Holy moly…I’m writing a blog post! It has been such a long time, I know. One of my goals for 2020 is to write more blog posts. I hope to write a post every month or two, and I also hope that by putting this out there in the universe, I will be more accountable, and meet my goal. Side note: another goal of mine is to take actual before photos, not in progress photos. You will see what I mean below!
It’s hard to believe that January is over. I have been thinking about last year, and our plans for our home and cottage in 2020. At this point, we do not have any big projects planned for this year at home, or at the cottage. Can you believe it?! We have a lot of small to-dos on our list, which are mostly in the realm of repairs. So far that list includes new grout and sealing grout in the bathrooms, and repairing a small spot in our living room ceiling. Oh the joys of owning an old home!
As far as the cottage goes, we are taking our updates outside this year. Our boathouse has needed some serious love since we bought the cottage, and the high water levels on Lake Ontario have only added to the issues over the past couple of years. So this year we plan to continue with some repairs in the boathouse, and to make some other small updates to our shed.
Admittedly, as someone who loves to transform spaces at home, I was feeling a little blah about our lack of upcoming projects. Transforming a space can be so exciting for me, while little repairs here and there can be so dull (but necessary). To ward off these blues, I decided to take a trip down memory lane. Won’t you join me for a recap of the projects we completed in 2019?
#1 Home Entry
Well this was a fun way to kick off 2019! We have a teeny entry at the back of our house (off the kitchen), which serves as our main entry and drop zone for shoes, coats, etc. The walls were previously gray, and while functional, the space felt very lackluster. Not the type of welcome I wanted for our home! We added green board and batten, gave the walls a fresh coat of white paint, added removable wall decals, and new art and accessories to brighten up the space and give it some fun character. 10 out of 10 guests agree that the updated entry is a much cheerier welcome compared to what we had before (okay I made that up).
#2 Cottage Entry
Apparently I was all about fun entryways, so the first cottage project of 2019 was also an entry update! I had navy paint leftover from when I painted our door last summer, so I decided to add a fun pattern to the entry walls using a foam brush. I love the element of fun the pattern adds, and the process took me less than two hours to complete.
#3 Cottage Main Bath
In July I participated in a room refresh series with several of my Instagram pals. We each updated a space in our home in a month, with a $300 budget. I chose to update the main bathroom at our cottage to make it feel a little more our style. We added some DIY shelves, green shiplap to one wall, and painted the vanity to match. I bought a new mirror, faucet, and hardware, and found the accessories and décor by shopping my home or hitting my favorite spots for thrift shopping. Doing this with others was so much fun, and I’m so pleased with how much we were able to update for $300. This room feels much more our style now!
#4 Cottage Master Bath
Once I saw how much better the main bathroom was looking, I decided to update the master as well. I had leftover paint from the main bathroom, so I stayed with a similar look and feel in the master bathroom. I really liked how our DIY shelves turned out in the other bathroom, so we added a smaller version to the master, along with a new faucet, light fixture, hardware, and shower curtain. I also added some new art, and accessories to make the space pretty, with a more feminine aesthetic (since I’m the primary user).
#5 Cottage Office/Guest Room
And last, but certainly not least, we updated the office/guest room. Since I had so much fun the first time, I again joined some friends on Instagram and committed to updating a space in a month, this time with a larger budget of $500. This room was previously a bedroom that guests rarely used, with a tiny desk shoved in the corner. Since I work from home, we decided to make this a devoted office, and use an air mattress for guests when needed. We painted the walls a rich green, repurposed furniture we already had, and added a rug, art, and lots of accessories (mostly thrifted) to give the space some personality. Aside from the desk, I chose furniture that could easily be moved to accommodate an air mattress, and spent my remaining budget on some new bedding to make the air mattress extra cozy for our guests. The space now functions so much better for us!
In hindsight, we had a busy 2019! It’s too hard for me to choose, but I would love to know which transformation is your favorite! And if you are interested in seeing content from me more frequently, be sure to follow me on Instagram. I typically post on Instagram a few times each week, and also share small updates I’m working on in my stories (like organizing, restyling a space, etc.). There is so much inspiration on Instagram, and I often share ideas from others on there as well.
Happy New Year, until next time!