Friday, September 30, 2011

Before and After: A Rental Redo

A few months ago a friend asked me for assistance in redecorating her living room.  In telling me what she would like to do and after seeing the room, I realized we had to overcome the following challenges:  she is renting the property;  the room is painted a surprising dark navy blue; and she wants to stay within a fixed budget.  

Here is the before:

Living Room

So, I began the decorating process with my usual go to place, Craigslist and other second hand shops in the area.  In these resources, I found a rather battered console that had beautiful lines--a coat of coral paint fixed that problem.  A  pair of ordinary dark wood lamps turned attractive with, again, a coat of paint.  A good thing to keep in mind when redecorating is to always use what you already have and my friend had some lovely pictures, some vintage, some modern.  These changed the look of the room by simply gathering them together on one wall.  A low budget black and white striped rug helped ground the sofa and coffee table (both Craigslist finds).  The photos below illustrate the end project--a beautiful living room that is an excellent example of what you can do without breaking the budget, using second hand and by recycling what you already own.    I want to extend my sincerest appreciation to Peter VanderPoel, for photographing this room with such skill and artistry.  Please check out his website at the following link: VanderPoel Architectural Photography

After:
Photo Credit: Peter VanderPoel

Photo credit: Peter VanderPoel

Photo credit: Peter VanderPoel

Photo credit: Peter VanderPoel

I will provide an itemized list of the costs associated with this re-do in a future posting. Hope this may encourage or inspire you all to buy second hand! 

21 comments:

  1. Danielle, this transformation is gorgeous! Just the perfect balance of light and dark, and I adore the pop of red in that console. And, really, with your guidance it is not surprising that many of the great finds were from Craigslist.

    Have a happy weekend!

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  2. Great job! I love those lamps and the coral console really brightens up the room!

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  3. I love the blue walls, especially when paired with the coral and white! Great job

    leavethenestuptome.blogspot.com

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  4. Oh my goodness, this is incredible! Great job

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  5. WOW, danielle! that looks AMAZING. i love the colors and that red table- oooh!

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  6. Danielle a fabulous transformation!! I love everything you have done!

    xoxo
    Karena
    Art by Karena

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  7. wowza! Danielle, it's so fabulous. The mirror gives such a strong focal point, and the console table is just money!

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  8. What a beautiful transformation! Have a lovely weekend, Kellie xx

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  9. Just found your blog. This redo is great! Fab photography too

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  10. Oh wow! You've got a magic wand,
    you've just made that dreary space come alive and become so inviting... I love the console table.

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  11. This is an amazing transformation....love it! YOu did an awesome job! My favorite is the picture wall, and love all the CL finds!!

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  12. great post--lovely re-do I can't believe you found it all on Craigslist!!

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  13. Shut the front door...that is NOT the same room!!! It looks SO good now! She must be thrilled with what you did!

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  14. What an incredible makeover! And all secondhand - I'm seriously impressed!

    Andrea x

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  15. that coral table you were painting the weekend i met you...you certainly gave it a perfect home...such an inviting space!!

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  16. Danielle - what a fabulous job you did - with so many challenges. Your client must be thrilled!! On serious catch up around the blogosphere after being gone the last week!!

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  17. This looks fantastic!!! Wow. You did an amazing job. I especially love the wall of photos.

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  18. Wonderful make-over. Love the punchy red table and those lamps.
    The white sofa makes a huge difference too.

    Well done

    x Charlotta

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  19. Danielle- I though your first "after" picture was an inspiration image you had gathered!

    Beautiful room and so beautifully photographed. The coral color is my favorite touch!

    Loretta

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