realize that with only a few small changes, she could have a whole apartment that she was really happy with.

If you’ve ever done a kitchen makeover or thought about it and did a little research, you know that things get really pricey, really fast (I can speak from experience). That’s why I was so impressed by Brooklyn Berry’s $500 kitchen makeover. That’s almost like pennies in the kitchen makeover world. The key is being a really savvy shopper, getting creative and getting your hands dirty to do most of the work yourself.

Minni was looking to replace her old sofa with something a little more streamlined. She loved the lines of this retro yellow sofa but it didn’t exactly scream “low key.” For €30, she took a chance. From Minni: I wanted to challenge myself with an upholstery project that I had never tried before. I found lovely gray upholstery fabric for a bargain of €13 /yard which I think is the perfect color and texture for this sofa.

Makeover by: David (check out David’s bathroom makeover, too) Location: Glendale, CA We purchased our mid-century ranch house in 2012. We were only the 3rd owners. The first owners commissioned Robert L Earl architecture to build the house and it was complete in 1962. They lived in it for ten years, the second owners for 40 years.

Makeover by: David (check out David’s kitchen makeover, too) Location: Glendale, CA We purchased our mid-century ranch house in 2012. We were only the 3rd owners. The first owners commissioned Architect Robert L Earl to build the house, and it was complete in 1962. They lived in it for ten years, the second owners for 40 years. Other than some decor changes was pretty much in original condition. The second bath came to us with an egg yolk yellow bathtub, and brown carpeting, yuck!

Rosalind lost her first home to a fire back in February and, although heartbroken at the loss of her 1940’s home, she found a unique way to pay homage to it in her new house by reusing some of the original vintage windows that were saved. From Rosalind: We’re in the middle of a whole house renovation right now, so I needed to do something to get my creatives juices flowing.

On the weekend of October 12th in Los Angeles, global design gurus Jeanine Hays and Bryan Mason remixed the Helms Bakery District’s newest showroom space, transforming its interior into a stunning concept home filled with design inspiration. The exhibit, complete with a living room, library, master bedroom, dining room, and back patio, was furnished entirely with items from the Helm’s Bakery District’s various retailers.

Jade got this Swedish chair for $30, not realizing that his cats would quickly use it as their scratching post. So, he decided that this horrible brown, fur-magnet needed an upgrade, stat. Wow! Looks like a certain feline creature still has a soft spot for this chair, but it’s looking so much better. From Jade: Instead of succumbing to our cats, I decided to upholster for the first time using heavy duty outdoor fabric and reducing the buttons because our cats tend to pick on them.

Project by: Roger + Chris Location: Sharon Springs, New York The drab downstairs bathroom in our 160-old Italianate Victorian was in desperate need of a style infusion. Likely installed in the 1940s or 50s, the bath hadn’t received much attention in the ensuing years. A cute but well-used pedestal sink with separate taps, a tiled (and tiny) shower, fairly gross floor, and square tile running halfway up the walls. On the plus side, the large window brought plenty of sunlight into the space.

Renters and those not willing to make permanent changes to their stone fireplaces, rejoice! There is a way to meld your modern sensibilities with an outdated fireplace that might feature a material that overwhelms. Lidy came up with a simple and chic DIY way to add a modern feel to her stone fireplace. From Lidy: Our fireplace was a little outdated and it had no mantel. Although I was perfectly content with that, I debated how we could modernize it just a bit.

Wendy fell so in love with the character and charm of this rental apartment she was a bit blind to the stained, outdated wallpaper in the bedroom. But after moving in, she realized an update was needed, and she went with a dark and dramatic color palette. From Wendy: When my children and I moved into our rental apartment last winter, I was so wowed by the charm and character of our new space that I scarcely noticed the dingy, stained wallpaper covering every room in the house.

Nicole tells us, “When the seller of our new home asked us to trash the book shelf and storage unit she deemed too battered and bulky, I thanked her kindly for her wasteful ways.” Nicole wasn’t nearly so quick to discount these useful shelves; she knew they just needed some love. From Nicole: We have a LOT of books so I knew we would need lots of shelving in our home office.

DeaAnna found this dresser at a yard sale for $35. It had some fun details and the drawers were all in working condition so she decided to give it some much-needed love. It turned out so well she couldn’t stand to hide it in the bedroom anymore. DeaAnna and her husband recently swapped out their formal dining room set in favor of a more casual table and chairs but they were still missing storage. From DeaAnna: I decided to repurpose it as my dining room buffet.

I passed by this sad little table at the thrift shop about a half dozen times before deciding to bring it home and give it a new life in our new house. With a little spray paint and some adorable laminated cotton (it was originally my idea to use oil cloth, but I couldn’t pass up this fabric), this little table received quite the transformation! We kept this project super simple and didn’t worry about removing the original fabric.

Not long ago, Linda spotted a picture of a Mid-Century Ercol armchair on Pinterest and completely fell in love. It didn’t take her long to find a similar style chair but it was in massive need of an update. Not only were the original cushions sporting a suuuper fashionable needlepoint-style print, they were torn to bits from decades of sitting. From Linda: I spent some days browsing fabrics and finally settled on an upholstery fabric from Clarke and Clarke featuring a large tulip print.

Purchasing real estate in Manhattan is not for the faint of heart. Not many people would think of making a commitment after 15 minutes, but after a single visit — and about that much time — Elizabeth was ready to put down a bid on her West Village co-op. Her boldness paid off: she got the apartment. But it needed a little bit of work. The first order of business? The bathroom.

I’ll admit to it. Every now and then in the heat of the moment, I’ve been know to slam the occasional door. So perhaps when this tip showed up in my inbox from my S.O., it wasn’t so much as a tip, but a hint. In an effort to keep the peace, literally, I’m going to give this quick tip a whirl.

Lucy didn’t have a headboard. And she didn’t have a crib. But when she saw one being thrown away by neighbors the wheels started turning and she snatched it up. But how to make it into a colorful headboard for herself? Clue: she didn’t use paint. Lucy shares: Dilemma: I didn’t have a headboard for my bed, but I also didn’t have the money to spend on one. Solution: My neighbors threw out pieces of a baby crib by the dumpster in my alley. They saw trash.

Steph was in the market for a little record cabinet and found this veneered chipboard ‘60s cabinet. The varnish was shot — scratched, faded, and bubbling where it had been left in the rain — and the veneer had chipped off in a couple places. Never fear! Handy Steph worked her magic and performed a wood resuscitation. From Steph: I replaced the broken veneer with pieces of new blackwood veneer, sanded off the old finish, and gave the cabinet a varnish all over.

When the budget is tight and you can’t tear apart your entire bathroom to turn it into something you’d prefer, you’ve got to get creative. Jenna did just that with her bathroom, and it went from kind of sad to cheery! There are some simple but bold ideas in this makeover for both renters and homeowners.