Four years ago, we purchased our 1970s fixer-upper and began a several-years-long renovation. I learned SO much during this renovation—it was the learning experience of a lifetime. It was my first very large renovation. It took longer and cost more than I expected (as almost all renovations do). What I wasn’t expecting, though, was how much I truly enjoyed the entire process. Once I realized we were finally done, I was missing the process almost instantly and wishing I could back and do certain rooms more slowly.
Anyway! Here is a before/after tour of all our living spaces! I hope you enjoy seeing the transformations (keep in mind the before and after videos are FOUR YEARS apart). Oh! And by the way, I say, “This is my favorite room in the whole house” in two different rooms of this video—haha. Forgive me.
Entry Sources: Wallpaper/Sisters Of The Sun by Juju Papers, Table/Modern Buffet by West Elm, Bench/Transit Bench by Gus Modern, Rug/Anthropologie (old), Pink Paint/Baby Blush by Valspar.
Den Sources: Sofa/Article, Yellow Car Print/Arielle Vey, Hand Chair/Wayfair (similar), two white poufs, the shroom coffee table, Lighting/Lucent Lightshop, Curtains/Anthropologie, I got the area rug on sale from Anthropologie (years back) but here’s a similar style.
Record table sources: Console Table/West Elm, Palm Tree Print by Moonlight Magpie on Etsy, U-Turn Audio/Orbit Basic Turntable, Speakers/Audioengine. I did a post about our record player set up here.
DIY links: Read about how we paint brick and stone here. Read about our projector set up here. If you’re curious about our DIY shiplap wall, read here. Here’s a link to when The Home Edit organized our kitchen (a bunch of the setup they created is still going strong!).
Kitchen Sources: Faucet/The Home Depot, Gold Hardware/Rejuvenation, Chandelier/Lucent Lightshop, Above the sink fixture/Cedar & Moss, Quartz Counter/Stone World, Hanging Planter/Amazon, Espresso Machine/Breville.
DIY links: Paint pen organization DIY here. I shared all about our recolored appliances here.
Breakfast Nook Sources: Table/Amazon, Chandelier/Lucent Lightshop, Dining Chairs/Wayfair.
DIY links: Gallery wall with gold hardware frames. Here’s a post about my rainbow glassware collection.
Dining Room Sources: Wallpaper/Juju Papers, Chandelier/Shop Candelabra, Rug/Marrakesh Shag Rug from Rugs USA, Mirror/Rejuvenation, White Chairs/Amazon, Teak Wood Chair/Lulu & Georgia, Table/DIY (I have painted it since then, but it’s the same table going strong since 2012!), Macrame/The Northern Needle, Wine Cabinet/DIY (we didn’t write a tutorial for it, but just so you know where it came from), Wood Console/West Elm.
Sunroom Sources: Chairs/Wayfair, Coffee Table/Amazon, Outdoor Rug/Target, Spun Brass Planters, Tiered Planter, Brass lights/Schoolhouse Electric. If you want to learn more about painting brick, see here.
Living Room Sources: Sven Charme Tan Sofa from Article, Coffee Table/Anthropologie (it sold out shortly after I bought it), Mirror/CB2, Rug/Wayfair—they also sell it here.
DIY sources: Here’s a post about my rainbow bookshelves, our paneled ceiling DIY and our color washed floors.
Thank you so much for your love and support surrounding our renovations and home projects. If I’ve learned anything from this home, it’s that the process is just as magical as the end result and that I want a lot more renovation projects in my future! xx- Elsie
19 Comments
You’ve done such a great job!!
Laura
Thank you! Love you!!
Your home looks amazing and Your renovation process and all your ideas are so inspiring. Thank you so much for sharing ❤️❤️
Ughh, everything looks so good! Thanks for the tour – so inspiring! 🙂
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Very lovely????
Beautiful home! Where did you get the rocking horses from? I had the same one as a baby!
Hi Anne! It was a vintage find 🙂
Love it! Where did you get your dress you are wearing in the video?
Hi! It’s old J.Crew (I got it from Poshmark) xx!
Love! Do you have a tutorial for the colorful yarn wall hanging in the living room? Tried to find it and couldn’t!
this is so cool! thanks for doing the video.
one thing i really noticed is that painting not just the walls but also all the built-in cabinets and doors and trim white really brightened up the rooms. the cabinets look very chic now. I also gotta give your previous homeowners credit – that yellow-and-white color scheme in the kitchen and dining room was really kind of cool. I always like it when people make bold choices with their colors, and for those two rooms, that really worked!
Oh, and I have a request! Can you do a post about spices and your favorite ones to use? Cause you have A TON of spices. I counted about 20 in each row in the kitchen, so you got 60 different spices happening there. I’m not sure I can name 60 spices, much less tell you what to use them for. Would love to read about your fave ones.
Hi!
Yes- my husband’s main hobby is cooking! I basically just use garlic and cinnamon to be honest- but it’s his passion! He mainly likes learning recipes from other countries, so with each ones comes a ton of new spices!
Love ALL of it! I have the same sofa as you do in your den. Could you pls tell me the wall colour you painted in there? Thank you!
It’s Marshmallow by Sherwin Williams 🙂
I love all the work you and your husband put into this space! My husband and I are looking for our first home and I’d love to know if you have any tips for seeing the design potential in a older home? You took a very old fashioned space (especially the den and kitchen) and made the rooms so much brighter and modern. How do you see that kind of potential when you’re looking to buy but you are looking at a darkly gloomy den and a yellow kitchen??
Hi Emily! This post might help– http://abeautifulmess.com/2015/05/thoughts-on-updating-an-older-home.html 🙂
Your home is so beautiful, peaceful and welcoming. I absoluterly love the work you did!
Could you link the part two tour that has your bedrooms?
What is the name of the quartz color you used? I’m going with an all-white kitchen like yours, having the quartz/marble conundrum, and am having a hard time finding a quartz I like by simply looking at tiny samples.