Before and after pics

[Huma0]

I'm an enthusiastic interiors buff and renovating my house has been a long-term labour of love and, I realise now, will always be an ongoing project. I'd therefore be really interested to hear from other hosts who have renovated their Airbnb properties and see before and after pics if you have them, or just hosts who have plans and ideas for future projects.

To start it off, here is one of the guest rooms in my house, BEFORE:

and AFTER:

I still haven't finished tweaking this room yet (the painted wardrobes for example), so there may be updates to come.

Please share your projects and plans!

[Huaai0]

@Huma0

Oh My, you are just amaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaazing!

Looks like a BIG budget project! Also, eBay stuff is not THAT cheap. How did you find them?

[Huma0]

Thank you @Huaai0!

Yes, not everything on Ebay is that cheap anymore, nor Gumtree for that matter. You have to really trawl through listings to find the bargains and sometimes the gems are hidden behind a bad description/terrible photo.

The bathroom basin, for example, just had a title like 'sink' and a dark photo where you could hardly tell what you were looking at, but because I was on the look out for that exact type of basin, I spotted it! That's also why I paid the seller more than she was asking. She was inexperienced and I don't think realised how much she could sell it for. She was so happy when I insisted on giving her £25 instead of £10!

The shower in the other bathroom is another example. Terrible, blurry photo from picture on outside of box, no real information on listing except for a link to a page where you could actually see what it was. I realised this was a brand new, undamaged shower, retailing at £450-500. I got it for £30.

In the end though, it's a question of time versus money. A lot of people have neither the time nor patience and would rather just pay retail and have it done with, but because I had a big house to fully renovate on a tight budget, that wasn't an option. Anyway, I just LOVE finding a bargain, so the 'trawling' is an enjoyable process for me. You just have to be careful not to buy lots of random stuff you come across while you're doing it!

[Willow3]

I don't want to steal Huma's thunder by distracting y'all with my mad skills - but this is today's before/after.

My house is mostly done with renovations - and the garden gets most of my attention. Replaced the carburetor on my tiller today - because that's the wild life I live  

[Huma0]

@Willow3 did you do any courses in reuphostery or just decided to have a go? I really want to start doing that too as I'm always upcycling furniture. I even signed up for a course but it got cancelled the day before because no one else signed up!!

This little chest of drawers had that very orange look, I guess because the varnish had yellowed over time. So I took a paintbrush (or several) to it.

I have several charis that I've painted, but really want to change the uphoslstery. Just a bit scared to get stuck in in case I make a complete mess of it.

[Willow3]

I just dove in. It was a thrift store chair so if I ruined it, it wasn't going to be the end of the world. The fabric cost more than the chair. And honestly, the back is a hot mess. But no one will see the back - that why I started there. 

Proper tools - which I don't have - would probably make a big difference. My staple gun has no where near the power to do the job, and my hammer was too bulky on the nail heads. 

[Huma0]

@Willow3 that was party what I was worried about. I have a staple gun, hammer etc. but wasn't sure if it would all work. I bought a book on DIY upholstery but the first chapters were all about the mass of specialist tools you need!

I have six matching vintage French dining chairs (came with a large table) that I want to do the seats for. It shoudn't be that complicated I guess but the fabric is rather lovely, so I don't want to make a mess of it. I think I'm going to find a super cheap charity shop chair to experiment on first.

[Βασίλης-and-Ann0]

Hi Huma,

Wow, just love what you've done with this chest of drawers!

Did you use a particular colour chart? You've inspired me to have a go with some slightly tatty ones we have, like yours had, with a yellowish tinge.  Thanks!

  It will be one of the many projects we've got lined up for Autumn/Winter. BTW, we went ahead and painted our "garden room"  olive green on a whim, and people seem to love it. You can see it on our AirBnB photos. Much better than the all white look it had before. Makes the pictures 'pop', too.

Best,

Ann & Vassilis.

[Huma0]

Hi @Βασίλης-and-Ann0 thank you! I took inspirtion from this in terms of the look I was after:

It's helpful to have something to refer to if you're using a lot of different colours and finishes. Then I used Annie Sloan chalk paints. The main colour is Florence, but I also used Provence on the drawer fronts. The lighter sections are Old Ocre. I handpainted the little flowers mostly in the colours I was already using and then finished the trims with a copper coloured metallice paint. Not sure what that one is as it was just something I happened to have knocking around.

[Huma0]

@Willow3 would love to see before/after photos of your garden if you have any!

[Willow3]

Some befores - I did a terrible job of documenting the process. 

[Willow3]

Apparently my phone photos are too large - so I'll have to shrink some afters. 

[Willow3]

Let's try this a different way...

[Huma0]

@Willow3 looks amazing! You clearly have an aptitude for garden design. I also really love your use of colour on the exterior of the house (pretty cool on your interiors too). I really love how the orange pops against the grey and, in fact, the whole thing looks spot on and very professional!

I love working on my garden, but it's all a bit haphazard, cottage style, not much of a plan going on... In fact, the front garden is starting to look a bit mental, but people do seem to like it.

[Ken28]

@Huma0 ... so excited to see this post!

I just finished renovations this spring on my house. Bought it in November and basically gutted it. There was deteriorated insulation throughout the house, some termite damage, leaky patio doors, and hideous carpet, wallpaper, and linoleum throughout.

Here's some before and after photos of the living areas.

KITCHEN:

LIVING ROOM:

FAMILY ROOM:

[Huma0]

@Ken28 wow that looks like a lot of work. Did you do it yourself or get builders in? Mine had similar "issues". Luckily the nasty lino was just in the kitchen/diner, but there were horrible, dirty carpets in the rest of the house that were hiding the original floor boards.