Take a look at the before and after photos of this traditional, cape cod style home. We made mostly cosmetic changes that make a big impact!
Our anniversary of moving into our home came and went back in December. But Christmas is a wash when it comes to paying attention to home improvements in this house, so I'm going to pretend it's now.
I haven't done anything to the house since Christmas, so we can all pretend I'm sharing this a month ago.
I'm not one who makes over a house quickly. I like to take my time, make careful and deliberate decisions AND buy things as we can afford them. So it takes me a bit longer than some others.
This past year I switched things up by setting quarterly goals. You can take a deep dive into my house goals from 2020 in each of these posts:
See all of the updates we made in our second year in the home!
As a refresher, this house was built in 1996, and most rooms were painted either yellow or green when we bought it. The previous owners were big fans of hunter green.
They had replaced the kitchen countertops, painted the kitchen cabinets white and refinished the original hardwood floors, but it doesn't look like they updated much else.
My goal when we moved in was to 1) paint, paint, paint! and 2) change some of the lighting. I still have a few more fixtures to swap out, but I've removed the worst offenders.
I had big plans to makeover some spaces this year, but we all know we've spent more time at home than ever over the past year. That didn't exactly turn into more projects getting done.
With my kids and husband home for much of the year, I didn't have nearly as much time as I'd hoped to put toward my goals. And with lead times on some of the products I ordered for the house, everything is taking longer. And that's OK!
Let's jump in and take a look back at the things I changed in the house this past year.
2020 House Projects | Before & Afters
Most of the changes I made were cosmetic. But we're saving our money for a full bathroom renovation in the next few years! (Click on any of the pink room titles to see the full reveal posts.)
1. The Pantry Makeover
I'm sooooo thankful I started the year by getting my pantry in shape. I didn't just walk in and organize it. I removed EVERYTHING, thought through all of the things I needed, measured the space and ordered a ton of baskets, bins and lazy susans.
Scroll and Click an Image to Shop the Pantry
I'm happy to say this space has been a workhorse all year. When I come home with groceries, everything gets put away in its right place in just a few minutes. If someone else needs to use my kitchen, everything is labeled.
And because there are labels, my family actually knows where to put things back! It's magical, and I'm thrilled that everything is still organized a year later.
If you have a space like this that isn't organized, I can't encourage you enough to tackle it once and for all! I shared all of the steps I took in my How to Organize a Pantry post!
2. My Office
Every room in this house is on the makeover list and will get some attention at some point. BUT I wanted to start with my office because it's the central hub for my business & the house. It's hard for me to plan the makeover of my home in a room I don't love. SO, the office moved to the top of the list!
Click/Tap the images below to shop my Home Office:
It took a while because a few items were back-ordered. And I still owe a post about how I painted the plaid wall. But you'll find the rest of the details in my Blush & Brass Home Office Reveal!
I even decorated my office for Christmas! I loved it.
More Office Posts:
- Blush & Brass Feminine Office Mood Board
- Floral Curtains in the Office
- Easy Formulas for Styling Bookshelf Decor
3. The Living Room
Ahh, my (current) favorite room! I remember when we moved in, I had no idea what to do with this room.
It was painted a deep yellow, with a large wall of windows and huge built-ins & a fireplace at one end. We were able to bring most of our furniture from our old house, which was such a blessing!
The large sectional and Samsung Frame TV fit perfectly. Whew!
Honestly, once I figured out which curtains I wanted, everything else fell into place! I still have a few items I'd like to change, like the old 80s-style ceiling fan. But for now, I'm totally happy with this phase 1 makeover.
Click/Tap the images below to shop my living room:
More Living Room Posts:
- Navy Living Room Mood Board
- Easy Formulas for Styling Bookshelf Decor
- How to Source and Hang an Extra-Long Curtain Rod
- Home Decor 101: Picking and Styling Sofa Pillows
- How to Decorate a Console Table Behind a Couch (4 ways!)
- How to Conceal TV Cords Inside the Wall
- Home Decor 101: Decorating End Tables
- My Review of the Samsung Frame TV
4. The Girls' Bedroom & Bathroom
Around midway through the year, the girls really started begging for a makeover of their bedroom and bathroom. I had promised them we'd get them a loft bed if they decided they liked sleeping in the same room together. So in May I ordered their loft bed and got started on painting their room pink.
Both the bedroom and bathroom had been painted a shade of lime green, and my girls were tired of it! I don't feel like the girls' room is quite finished yet, though. But for now it works well for them. And when I get inspiration for how to finish their room, I'll keep you posted!
Their adjoining bathroom was the perfect spot to try my hand at wallpapering. It turned out so well, and I LOVE how well it's held up. It's so nice to see the green gone up there, and the girls feel much better living in a room that feels like them!
More Girls' Room & Bedroom Posts:
- White & Blush Girls' Bedroom Mood Board
- The Perfect Bedding for Bunk Beds & our New Loft Beds!
- How to Hang Wallpaper (tutorial for beginners)
- Ikea Spice Racks as Bookshelves
The other room makeovers I started in 2020 were our kitchen and master bedroom. I hope to finish the kitchen makeover ASAP, and the master bedroom makeover will probably be complete before summer. I'll share more plans for this year in a Home Goals 2021 post, coming soon!
Honorable Mentions for 2020
Two of the easiest ways to update a home are paint and new lighting. Light fixtures might not be cheap, but they cost a lot less than full makeovers. So if you're on a tight budget and want a fresh look, start with lighting and paint.
What I Painted in 2020
I painted (or hired someone to paint) almost every wall in our home last year. When we moved in, every wall was either green or yellow – and I didn't like any of those colors.
Here are some of the paint colors we added to our home in 2020:
- Edgecomb Gray (Benjamin Moore) – kitchen, powder room, main hallways, stairwell and upstairs hallway
- Shoji White (Sherwin Williams) – office
- Kendall Charcoal (Benjamin Moore) – dining room
- Revere Pewter (Benjamin Moore) – master bedroom
- Sea Salt (Sherwin Williams) – master bathroom
- Pink Ground (Farrow & Ball) – Girls' Bedroom
- Baby Aqua (Behr) – Girls' Toilet Room
Updated Lighting
One thing I vowed to tackle head-on when we moved was replacing the lighting. I lived with ugly light fixtures in our previous home for years. But lights are such an easy way to update a space.
We updated the lighting in the kitchen, entryway, stairwell, powder room, girls' bedroom, girls' bathroom and butler's pantry. And we'll be replacing the rest of the lighting ASAP! It's all straight out of the 90s, and it's time for an upgrade!
Custom Dishwasher Panel
Last but not least, I made a custom dishwasher panel for our new Bosch dishwasher. You can read all about it near the end of this post, but I love it!
I hope you enjoyed a look back at 2020 and will stay with me as we tackle more projects in 2021! I can't wait to see how far we've come this time next year!
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