Category Archives: Before & After

DIY Tutorial: Revamp Your Decor with Whitewashing

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Whitewashing is an easy and cost-effective method of decorating. By adding an air of patina and texture, this paint technique enhances a variety of decor styles like as cottage, beach, country, or shabby chic.

Recently, I included whitewashing in my bedroom makeover by revamping some bamboo matchstick blinds. Because I’m re-decorating this room into a beachy, Zen space, this technique was perfect for adding texture and warmth to my neutral color scheme.

Read along to find out how I achieved this look and how you can also transform an item with whitewashing.

Whitewashing bamboo matchstick blinds tutorial beachy Zen decor bedroom makeover Continue reading →

DIY: Easy Padded Headboard Tutorial

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DIY Easy Padded Floating Headboard Tutorial with foamboard, plywood, fabric, foam padding, upholstery nails

A few years ago, I created a floating headboard with squares of foamboard, batting, fabric, & velcro. When I outgrew the green color scheme in my bedroom, I removed the headboard. I tried using more pillows as a substitution, but it just wasn’t the same.

Forward to the present, where I’m making over my bedroom & felt the need for a headboard again. An upholstered headboard doesn’t just provide cushioning so you can watch TV or read in bed, it also helps anchor the bed in the room.  Your bed is usually the automatic focal point of the room because of its size, so a headboard also allows you to coordinate the bed into your decorating scheme.

Check out my current bedroom before & after the headboard to see how big an impact it makes in the room:

Bed Without and With DIY floating padded headboard Before and After foamboard padding upholstery nails plywood wood grain fabric

(You’re also getting a sneak peek at my new curtains, lucky you!)

Keep reading for more details & my tutorial… Continue reading →

Living Room Makeover with Mod & Moroccan Decor

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It took a few months to complete my living room make-over, but it is finally ready for sharing:

MCM mod Moroccan living room makeover with black white silver gray teal before and after

Click above to see a larger image.

MCM mod Moroccan living room makeover with black white silver gray teal before and after

My living room was previously styled in turquoise (my favorite color) but I decided a change was needed. This makeover was primarily accomplished by updating existing accessories and furniture. Come take a look at how I turned my living room/home office into a peaceful yet enjoyable place with a neutral color scheme.

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Before & After: Entertainment Center/Bookshelf Makeover

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Welcome to the final leg of my living room makeover: the “entertainment center.”  It’s not an entertainment center unit per se, but it’s where I have all my books, my TV and electronic toys. Click on the photo to zoom in.

BEFORE AND AFTER TV Entertainment Center in Living Room with Ikea Expedit Bookshelves -002

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My Vintage Tanker Desk Makeover

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During my recent vacation, I planned to finally paint my wooden tanker desk. Problem was, I couldn’t figure out what color to paint it. I’ve been updating my living room from turquoise and red to a neutral color scheme of black and white.

I wavered between painting it in gray/white or turquoise/teal (my favorite color). While a neutral shade would’ve been practical, I thought “what the hey” and decided to go with color. I even went a step further and chose a different color than turquoise: green. I bought “Garden View,” in the Behr Premium Plus Ultra line; I wanted to eliminate extra work with a paint that included primer. This line of paint seems to have worked well so far.

Garden View interior paint Behr Premium Plus Ultra line

Unfortunately, this color appeared much brighter when I started painting. Thankfully, I began this project with the desk drawers. I knew I wouldn’t be happy with seeing that color close up, 8 hours a day, 5 days a week.

Plan B: new color. To save money, I used some leftover paint and only bought an additional quart of a color I’d previously used when I created some Moroccan-influenced wall art. It’s called “Pacific Sea Teal” and is in the same line of Behr paint that includes primer:

Pacific Sea Teal interior paint Behr Premium Plus Ultra line

I like that it’s one of those colors that looks different in light.  In the daylight it appears bluer but at night in artificial light, it’s more like a true teal/green-blue. Here’s some shots of my revamped pride & joy:

Vintage Wood Tanker Desk paint makeover to teal and silver DIY home office silver drawer handles mod Moroccan decor

Vintage Wood Tanker Desk paint makeover to teal and silver DIY home office silver drawer handles mod Moroccan decor

(click to see a larger image)

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Make Over Your Decor With This Cheap Mosaic Method

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Love the mosaic look but hate to spend the money for glass tiles and grout? Check out a cheaper and simpler alternative I created with scrapbook paper and Mod Podge. Adding a mosaic is a clever way to customize an existing piece of furniture or accessory.

Mosaic Parsons coffee table makeover with Mod Podge, paper, and Rub n Buff in white and silver

Previously, I created a piece of mosaic wall decor but have since retired this piece since it no longer matches my living room. Using this mosaic method, I gave my plain, Parsons coffee table an update along with some Rub n Buff to add a metallic vibe. Sure, buying a new coffee table would’ve been easier, but it would’ve been boring. Learn how to do it after the jump. Continue reading →

6 Tips For Decorating a Home Office/Work Space

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People who accomplish large tasks know it’s best to tackle them one step at a time. I’ve been learning to embrace this philosophy as I redecorate my living room.

My new decor scheme is neutral with bits of color. The main colors are black and white, with some gray, silver, and teal/turquoise. I’m really digging the simplicity of this scheme and it helps create the mood I wanted: spacious, clean, serene, and modern.

Here’s a before & after shot of my home office:

Before and After of Home Office fabric and foamcore bulletin board turquoise to black silver and white desk

And this is the before & after of my art workspace:

Before and After of Art Workspace with folding tables magnetic bulletin board turquoise to black white and silver

Because I work and paint from home, my redecorating plan also entails these workspaces. Along the way, I’ve tried different approaches to fit these spaces into my living room. Here are some tips I’ve found work best, especially in a small home.

Continue reading →

Spring Cleaning—A Season Later

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Most people take advantage of the ushering of spring to do some serious cleaning. I did my share of spring cleaning, but not like I did these past two weeks. Last week, we experienced a heat wave here in NW Ohio and a fierce thunderstorm that accompanied it. I’m a self-confessed weather nerd, but this storm sent me downstairs to safer ground. I actually witnessed a tree outside my balcony get snapped in half by the wind during the storm:

Tree blown down by wind in summer thunder storm Toledo Ohio

There was plenty more damage to trees outside and thankfully, no one or anything was injured here. It was wild to see nature so destructive and yet so beautiful. Still, it’s bittersweet this tree outside my home had to go as it did. It now sits as a pile of chopped wood.

I didn’t feel it at first, but I believe this storm brought about a much-needed inspiration for me to do some purging. I’ve come to realize I’m a semi-hoarder. Many things I stash away, don’t use but always think, “Maybe. Someday.”

I attacked two of my closets with a renewed spirit: the bedroom closet and the arts/crafts/decor closet. The bedroom closet was quite easy to complete and consisted of pulling out clothes & shoes I don’t wear to donate.

However, the other closet required a major upheaval. Witness the previous state of affairs, with past make-overs and its most recent condition:

Arts crafts decor closet reorganization

As you can see, there was SOOO much crap in there. Re-organizing this closet has been on my to-do list for quite some time and I weighed how to better use this small space for storage.

It was at the happiest place on earth—Ikea— that I found my weapons of choice. Continue reading →

How to Makeover Your Patio Furniture On the Cheap

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One of my favorite past-times is to make over something, especially with paint. I’m a sucker for any activity involving a paint brush. This mission to redecorate involved my balcony, a lovely space I consider as another room in my home.

The issue: the colors of my patio furniture no longer coordinated with the colors in my living room. I like to coordinate the colors in each of my rooms to create a sense of flow. They aren’t all decorated in the same colors, but they do each share a common color. I chose to extend this decor flow out to my balcony.

Several years ago, I scored a couple of outdoor sling chairs from Walmart for my balcony. They’re made of mesh and are fairly comfy, and were a decent golden yellow, not too bright like a lot of patio furniture. At the time, these warm colors matched well with the purples I had in my living room.

balcony outdoor space yellow patio sling chairs before

Before, 2010…

Last year, I tried working with the yellow and incorporated it into my indoor color scheme of turquoise and red. I sewed these pillow shams and painted a lotus design to tie the colors together:

balcony outdoor space yellow patio sling chairs before turquoise red color scheme

Before, 2011…

I dug the gold/turquoise/red color scheme, but I just didn’t love it. So, I decided to coordinate ALL the colors on my balcony to those in my living room,which now includes mint green and makeover those yellow chairs:

Painted patio sling chair in mint green jade seafoam with batik teal pillow

…After, 2012

The new color is also great because I can mix and match decor between the living room and balcony. There’s no tutorial since it was a pretty easy process. Here’s how I did it with latex paint:

Continue reading →

Kitchen After 5

Kitchen Redo: Before & After

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Completing my kitchen’s decor has been an ongoing project for quite some time now. Originally, I was trying to figure a color scheme that would coordinate with the living room, which was first decorated with purples and magenta. That was a major toughie. As you may recall, my counters feature a retro pattern of mostly mint green squares:

formica kitchen countertop with retro modern pattern in seafoam gray and avocado

I didn't like it at first, but it grew on me.

I channeled Tim Gunn’s mantra as much as possible, but just could not make it work. I think I was attempting some orange in here too. Or maybe I just didn’t care; I don’t remember. Luckily, I have photos to refresh my memory:

rental kitchen redo

BEFORE 1.0

Once I restyled my living room with the turquoise transformation, it was easy to plan a coordinating color scheme for the kitchen.  I continued the same scheme of blue-greens and red… However, I learned that unless done in the proper doses, bright colors can feel overwhelming. Especially in a cozy space such as my kitchen:

rental kitchen redo

BEFORE 2.0

I tweaked the colors in my living room to feature green-blue, gray and less saturated aquas to tone down all the brightness. This also led me to redecorate the kitchen with a new agenda: less color and more white, which leads to a more open, airy vibe:

rental kitchen redo with white contact paper over drawers and cupboards

AFTER

Check out how I did this after the jump.   Continue reading →