Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Our Remodeling Projects: Before and After

If you're like me, you love seeing transformations. It doesn't matter if it's weight loss, home improvement, or even hairstyle changes--we love to see the "before" and the "after."

This summer, my handy husband and I bought a new house and tackled a slew of remodeling projects. I'm happy to announce--they are all finished! We have plenty more projects to tackle, but it feels great to have the big ones done.

I promised I'd share the before and after pictures, and here they are.

Let's start with the entrance. The original picture doesn't accurately show the drip marks and general disarray of the original green door. The frame's paint was peeling willy-nilly, and it just looked sad. :(

We stripped the old paint from the frame, re-painted it, and gave the door itself two coats of gray paint. I love it!


Next up...our family room!

The family room had green carpet with mysterious brown stains and signs of severe wear. We loved the fact it had a fireplace, but it wasn't quite our style. We replaced the carpet with a neutral taupe carpet and retiled/repainted the fireplace. The walls also transformed to light gray.



Moving on to the big project...the kitchen.

The original kitchen felt very cramped, which was odd since the space is adequate. It featured four levels of wallpaper (bottom section, top section, middle border, and top border), dated lighting fixtures, faded laminate counters, and linoleum floors. It was in livable condition, in fact, someone with different taste than mine might have loved it as is. We decided to tackle this job right away to improve function and to give the whole space a "craftsman" feel.



Here's another view: My husband ripped out the soffit above the old cabinets to make more room for our new cabinets. It was such a big, tedious job. He also demo-ed a desk area to create a large pantry. He installed the tile backsplash (I helped grout!) and plumbed the sink and dishwasher. I can't even begin to explain how grateful I am to him. He worked extremely hard for two months to bring this all together.


Not shown--we ripped out all the flooring throughout the house. My husband replaced every light fixture and door handle too. :) We had new can lighting installed in a few rooms. We still have a few rooms to de-wallpaper, and our deck is pretty worn and rickety, but it feels fantastic to have come this far!

And, for the final before and after pic--our mailbox. :)


Thanks for letting me share our adventures in remodeling-land. We are thrilled to be done with the big stuff!

Have you remodeled anything? Was it a difficult process for you? Did you love the end result?

Have a fabulous Wednesday!

28 comments:

  1. Absolutely beautiful! My husband and I once took on a home that needed to be remodeled and learned that we don't enjoy nor are we very good at remodeling. :) I completely respect and admire anyone who can pull off a project like this.

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    1. Too funny! My husband has a passion for anything house related. We've built a few homes, finished a basement, and done basic remodeling, but nothing at this level. I don't think I'd want to do it again, but never say never!

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  2. Great job...especially the lighting. I'm a light freak and need much when in the kitchen cooking.

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    1. Same here, Em. I love the under-cabinet lighting and the overhead cans! A big improvement from the old ceiling fan in the kitchen--yuck!

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  3. Love the kitchen! We had our porch remodeled. We had to. The old one was decaying. I LOVE my new porch. I smile every time I see it. (Still haven't taken a picture of it.)

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    1. Awesome!! I remember you talking about it this summer. So glad to hear it's all finished! :)

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  4. We are in the process of remodeling my bathroom. We've been in the process since January...yeah, we're quick like that;) Love the pictures and I'm completely in love with the wood floors in your kitchen!

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    1. I know! We've been quick like that at times too! We both vowed we would get these projects done ASAP this time. We can't handle living in chaos!

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  5. Yay!! I love what you did with it!! Great job, friend.

    We've never remodeled, but then again, we bought this house after an investor had done a little upgrade (new tile floors, painted inside). I'm not super handy, so not sure how that would turn out! Eventually I want to redo my kitchen a little bit (get granite countertops, mostly).

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    1. Nice! One of the houses we put an offer on this summer needed no work. I would have loved that house! But God had other plans... Hope you get your granite countertops!

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  6. I love what you did with the house--esp the kitchen! Remodeling is a lot of hard work, but a lot of fun, too. Hubby and I are anxiously awaiting that time when we get our own new house, which will probably require some remodeling!

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    1. It's so exciting to make a home your own. I can't tell you how much I appreciate having my own house. We've lived in so many apartments and rentals over the years--there is nothing like owning a home!

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  7. Ahhh, I love it! Especially the kitchen!

    Honestly, I'm not much of a remodeler. But I am a "Hey, will you come remodel for me?" person. Know our strengths, right? Remodeling and redecorating, definite weakness. Asking someone else to do something for me, such a strength. Ha!

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    1. I'm totally with you, Melissa. My husband makes it all look easy! I'm a lucky woman!!

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  8. Wow, what a lot of hard work! Looks lovely, Jill. Enjoy!

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  9. Awesome, but I admit, I liked your ugly mailbox. I would have snaked some cool branches around it and made it shabby sheek. But I love the fresh coat you put on it too. :)

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    1. It was really bad, Jess. I don't think it could have even made it to shabby chic! It was just shabby! :)

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  10. Who hoo! I love transformation pics. We remodeled our kitchen. I wish we would have taken before or after pics, but I guess I can still take an after pic and show it off :) This weekend we're doing some small projects on the basement!

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    1. I want to see pics! I don't care if they're before OR after!! Good luck!

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  11. Yay for remodeling!! You are so blessed that your husband is so handy. The mailbox picture at the end was great. That house didn't know what hit it!

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    1. You aren't a kidding! Now if I could just keep the house clean... :)

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  12. Great Job! I like what you did to the fireplace. It looks like it belongs in that room. The before picture made me think that it was an add on, after the fact.

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    1. What a nice compliment! I'll pass it on to my husband--thanks!!

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  13. Wow! Your place looks great, especially the kitchen. I hope you have oodles of fun making memories in your beautiful new home.

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  14. Hi Jill - home looks as home does NOW - well done, lots of hardwork by you both .. congratulations ... and enjoy - cheers Hilary

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