Better After

7 In other rooms

Office Space

***BLAST FROM THE PAST!***

Since you were kind enough to stop by and visit Better After on the weekend, I thought I’d poke around in the archives and repost some oldies but goodies just for you. Enjoy!

Originally posted Oct. 2009

Hi! I’m back! Did ya miss me? Don’t answer that. Answer this instead: Do you wish you had a home office but simply don’t have the room?

Well, maybe you do! Amanda from Mandarin Studio made over this awkward little storage space into a sweet office niche! Proving that you only need a little bit of room and a little creativity!

I’m loving the red and the chandelier. Nice job Amanda!

November 21, 2010 By Lindsey @ Better After

9 In chairs/ottomans/seating

Tack-ling the Issues

Sarah from Three Boys has solved the World’s Greatest Problem, right behind cancer and Spencer Pratt: slippy, sloppy slipcovers.

I love the idea behind slipcovers, sure I do. Toss them over a thriftstore castoff or old faded couch, and poof, new furniture! But I don’t buy it. (Seriously I don’t. I’ve never owned a single slipcover). I foresee shrinkage, tons of ironing, and obsessive amounts of smoothing, tucking, fluffing, stretching, pulling and patting. Me and my OCD would have a cosmic meltdown, or at least develop an permanent eye twitch.

But say…what if we simply secured that crisp new slipcover with upholstery tacks? Sheer genius, that’s what. Great job Sarah!

November 20, 2010 By Lindsey @ Better After

11 In outdoors

Unstyled Argyle

Argyle, in my humble opinion, is best taken in small doses. Socks. A scarf. Maybe a sweater vest, if you’re feeling natty. But a bright green argyle design painted on the expanse of your garage door? Well, now you’ve gone too far.

Tracy agreed and got to work, figuring she had nothing to lose, other than the giant knitwear-inspired scene that greeted her everyday. What she came up with instead was hand-painted carriage-style doors! Yes, hand-painted! Grand total for this project came to 65 bucks! I’m sure she’s loving how it turned out, and I’d bet the neighbors are too. Thanks Tracy!

Update! Here is the link to her blog with the how-to: General Splendour

***

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Download your copy today!

***

November 19, 2010 By Lindsey @ Better After

5 In kitchen/dining

Open up!

The other day I posted a kitchen redo where the standard cabinets were replaced with cabinets that went all the way to the ceiling. A reader asked if doing this would make the kitchen feel smaller. I have to say, I think the opposite is true.

Take Whitney’s dining room here. It has certainly opened up from the outdated, spindly space it once was. The new built-in cabinets that extend to the ceiling really draw the eye up and make the room feel bigger. And … it also doesn’t hurt that those half walls were removed and a new doorway was added either…. Looks amazing! Thanks to Amy, who brought this one to my attention, see it on Whitney’s blog HERE.

November 19, 2010 By Lindsey @ Better After

1 In tables/dressers

Janni & Janet

Ok, we have a NEW winner! The Random.org gods have spoken, and they chose Janni as the Silhouette Bundle giveaway winner! Woo! Please contact me ASAP Janni! BetterAfter@live.com

(next time someone remind me to ask for email addresses in the comments, dang!)

And if you aren’t Janni, well, how about a nice little before and after as a consolation prize? This ordinary side table here was nothing more than the furniture equivalent of a comma. Just a place to pause for a sec and drop the keys or stash a houseplant. But Janet turned it into an exclamation point with a scene stealing red paint job and a corner to call its own. See it on her blog Janstuff. Thanks Janet!

November 19, 2010 By Lindsey @ Better After

9 In desks/hutches/buffets/ miscellaneous

After the Love Has Gone

This pie safe has survived about 50 years worth of earth, wind and fire, and I’m not talking about the

R and B band. It belonged to Stacey’s great-grandmother over 100 years ago, and by the time Stacey got her hands on it, it basically had to be excavated from the ground where it had sat and been subjected to all the elements for decades. Ok, maybe not fire, but pretty much all of the other elements.

After a LOT of tender loving care, Stacey fully restored it and gave it a most deserving home indoors. Those pull out bins were for sugar and flour, so handy!

See more on her blog House of Chic and Penoche.