skip to main content
Photos
Photos
Advice
Stories From Houzz
Houzz Discussions
Houzz Research
Sign In
Houzz Logo Print
Explore Discussions
Before & After
bbretz

80's Nightmare to Contemporary Dream Part 1

bbretz
7 years ago

Five
years ago we bought a house near Tampa, FL which was a total
nightmare. We re-roofed, cleaned
up and repainted to get it "renter-ready" and have spent the last 3 years.....off and on.....renovating on our own. Before we began, I posted a discussion thread
to get some ideas....thanks to all of you who responded....and just
the other day qam999 asked
if I had an update. How about a BEFORE AND AFTER thread? First up....the entry walkway to
our VERY pink house....even the sidewalk was pink. Now the house is a
mellow linen color with tan trim.


Karl,
being German, was ready to go with a full on industrial style but
maybe just do the kitchen and let the rest as it was. YIKES! Me, with
more traditional roots and knowing the house needed more than a new
kitchen..... brought in a friend skilled in contemporary design to
help us find a compromise and get an “all over” plan with a calm,
cool look.

I
chose Sherwin Williams ON THE ROCKS as the main wall color, with
white trim. We opted to paint over so much of the wood trim giving it
an update. Lighting is LED.



Two
rooms had hardwood floors and the rest was tile but all surfaces were
damaged by all the tear out of built-in cabinets, hearth, etc. We
opted to go with Coretec Plus which is a vinyl on cork product that
installs like engineered wood. So far, we are happy with it.


This is the room you see upon entering. We filled in the half-walls on either side of the fireplace to diminish the echo effect and oddly enough....it made the room feel larger. Calmed the color and painted wood doors and trim.


This
entry room is a reading room allowing easy flow to and from master
bedroom to the right.


There
are three guest rooms which were burgundy, school bus yellow and hot
pink with lime green trim. Now they are gray, gray-green and
gray-blue and are still awaiting new carpet. The master was......also
burgundy but with the added feature of DIY built in shelves and desks on
either side and over the bed. They were not re-purposeable. They were faux-stained plywood glued together and to the wall.....nothing a sledgehammer couldn't handle.

......now just calm, clean....Sherwin
Williams COMFORT GRAY.



There was nothing MORE traditional and old school than the dining room and for us it was too separate from the kitchen....small pocket door hidden to the right.


We
doubled the size of the pocket door to the kitchen which makes the
dining room much more open space, more connected to the kitchen. It's unfortunate you can't see the low hanging LED light bar above the table. We ordered it from Germany and is a real eye-catcher.


The kitchen has been screaming for a re-do for years. Can't even tell you why two fans are needed over the island at forehead height.


The transformation speaks for itself. Almost total IKEA
re-do...believe me....247+ boxes later....even the appliances except
for the dishwasher and counter which was Home Depot. We
lengthened the island and pushed out the peninsula about 2 ½ feet. I
can't believe how much more convenient it is to have the pull out
drawers instead of old school cabinets.


YIKES! I ran out of room before I got to the last 2 sets of B & A's. I'll continue with 80's Nightmare to Contemporary Dream Part 2

Featured Answer
  • bbretz
    Original Author
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Karen, IKEA cabinets are very reasonable. We also made our purchase during a "Save 20% sale so got even a better deal. The wall color throughout the living areas and kitchen is Sherwin Williams ON THE ROCKS. We are getting ready to demolish the master bathroom this spring. Maybe I'll post some before and afters of that too. The link to PART 2 is: [https://www.houzz.com/discussions/80s-nightmare-to-contemporary-dream-part-2-dsvw-vd~4473764?n=18[(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/80s-nightmare-to-contemporary-dream-part-2-dsvw-vd~4473764?n=18)

    Comments (17)

    Sponsored

    Reload the page to not see this specific ad anymore

    More Discussions
    Belgian style renovation of small building to office/ studio
    0
    bathroom renovation advice
    0
    House re-design
    0
    Further Education & Training Centre Open Day: Interior Design Classes
    0
    Tiles for open plan space
    5
    Ireland
    Tailor my experience with cookies

    Houzz uses cookies and similar technologies to personalise my experience, serve me relevant content, and improve Houzz products and services. By clicking ‘Accept’ I agree to this, as further described in the Houzz Cookie Policy. I can reject non-essential cookies by clicking ‘Manage Preferences’.