DIY Condo Makeover

Earlier this week, I posted the fireplace makeover I did with my friend Andrea! Painting her brick fireplace truly transformed her space, but we weren’t finished with the transformation! She was going out of town for the holidays and I decided my Christmas gift to her would be to redecorate her living/dining area and pray to God she loved it when she returned! LOL! I am so happy to say she was blown away with the results and I’m both relieved she loved it and I’m proud of the results! Without further adieu…DIY condo makeover!

The before picture isn’t exactly fair cause it was after we painted the fireplace and the tarp was still down. but you can see the layout of the room.

So lets start with the living room.

BEFORE:
again ignore all my stuff I brought it before I took the pictures.
Here you can see the ottoman and rug before

There was an extra couch from her previous living room set that was taking up alot of space.

The placement of the couch cut the room in half and made it look smaller, also the TV was in the corner of the room making it the focal point instead of the fireplace and accent wall.

AFTER:

Andrea approved a green colorscheme and thank goodness! I think the accents of green with her existing brown is just perfect!

First step was to move the couch. With the couch this way it really opens up the room.

I moved the TV from the corner to this wall in front of the couch and added artwork from the dining room and the area in front of the stairs. I also added her plant to try to hide the cords. I even accessorized the TV with a few pieces

Another key change was a bigger rug and coffee table. I used the previous ottoman as a side table if you will. and it houses the remotes etc. We all know rugs are expensive! but I scored this decent size one at Ross for only 29.99! The coffee table was one I had, we used it in our game room before the girls were born and it was converted to a play room lol. This table has been in a closet for over a year so I decided to gift it to her. I think it works great. Not only is it the perfect size for the space and the rug but the glass top makes the room seem big in spite of the big table in the middle. The couch also had a few more red pillows that I removed, the red was really clashing with the color scheme but I had to leave two in there to have enough pillows for the couch. I then added some pillows that matched the curtains to tie the space together.

That brings us to the fireplace wall. We all know I’m a sucker for chevron! and I have these exact curtains in my bedroom at home, I knew they would be perfect! They are a little pricey though so instead of buying four curtains (two for each window) I decided to use just one panel per window and have the hubster install some tiebacks. I think it looks great, especially against the brown wall!

For the bottom of the fireplace I bought this basket from Ross and put all her blankets in there, getting them off the couch but still easy to access. I also grabbed a plant she had in another room to add some greenery and a staff from her travels in front of the fireplace.

I absolutely love the mantel! This mirror is everything!! I knew I wanted a mirror instead of artwork to keep the space looking open and bigger. I also knew the shape I wanted because I just love the look and I knew she would too! This was a big ticket item at 50 bucks but I think it was worth it! I was able to find some lanterns with battery operated candles in them and of course the orchid to add some streamlined greenery to the room. The candles I just grabbed from Andrea’s window sill.

On the coffee table I grabbed a wooden salad bowl from her kitchen and filled it with potpourri and candles.

This potpourri fills the place with the most heavenly smell!!

We both went to Rice University so owls mean everything to us. I scored this cute mirrored owl frame at Ross and couldn’t resist adding this picture of my twincesses from her fridge lol.

I grouped that next to another orchid

And found another owl candle from another room in her home.

Here are the lanterns lit up at night!

I love that these are battery operated!

On to the dining room…

Because the dining room and living room are one big space, the placement of the coach separated the space but by doing so it made both spaces look smaller. I went for an open space concept and changed the position of the couch.

BEFORE:
Before we had two pieces that were not fitting right in the space, the CD holder on left and the bench on the right.

AFTER:
I removed both those pieces, changed the art work, and added a candelabra to the pass through. My friend isn’t in love with her dining set and plans to get one soon. In the meantime I used a table cloth and some green place mats to streamline the look.

I think the space looks bigger now. I removed a lot of the trinkets etc from the pass through and kept two similar bird pieces.

I used her plates and wine glasses to create a cute tablescape

I got her some cloth napkins and added the same green poinsettias from my house as napkin holders

Cheapo candleabra from Ross and added round candles from garden ridge for a different look.

I also found these decorative wall pieces at Ross

Ok on to the back of the room.

So she already had a picture here but it wasn’t big enough for that wall. I think a shadow box is the right proportion.

AFTER:
I decided to display not only her medals but one of her Barbados uniforms just as a football player would display his jersey. I wanted to add a pair of spikes to the bottom of the shadow box but couldn’t find any…but I think I like it just like this. I also added the bench that was in the dining room to this space. Its right by the front door and right before you go up the stairs so its a good location for shoes and purses.

Olympic participation medals. These were tricky because they had no straps. My plan was to use Tpins to attach the medals but without cloth straps that was a no go. The solution was to use industrial strength sticky back velcro! worked like a dream!

My favorite medal…I love that the Beijing Olympic medals had the beautiful birds nest stadium on them!

Pan American Games medals

Ok let’s talk numbers!

Here is what I spent (before tax) and where I got all the items:
Mirror (gardenridge): 49.99
Orchids (Michaels and Ross): 16.99 + 8.99
Owl mirrored Frame (Ross): 5.99
Rug (Ross): 29.99
Candelabra  (Ross): 5.99
Lanterns (Michaels) : 12.99 each
Shadowbox (hobby lobby): 49.99 (regular price $99)
Green candles (garden ridge): $10
Curtains (hobby lobby): 32.99 (50% off)
Table cloth (ross): 8.99
Table mats (marshalls): 6.99
Basket (ross): 9.99
potpourri (ross): 5.99
cloth napkins: 5.99
metal wall art (ross): 9.99 each

Things I already had and didn’t mind parting with and so were free for the project:
Curtain tiebacks
Coffee table
Curtain
Pillow cases

Things my BFF already had:
owl candle
salad bowl
Pictures

So the total was just under $300 before tax.
The shadow box and the mirror were $100 of that so not too bad. My ‘el cheapo’ husband would beg to differ lol but I think it was great for all we were able to get. As you can see I stuck to 4 places: Ross, Michaels, Gardenridge and Hobby Lobby, which is basically where I always go anyway for my own home. Ross really gives you the best bang for your buck! Hobby Lobby always has a 50% sale going on and their 40% coupon is a standard every day!

So I hope you are inspired to revamp your own place! I am happy to say my friend not only loved her place but she was inspired to revamp her kitchen….she took down wallpaper and painted her kitchen green!! Hopefully I can post some pics of her project soon!