Do you look around your home and say, “it’s time for a complete redo?” When you think about the cost and time spent enduring workmen and construction debris, does the idea becomes less appealing? You could buy a new house, but unless you get into new construction and can customize the home to your liking, you are back to square one. Plus, you will have to deal with inflated prices and perhaps a higher mortgage rate. Then, there is the emotional attachment to the home you’re in. So many memories! Partial redos to update and revitalize the things you don’t like can be a perfect solution.
Try this. Walk around your house with a small spiral notebook and a pen and put the name of each room at the top of a page. (It doesn’t work as well if you dictate into your phone). Under each room name, create two columns labeled “KEEP” and “CHANGE”. Filling in the columns gives you a condensed visual of all the things you appreciate about your rooms and which design elements need refreshing. Then, do your own feasibility study. Take your notebook out shopping and price the items in your “CHANGE” column. Jot down the costs and consider how much of a hit your budget can take. Then tweak accordingly.
Real estate agents are always telling us that the most important rooms to update in order to reap resale rewards are the kitchen and bathroom. Coincidentally, those were the only rooms that had anything significant in my “CHANGE” column.
The kitchen was an easy albeit expensive fix. It only required new appliances – especially an oven with an air fryer! Other than that, I was happy with my French Bistro decor that includes a wallpaper border featuring Renoir’s Luncheon of the Boating Party along with a reproduction of the same painting on the wall. What can I tell you? I love French Impressionists, French food, Paris….you get the idea!
One of the bathrooms required a little more consideration. The small, dated black diamond tiles definitely had to go. The entire vanity area needed a complete redo as well. This translated to a new white wooden vanity with a quartz top and customized black drawer pulls, an intricate vessel sink and a single brushed nickel faucet. It also required closing in a wall that was formerly recessed to accommodate a triple mirrored medicine cabinet. The cabinet was changed to a mirror with a champagne finished frame and lighted wall sconces.
Speaking of walls, the other walls were in the “KEEP” column. I decided a long time ago that wallpaper in a full bath with a steamy shower was a bad idea. I opted instead for paint tones of charcoal and platinum grey with white wainscoting topped with crown and rope molding. Greek Key molding was then added to the tops of the painted walls for an additional decorative design element. These can all be easily refreshed with a new coat of paint when needed.
Finally, a marbleized floor with black and grey on a white background complemented the pattern flow and color tones of the quartz vanity top. A small investment in accessories and….voila the room was finis! (Told you I liked all things French). So now, when I walk around my house, everything is in the “KEEP” column.
