Increasing your home value: Project Reveal of this renovation

When it comes to investing in a renovation, increasing your home value should be close to the top of the list. While some of our clients renovate so they can sell their investment, the majority are renovating to live in their homes. Here's a peek into one of our projects where we created new spaces for this family of five.

Before

BEFORE

There were a number of items that my clients were not loving about the layout of their home.

• The choppy feel of seperate rooms.
• The dated features (see images below).
• The darkness of everything in the home.
• The very small mud room.
• The cramped laundry room.
• The flex room had no purpose.
• The kitchen's ease of use.

Here are some before images to give you an idea of what we were dealing with.

My clients did not like how the dark the wood cabinets made their home feel. A much lighter feel was requested. In addition, we were definitely going to address the set back cooktop situation!

The other part of the kitchen was a more entertainment area (can you see the wine rack?) The shape and configuration of the island was not working for this family of 5.

The last part of the kitchen (the built in desk) was also not working for this family.

Did I say dated features that needed to go?

This wall really made the family room and the dining room (located behind the wall) feel so cramped.

A few more dated features, like the arches, were set to be deleted.

If you can see of the floor plan, this laundry room was quite tiny - especially for a family of 5.

And the mudroom....never enough room - am I right?

The Plan

As with every client we work with, we work through options, look at all the options we can think of, and come up with a final plan. Increasing your home value is something we also consider with our options. While we looked at items like moving the laundry upstairs (for example), we ended up with this final plan.

The final renovation plan

While there was a lot that was going to be done to this home, here are some key feature changes.

• We combined the mud room and laundry room. In this space, there is a wall of 'locker' type storage for coats, jackets, and shoes.
• The choice was to keep one existing closet dedicated to shoes (there are four females in this home)!
• A new closet was built at the front entrance for guests.
• A dedicated office was created for the Mrs. and for the girls crafts.
• The wall between the dining room and family room was removed.
• A brand new 'big ass' kitchen island was designed.
• There is now a dedicated space (and room) for entertaining/prep in the kitchen.

In addition, we furnished the entire main floor with new furniture as well as up-cycled some of the existing furniture.

After

As I mentioned above, the key was to ensure we were increasing the home value. Let's let the pictures do the talking.

BEFORE AND AFTER REMODEL - Light and airy replaced dark and dated with no more sunken range wall. Sheri Bruneau, Designer | Debra Blake Design, Stylist

BEFORE AND AFTER REMODEL - By keeping the outer cabinets and having them sprayed, this saved on the budget. Sheri Bruneau, Designer | Debra Blake Design, Stylist

BEFORE AND AFTER REMODEL - The new view from the kitchen to the open dining room and family room. Sheri Bruneau, Designer | Debra Blake Design, Stylist

BEFORE AND AFTER REMODEL - A view from the kitchen to the family room. The built in bookcases were updated and sprayed. The hole above the fireplace was filled in and the wall became a feature wall with tile. Sheri Bruneau, Designer | Debra Blake Design, Stylist

BEFORE AND AFTER REMODEL -Say good bye to those arches and hello to sleek and modern! Sheri Bruneau, Designer | Debra Blake Design, Stylist

BEFORE AND AFTER REMODEL -The island that seats 6 is perfect for this family who loves to entertain. Sheri Bruneau, Designer | Debra Blake Design, Stylist

You can see the entire portfolio of images HERE.

Final Thoughts

I first started to work with my clients in February of 2019. By June, we had some options to review. By the end of August 2019, we had the final plan all worked out and construction could start. While we did not manage this project, I am happy to report that everything that we planned out came to fruition.

I was thrilled at the beginning of December when my clients put their trust in me to also furnish their home. With the help of Debra Blake of Debra Blake Designs, we were able to fully furnish and decorate this home. Debra is my amazing stylist and a super, savvy shopper!

I hope you have enjoyed this walkthrough of this amazing transformation. Would you agree that we helped to increase the home value? I would love to know your thoughts.

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Styling your Bookshelves

Styling a bookshelf isn't as easy as it looks. Trust me. I always get the help from my good friend, Debra Blake, to assist with the 'fluff and stuff' for projects.

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Here are a few 'go to' items that would look great on any bookshelf. The best part? They are all available online! I hope you enjoy them.

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