New Post: Our Den Renovation - Dark and Dated to Light, Bright, and Airy

You know those Fixer Upper Reveals where they pull the canvas back and let you see the beautifully, finished home before the family moves in?  Yeah, that won't be our home project!  Seven months later, we have finally finished our second room!  It takes time to paint, buy furniture, and decorate, but I am so proud of our den and I'm excited to share before and afters photos!  

This is where we started back in November 2015. 

We were so fortunate to buy this home from a wonderful family that we knew.  They let me have a key months before we actually closed on this property and allowed me to bring contractors, designer friends, and family in to dream with me about the vision I had for this space.  The house had been well taken care of.  It just need to be updated.  From this angle, I'll share a few things that were on my mind.  

I decided to remove the built in shelf dividing the rooms.  We actually painted it and repurposed it as our TV stand!  The hardwood floors were original and in great shape so we added wood to the kitchen and had the floors refinished.  Next, lighting was on the list.  We removed the ceiling fan and my dad helped me add recessed lights. Then, we removed the door from the foyer and created a cased opening and replaced the door leading to the hallway with a glass paned door.  All of these changes allowed us to brighten this room dramatically.  Finally, we painted the brick fireplace and the wood paneling to give us the light and airy feel we were hoping for.  Here are a few more before photos.  

Let me just tell you, painting is hard work.  I had no idea what we were in for, but the finished product was worth it!  We primed our paneling twice and then added two coats of paint.  The paint for the paneling is Benjamin Moore Gray Owl.  I am a big fan of Sherwin Williams so they color matched it for me and it was much cheaper.  I used their Duration Paint which is not user friendly and requires more coating, but with small kids that color on the wall...this is an amazing product.  Duration paint in a matte finish is super kid friendly and will allow you to scrub and clean without ruining your paint job!  The fireplace also required a lot of prep.  We spray painted the doors, chipped away messy areas of mortar, primed two coats with a masonry primer, and then finally painted it white.  White is tough so I'll share the color that has been a winner for me.  Benjamin Moore Cloud White is what we used for the fireplace and our TV shelf.  Its a nice clean warm white.  

After weeks of painting and long nights of remodeling, we admired our lovely paint job and realized we actually love the texture of wood paneling!  I'm also very happy with how bright the room feels with the glass door and the recessed lights.  

I can not take all the credit for how the room is designed.  I have a hard time seeing shapes and how to correctly fill a space, but after all my design savvy friends as well as the nice lady at Sprintz advised me to put a sectional in this den and create a gallery wall of eclectic shapes and photos, I decided to give it a shot.  Turns out, they were all right and I love this room.  I was initially worried that the room was too small to have enough seating, but the sectional actually fit the space really well and balanced the room perfectly!  Here is another angle.  

A lot of friends usually ask me how I am brave enough to choose such a light color pallet and have any white furniture with small kids.  So here are all my secrets, because obviously I love white! 

* buy matte paint that is durable and washable

* fabric protectant.  I scotch guard small things.  We bought our couch from Sprintz and they spray their fabric with a professional grade protectant that has a warranty

* Buy slip cover pillow cases that you can wash or use outdoor weather resistant pillows.  

* we don't let the kids eat and drink on the couch.  Having an open floor plan makes it easier to keep them at the island.  

My window seat in the kitchen also has light colored pillows.  All of them have fabric protectant on it except one which is actually an outdoor pillow. 

My couch looks whiter in my pictures than it really is, but here is a close up of the fabric and color.  We were very pleased with Sprintz.  They will send a designer to your home for free to make decisions regarding size, color, and fabric.  

The journey has been worth it and even though we only have two rooms finished in our renovation, we love our new home.  I am learning to be patient and I often look back at our before photos to remember how far this house has already come.  For my friends that are starting their own renovations, my advice is to stay on budget and take your time.  Invite people into your home even though it isn't a "finished product".  Allow others to be a part of the journey with you and remember that your home is not suppose to be perfect.  My home is NEVER this clean and staged unless I am taking pretty pictures.  I have developed a love for interior design, staging, and editing photography.  It's a creative outlet and a fun hobby for me, but I promise we do not live in a perfectly staged house.  I guarantee you as I publish this post and my two adorable tornados wake up from their nap it will be destroyed in less than two minutes!  

One last before and after: