Our final Before & After today is a cleverly renovated garage space from photographer Natalie Wright. To create a space with plenty of light and room, as well as a healthy dose of personality, Natalie coated the walls in a crisp, reflective coat of white paint and turned salvaged materials like chicken wire, old doors and…
For today’s second Before & After project, we’ve got a pair of modified wood furniture pieces: One has been given an aesthetic facelift, and the other has received a functional makeover. When it comes to wood furniture, I’m still a little sheepish about grabbing the paint bucket, mainly because I hate the laborious process of…
I admit, I’ve been skeptical about painting fabric to change up the color of a piece of furniture, but I think today’s first Before & After from Stella Poore of Mon Petit Studio may have changed my mind. Having snagged this incredible sofa for only $25, Stella decided to take the plunge and paint it…
I recently re-watched the film Objectified, and this time around, I found myself inspired by Dutch designer Hella Jongerius, particularly when she said that what interests her most as a designer is how to bring identity and character to something that is produced industrially. You can see this vision so clearly in her work; she…
When floors are in bad condition and refinishing or renovating seems out of the question, people often try to downplay their floors by painting them a neutral color or hiding them under various rugs. However, I’m becoming increasingly convinced that if you can find a pattern or color you really love, the best cure for…
I love my rental apartment, but if there’s a room that makes me wish for the chance to own my home, it’s the bathroom. In my mind, it’s one of the spaces that benefit most from even minor renovations. I love gathering inspiration from great submissions like this crisp, sunny makeover from Julie of Belle…
It’s been a while since I’ve lived in a space like this one, but it just takes one glimpse of this “before” image to remember all the decorating challenges that accompany a small city apartment. Niamh of Seek Design managed to inject this space with cheer and energy by adding the right colors and patterns…
Though they have no hope of holding all my supplies, there’s something about the look and feel of these old toolboxes that I just love. Why it never occurred to me to turn such a beautifully designed item into a wall display as Kim has done here, I will never know, but I’m thankful she’s…
It’s funny to me that “bachelor” style has such a bad rep. I equate it with leather chairs that look like massively overstuffed beasts, giant TVs, a sparsely filled modular bookshelf and not much else . . . maybe an unpacked cardboard box or two. A harsh stereotype, I admit, although in my defense, I…
I do believe that there are some irrefutable beauties in the world, and wood is one of them. The greatest part of decorating with wood is that cheap, old, tattered and even dirty wood can look amazing; it has incredible texture, character and color. How many materials can you say that about? This reclaimed-wood backsplash…
I’ve tackled a few chair renovations, but I’ll be honest: caning intimidates me. I’m eagerly awaiting the day that Amanda covers caning in Upholstery Basics, but until then, I’m steering clear. I love this chair renovation from Haley Beham; she’s found an inventive way to mimic the original caning back by weaving strips of cotton…
After seeing Dana’s 3D diamond wall pattern last week, I’ve been brainstorming all the ways to add cool sculptural elements to my walls. I love wood paneled walls, but this awesome studio renovation from Cheryl Andrey is making me seriously appreciate the look of wood alone. I can imagine this looking nice as an all-wood…
I’m not a parent yet, but I’ve spent enough time around babies to know that even at an extremely young age, they love to look at patterns — particularly high-contrast, big patterns. Honestly, with all that exciting repetition and play between positive and negative space, who can blame them? This gorgeous nursery makeover from Summer…
I’ve often dreamed of having a wall like this in my house — a big, open expanse with no molding and no windows so I could do something big with it. I’d probably hang a ridiculously sized piece of art (if I had one), but I also love the idea of creating an entire wall…
Dark walls have been quite popular lately, and I think this bedroom makeover from Molly Molina Crawford provides a perfect example of why this trend is here to stay. The patterned rugs, the gold accents, the colorful artwork — everything just pops against those rich, sultry walls. Colors seem more vivid, whites feel super crisp…
I’m super excited to share today’s first Before & After project for two reasons. One, I’ve been a bit preoccupied lately with three-dimensional wallpaper ideas and other sculptural wall treatments, so this fits perfectly into my current obsession. And two, I think it’s awesome that the creator of this amazing diamond wall pattern, Dana Frieling,…
Sometimes a Before & After home renovation comes along that makes me want to up and move immediately, and this Austin, TX, bungalow from Britt and Dan is one of them. Can I live here, please? The amount of light and the use of space are amazing; like Grace, I am a fan of knocking…
Today’s second transformation provides another jolt of spring color, this time in the form of a gorgeous original 1930s turquoise wood ceiling and a well-chosen palette of plum, white and yellow with complementary gold touches. Monika Merchant designed the space to be a studio and office for her friend, photographer Apryl Ann. Despite its tiny 120 square feet,…
Yellow is rarely my color of choice, but with all the cold, dark dreariness that winter unloads on my apartment, I’m really appreciating the energy of this beautiful, sunny chevron dresser. Courtney and her husband originally scored this dresser off Craigslist and painted it solid, but when they moved to California, Courtney decided to jazz…
This Before & After features one of the dreamiest spa-like bathrooms I’ve seen, and to think it all started in this little 125-square-foot room. According to Branka Knezevic, the architect behind this beautiful renovation, the couple that commissioned it loves art, design and the sleek, modern aesthetic of mid-century architecture. The finished space not only…
