I'm going to let you all in on a little dream of mine. I want to makeover a vintage camper SO badly! I'm a little more concerned with buying a house right now (ugh), but one day, I would love nothing more than to purchase a rundown vintage trailer and make it over into the cutest, coziest trailer to take on adventures and camping trips. Since I'm more interested in "glamping" than actual camping, these camper makeovers seemed like the perfect inspiration for me. To get inspired, I put together 12 camper makeovers that are sure to amaze you and make you want to run out and buy a camper/trailer/RV tomorrow to make all of your glamping dreams come true!
I love a good before-and-after, don't you? There's so much satisfaction in taking a sad roadside find or cheap garage sale rescue and totally transforming it into something new and different. We've rounded up some of our favorite furniture makeovers to inspire you to either start that upholstery project, get out the spray paint, or hit up this weekend's local yard sale scene. From dressers to dining tables, here are some of our favorite furniture makeovers.
I've always thought of my laundry room as the most troublesome room in our house. Not only is it narrow, but all of one side is taken up by a washing machine, sink and toilet. Add to that the fact that there are 2 doors that open inward, and the space starts to feel very small indeed.
I'd long ago resigned myself to having a difficult laundry room I didn't enjoy being in. Turns out I couldn't have been more wrong!
When Al and I found out we were expecting baby number two, the walls of our quaint little 2/1 started to cave in all around us. We danced with the idea of moving to the ‘burbs, but after some serious soul searching and a few disappointing open houses, we thought better of it. Our dream has always been to raise our family in the city and we just didn't want to give that up so quickly. We were determined to make it work. After we came back down...
I don't know about you, but my laundry room is a black hole in which I spend as little time as possible. It's dark, tiny, and dank... in other words, the complete opposite of all these awesome laundry room makeovers. If you're in a similar boat and looking for some serious inspiration, check out these laundry room ideas.
Erin's white-washed wood paneling is a Scandinavian-inspired laundry room retreat! And check out that DIY concrete countertop -- nicely done! See more on HGTV.
This basement laundry room gets a warm and inviting face lift -- SO much better than its prison cell-like beginnings! One of our favorite laundry room ideas. See more on Country Home.
More Scandinavian-y goodness! Can you say "so fresh and so clean, clean"? See more here.
I didn't realize how sad and boring the "before" was until I saw the "after"! Holy color explosion! I would fold laundry in this space any day. See more on BHG.
This laundry room started out looking like every laundry room that was ever built in the 90s. And now? Now it's got style to the max! See more on Tatertots & Jello.
Then there was a laundry "area" somewhere in this scary basement... but now it's got its own room, complete with colorful details and some seriously awesome tile. See more here.
Eye Candy: 11 Incredible Laundry Room Ideas
Photo: Kriste Michelini
Right now, our laundry room is in a dark, unfinished corner of our basement but we have plans to *someday* turn it into a room that doesn't give us the creeps. Until then, I'll just keep collecting inspiration! If you're in a similar boat, take a peek at these gorgeous laundry room ideas.
Photo: Kathryn O'Donovan
Woah! A washer and dryer in the kitchen? Controversial, or just genius?
This laundry room looks like most do - functional and not so pretty. But just wait until you see the space after its makeover... it looks so nice, you'd actually look forward to doing a load of wash. Check out the incredible transformation. Hopefully it'll spark your own ideas for a laundry room renovation!
So much better, right?! The tiling and new work surface were the biggest changes, while the rest were mostly cosmetic. Make your way over to Twelve On Main to see more photos and to read about the whole laundry room renovation process.
I think my favorite thing about this laundry room makeover, besides the fact that it looks awesome, is that the homeowners did every single thing themselves -- and on a budget!
Check out all the projects and everything that went into this incredible, budget-friendly makeover right here.
A Fresh and Clean Scandinavian-Inspired Laundry Room Makeover
Going along with our basement and sleeping themes today (because you sleep in clothes/pajamas and washers and dryers are often in basements? I know, it's a stretch...), I thought I'd share this lovely laundry room* makeover from Curbly fave Charles & Hudson!
In preparation for the arrival of their new baby, Timothy Dahl, the founder and editor of Charles & Hudson (and all-around great guy), decided to tackle a laundry room makeover. The old space was functional in the most minimal way possible. Sure it had a washer and dryer (both incredibly old, not to mention huge energy/water hogs), but there was no space for sorting and folding. The scary utility sink was too grimy to actually use for hand-washing and the room had also become a messy, catch-all storage closet. Bad news for a growing family with growing laundry needs!
The new space is not only bright, clean, and full of Scandinavian-inspired goodness, it's also way more functional. A new shelving system keeps supplies organized, the cleaned up sink is ready for even the most delicate of hand-wash-only items, and there's plenty of space to sort, fold, and hang laundry! As for those new Energy Star rated appliances? The icing on the cake!
Check out more of this makeover, including some great DIY projects (like the chalkboard and antler coat rack) and painting tips, over on Charles & Hudson!
*This laundry room is NOT actually in a basement... I told you--it was a huge stretch!
Lovely Laundry Room Makeover
Bryn's laundry room was lacking natural light, not to mention, the function she really needed. See how she gave her wash-and-wear room some "dry clean only" sophistication.
Bryn added some task lighting beneath her upper cabinets, and installed a wooden countertop for a work surface.
She painted her cabinets with chalkboard paint. I think a laundry room is a great place to add this kind of texture. Bryn also glammed up the space with some DIY art and pretty containers for her laundry soap.
Finally, she painted a stripe around the narrow room and installed hooks to hang air dry-only clothing.
For being tiny (about 94 inches wide), Chrissy's laundry room is big on style. Of course, it wasn't always that way. Above is how it looked before she made it over. Utilitarian: yes. Inviting: not so much. After sewing curtains to hide the wire shelving, a new coat of paint on the walls, light fixture, rug, bins and other doodads, Chrissy's laundry room is now cute enough to put on display (aka: leaving the door open for all to see.) For more information about the makeover and the individual projects that went into it, head on over to Shanty 2 Chic. And to see more of Chrissy's magic, visit her blog Hoot Designs.
Recently Stacy made over her friend Taralyn's laundry room, and the results are nothing less than dramatic. The room, or rather, passageway, as it is just off the garage and functions as an entry of sorts to the rest of the home, was well-defined as "builder grade." After its makeover, the laundry room is now an eye-catching transition worthy of a lingering look. Check it out.
Photo: Stacy Risenmay
Stacy's fearless use of black paint really bumps things up a notch. If working with such a dark color gives you a case of the sweats, Stacy has a FABULOUS tip on how to get super-crisp paint lines. To find out just what the tip is plus more pictures of the room both before and after, visit Stacy's website, Not Just a Housewife.
Unbelievable Laundry Room Makeover with Penny Tiles
Photo: Vintage Revivals
Mandi from Vintage Revivals, recently revealed her laundry room makeover and the results couldn't be more spectacular. Unlike a typical laundry room that you hide behind closed doors, this one you'd want to show off. Maybe even host parties in there. New penny round tile on the floor and slim subway tile on the wall, plus loads and loads of new storage and counter space prove to be the winning combination. Take a look at the "after":
Photo: Vintage Revivals
For the entire story including pictures of every nook and cranny of this glorious makeover, visit Vintage Revivals.
Kelly's washer and dryer looked kinda sad in their old living quarters. Did she paint them with a bright color to cheer them up? Nope. She just changed everything around them to make them look like a million bucks--and it only cost $125! From top to bottom--including an amazing DIY pendant light to painting the vinyl flooring--nothing was overlooked by Kelly's keen eye and talented hands. Take a look at what her laundry room looks like now:
Photo: View Along the Way
The drying rack to the right of the washer and dryer was snagged for $25 and the cabinet in the center of the laundry room was found at a garage sale for $20.
Getting the laundry room ship-shape for spring will be a SNAP with these very clever hacks. There's something for everyone too. Woodworkers can go all out with Ana White's Laundry Basket Dresser plan, pictured above.
If you'd rather keep your tools in their chest, check out this super simple idea from Craft Blog. A 'blob' of hot glue was used to attach clothes pins to a tiled wall to hang dry those little items that get stuck in the dryer and come out damp. (Instead of glue, I'd opt to used 3M's hook and loop picture hanging strips, especially on drywall.)
One of the best laundry room investments I ever made was a ironing board hanger. Although it works great, it isn't as charming as the The House of Smiths' laundry room idea.
Although this next entry is a store-bought item, I thought it needed to be included in our round up as it's TOTALLY DIYable. Some 1" x 2" (or so), pulleys, doweling and rope and we're good to go. I particularly like how this rack is elevated, unlike the ubiquitous fold up/fold down kind.
And now for the second half of our round up...suds and stuff!
Of course, we don't want to forget the fabric softener. Hallee hooks us up for this one. Her recipe consists of hot water, baking soda and vinegar. Her concoction even works in one of those Downy ball thingies!
10 More DIY Laundry Room and Mudroom Organization Projects
Here's a collection of DIY projects and laundry room ideas to aid you in organizing or decorating some of cleanest and messiest rooms in our homes: the laundry and mudroom.
Some of them are simple afternoon projects, costing as little as $10 and using thrifted or upcycled materials, and others are entire plans for building your own mudroom from scratch. There is something for every level of DIYer.
In this 1950s ranch style home you walk in from the garage straight into the laundry room. Inside the laundry room is a walk in coat/storage closet. The owner before had used it as a pantry/coat closet. Besides being outdated, this closet had a few identity problems.
Problem #1: The space of the closet would make a great pantry except the kitchen is down the hall, through the living room, and on the complete other side of the house.
Problem #2: All the doors opened into each other. If the closet door was open you couldn't open the door to the garage and vice versa. If you changed the door to open inward, you would have to walk inside and shut the door to access one side of the closet. The solution? Take the door off and make the closet into a mudroom.
Taking the door off made the space flow uninterupted but it created the need for something functional and visually organized. The mudroom with built-in lockers was the easiest solution.
This was what the closet looked like on the other side. There was another coat closet located at the front door so we didn't lose coat storage. Since the laundry room was located off the garage it was the main entry for the homeowner. The transformation to a mudroom would give the new homeowner a place for her family to drop their things on the way inside.
This was a "use what you have" transformation. The original shelves on the left side were taken down and reused on both sides. By hanging the first two shelves close together it created a nook for shoes. The space under the first shelf was made for bins and baskets to store hats and scarves. The top shelf is a place where she can store her folded laundry just in case she doesn't have time to put it away immediately.
This makeover was easy to do and inexpensive by reusing what the closet already had to offer. Bead board and trim pieces were added to the wall to give the look of a custom built-in locker system.
The hooks were added after the dry wall was patched and the wood got a fresh coat of white paint.
The shelves are even sturdy enough to sit on while you take off your shoes.
Often homes are built in a way that make sense for one family but when the home changes hands it doesn't translate to the new family's needs. It is not crazy that your family uses the space much differently than the homeowner/renter before. If you have a space that seems "off", re-work it a little to make it functional. A great place to start are closets like the one above. They are a great place to add some usable square footage in many different ways.
This bathroom wasn't bad before. In fact it was really quite decent. But once the rest of the home was redone, the styles didn't coordinate. And just wait until you see how incredible the new boho chic bathroom is! Click through to find out, and to get some tips on how to achieve a contemporary version of the bohemian trend.
This bathroom looked like so many other builder-grade bathrooms - basic tile, a cheap vanity and zero personality. But once Megan Pflug got her hands on it, the new space suddenly took on a whole new stylish vibe. And get this - there were no major renovations involved! Click through to check out the trendy result.
This kitchen needed help. The dark brown floors combined with the brown doors, brown cabinets and brown trim gave this space a dark, dated feel. But just wait until you see what it looks like now! Click through to check it out.
These homeowners needed closet space since their Victorian didn't have a single closet. But the solution they came up with was unexpected - they created an open closet on one wall of their bedroom! Keep reading to check out their stylish open wardrobe area.
Filing cabinets are definitely making a comeback. You can find them at garage sales, flea markets, craigslist, and all sorts of secondhand places. I am partial to the larger catalog-style cabinets that are loaded with drawer space and this makeover definitely caught my eye!
Usually around the Curbly neighborhood, we talk about renters who are itching to make improvements to their space. Well, in this case, we're talking about a landlord who was itching to make improvements to her rental property. Katie, the property's owner, was faced with a--let's face it--disaster in the kitchen
For those of you who are fans of HGTV's hit show Fixer Upper, you're going to want to see this incredible makeover. This was the kitchen from their "Beanstalk Bungalow" project... before. Just wait until you see what it looks like now.
This all white bathroom was lacking in the personality and style department before, but is now a beautiful, relaxing space that might just inspire your next bathroom renovation. Want to see how it turned out?
Been looking for the perfect sideboard for your dining room? Hack together your own with DIY version that utilizes the Ikea Besta tv unit and door knockers. Yep, door knockers.
Ashley from Sugar & Cloth put together a pretty glam DIY sideboard, that is completely unique with the help of an Ikea Besta cabinet. What do you think of the end result?
Thinking toward the long 4th of July weekend, I wanted to share a cool makeover that would be the perfect project to get your backyard or patio ready for this weekend's BBQ. Transform a plain canopy umbrella, like this one, with a little bit of paint and a fun pattern.
If you're looking for a little patio inspiration as the temperatures start to rise, check out this summery before and after makeover. Its like adding a whole extra room to the house.
If you're looking for an easy weekend project to try, check out this fun idea for adding a pop of color (and design element) to the back of an otherwise plain chair. It's completely removable and won't damage the chair's surface. So what do you have to lose?
This before and after kitchen makeover is a jaw-dropper. The layout remained the same, but the transformation is still a big one. Click through to see what I mean.
