Better After

3 In living room

A Little Mix Up

Here’s a sweet and simple makeover for you. It’s not wildy dramatic, but maybe it will help you remember that it’s always possible to freshen up your home without actually leaving your home. Anything that doesn’t require putting on pants is A+ in my book.

See how easily Lorraine filled out this room? She simply pulled in a coordinating piece of furniture she already had, which elongated the entertainment center and minimized the TV-i-ness of the TV. Added a few items of decor to balance it out, and boom! That’s it. Done.

Take a look around your house; I bet there’s something you could do right now to breathe some new life into it. Don’t you have some pictures you’ve been meaning to hang? What if you moved that one chair to a new spot? Switched around a rug or two? Or painted that thing in the garage?

Wow, this little pep talk is inspiring myself! I think I’m going to go hang the family pictures that have been sitting on my floor for the last three months. What about you, I’d love to know!

See more from Lorraine on her blog South Meets Southwest.

Hey Phoenix/Mesa locals! My amazing sister-in-law Kalli is re-opening her vintage market, Old Brick House after a summer-long hiatus! Tomorrow (Sept 11th) is the big day, will I see you there?

September 10, 2014 By Lindsey @ Better After

7 In desks/hutches/buffets/ tables/dressers

Ogle Maps

You don’t need a map to tell you that these makeovers took a direct route from BoringMcBrokenburg to Snazzy City. But you DO need a map or two to create these looks yourself.

Better After reader Teresa created this nightstand from a curbside dresser and a spare map of Northern Africa that she happened to have on hand. I mean, who doesn’t have a few of those on hand? I’ve actually been meaning to organize my spare maps of Northern Africa drawer, now that you mention it.

And Better After reader Sarah spent many hours slaving away over this $3 yard-sale desk, only to finish and spend many more hours slaving away at it; as she’s in her fifth and final year of graduate school.

The world map on top must serve as great inspiration to get that PhD! The only thing it was inspiring anyone to get before was a lighter. Great job Sarah!

September 10, 2014 By Lindsey @ Better After

16 In bathroom

Bathroom Blitz

Have you ever had these thoughts? “My house is too boring to be special. No architectural details here. No vaulted ceilings or exposed brick walls. My house is lame. I guess I could paint or something, but it would still be small and basic. Poor, poor me.” Well listen up Eeyore-Pants. That is simply not true.

There was absolutely nothing of note going on in this tiny bathroom. Mismatched fixtures, dreary colors, and a space-hogging soffit. Did Abby let that stop her? Ha! Hardly.

Now, I’m not saying it’s easy. She replaced the counter, faucet, toilet, tile and mirror, and painted everything else, including the tub. But what I’m saying is it CAN be done!

And it’s incredible! So many great details in here, right down to the ugly little vent in the window that she covered with a mirror (and some velcro). I love how the shower curtain goes all the way to the ceiling, having the exact opposite effect of the soffit. The room truly looks twice as big.

Much more to see from Abby on her blog Abby M Interiors.

September 9, 2014 By Lindsey @ Better After

6 In desks/hutches/buffets

How To Improve Your Productivity

Clean up your desk. That’s how. Problem: solved.

Unless you don’t work at a desk, or you are one of those people who feels more productive at a messy desk. Some people embrace chaos and can let their creative juices flow more freely when their surroundings aren’t neat as a pin. But I have trouble with that. The only thing I can let flow freely is the Pine-Sol. It’s an annoying trait. “Let’s make cookies kids! But first, who wants to sanitize the sink?! Where are you going?”

But either way, we can all agree that Denise’s after desk looks pretty snazzy compared to the plain-Jane before. The black and gold is so classy and timeless. Super cool chair too. I feel more productive just looking at it!

Get an up close look on Denise’s blog Salvaged Inspirations.

September 9, 2014 By Lindsey @ Better After

14 In kitchen/dining

Rain, rain, here to stay!

I woke up this morning (like 3am this morning) to rain pounding on my roof and wind howling. I stood there in my undies (sorry for the visual) staring out the window for a very long time, and freaking out any neighbors who happened to be awake at the same time and saw my pasty, ghostly self lingering in the window, because rain is a total novelty in Phoenix. How much of a novelty you ask? Well, they canceled school this morning. For rain! I know! It was so bad, they shut down the freeways and Matt couldn’t even drive to work. There was a kid rowing a boat in the park across the street, no joke. Mark your calendars, because the news is calling it the wettest day in state history.

So, I thought this would be an appropriate makeover to share. No, it’s not a rowboat makeover, or anything of the sort, it’s a stunning kitchen from Jenna at Rain on a Tin Roof. She calls her style Vintage Modern Rustic, and I love that she has touches of each one in here. PS: she made the island herself. Be sure to check out her blog to see all the fun details of this space!

September 8, 2014 By Lindsey @ Better After

22 In desks/hutches/buffets/ tables/dressers

Sunshine States

It’s National Yellow Day! That is a lie. There is actually no such thing as National Yellow Day. However, there is a National Yellow Pig Day. But we missed it; it was in July. Next year we’ll celebrate real big, I promise. That is also a lie.

But I will declare today the Official Day of That One Day When I Showed Some Yellow Makeovers on Better After Day. I’ll wait while you get your party hats on.

All set? Here we go!

Jenny at Ava Blake Creations dolled up this table with some distressing and a French patisserie graphic, all warmed up in a soft buttery shade of yellow. Tres chic!

Hey, can we talk about So You Think You Can Dance for a second? I’m so happy Ricky won! I had him pegged from the beginning. Can we also talk about Valerie getting second place? Over Zack AND Jessica? *eyebrows of unbelievableness* I might have punched my sofa. But Ricky totally deserved it.

Back to the yellow:

If you have some old side tables, why not paint them yellow? They will look so great with your blue couch. You have a blue couch, right? That’s what I thought. Head on over to Lisa’s blog Pebbles and Piggytails to find out her sneaky cheat for ‘distressing’ their edges.

Cabinets without feet are sad. Most things without feet are sad. Except dolphins. They don’t have feet, and they aren’t sad at all – just evil. I said it. But this cabinet was looking a little glum in it its footless state, so Lisa added some cheer with bright yellow, a geometric overlay, and new feetsies. See it at Sweet Parsley Home.

So now we know that the easiest way to take furniture from boring to sha-POW, is yellow paint. Give it another dose of POW with some adorable knobs like Karin from Art is Beauty did here. Sha-POW-POW! That sounded much cooler in my head.

And finally, last one from Sarah who brings us this charming vanity makeover, and her lovely assistant who is lurking not at all creepy-like behind it. I’m kidding. I’m sure he’s a very nice and helpful guy and not going to tie you up with that garden hose. No seriously. I’m sure he’s very nice. This is just what you get when I write posts at 1AM in the AM.

You can see more at Funcycled, and I am going to go see the insides of my eyelids right now.

Happy Friday!

Do you have a makeover to share? I’m always accepting submissions! Send your work my way at betterafter(at)live.com

September 5, 2014 By Lindsey @ Better After

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