When wood mouldings AREN'T such a good thing

Yes, there are times when doing nothing is better than applying something just for the sake of having it.

Here's why.

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Come have a look.

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Adding Traditional Details

Traditional design is very popular in this area.  People seem to love extra mouldings and details.  I'm always amazed when I see a real estate show on tv and if there's crown moulding anywhere, it seems someone will mention it with appreciation and awe, passing over many other more noticeable good qualities.  It's definitely an attention grabber.

I've had many clients who want to add detail and mouldings to their homes in the remodel process.  Adding just a few touches, sometimes makes all the difference in the world.

Paneling and brackets were added to the face of this bar for durability and an upgrade in materials.

Bar - Before

Bar - After

Block paneling with a curved foot detail was applied to an existing standard box cabinet before painting to give it the look of piece of furniture.

Upper and lower cabinets - Before

Hutch - After

Side panels on the upper cabinets that continued down as brackets were added to the existing cabinet and the crown was redone.  Paint covers up all the additional pieces and patching.  In this project, the pantry next to these cabinets was relocated in the space.  Upper door panels were cut out for seed glass inserts and cabinet pulls added, all helping to make these standard issue box cabinets look like a piece of furniture.

Brackets were added to the bottoms of these cabinets to help break up the space and give an unfitted look to the kitchen cabinetry.

Before

The cabinets read as one visual element in this large space.  The homeowner wanted a more traditional and interesting look in the kitchen without investing in a lot of new cabinets.

In this kitchen remodel, we added panels to the sides of the existing cabinetry.  It made for a more finished look.  See on the end of the cabinet by the sink?

Before

We did a new island and kept the cabinets on the left side of the kitchen.  Adding the side panels helped tie the old in with the new island.

Little moulding tricks (and lots of paint to cover them up) helped customize these projects for their homeowners.  At some point it is just better to rip it all out and start over, but for all these above, we saved money and kept cabinets out of the landfills!

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Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage

Simply Klassic Sundays at Simply Klassic Home
Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch

Time To Remodel

It was time to remodel this small master bath.  The dark wallpaper, small shower, and lack of storage prompted these clients of mine to renovate.  These cultured marble shower boxes were very popular in homes built around 20 years ago. 

Sorry for the dark photo.  Here is the vanity inside the bathroom. 

Tub area, not used, except for maybe drying clothes.  Why not put a large shower here?

Her vanity had to remain outside the main bathroom.  Small master closet is just opposite her vanity.

The closet doors were a problem.  They swung out into the small space and annoyed the husband, but she loved the mirrors and wanted to leave the doors open.  They also needed better use of that closet space which fortunately had a high ceiling.

After remodeling, they have a lovely new bathroom with lots of great storage, beautiful updated finishes, and fixtures.

Looking into the main bathroom through her vanity area.  Mirrored upper cabinets brought more storage and reflected natural light into the space. 



We moved the shower to the tub area and changed out the window for privacy.  All the finishes were kept light to visually enlarge the space.  The beautiful onyx tile provided some nice detail and interest.  The antique brass fixtures bring out the warmth of the tile.

Beautiful marble at the counters, shower threshold, window sill, and shower seat.  Marble shelves in the shampoo niche too.

Looking back into her vanity area.  You can see the new closet doors in the cabinet mirrors.

Sliding barn door style hardware was hidden under crown moulding. The doors don't swing out anymore and the mirrors are always available!



A beautiful rolling Putnam ladder works well in the closet to access high storage.  It pops snugly into a niche in the back of the closet when not in use.

I love how this traditional bathroom turned out.  My clients are happy too!

If you need a beautiful bathroom designed just for you, contact Aston Design Studio.

All "After" Photos by Miro Dvorscak


Participating in the Open House Party at No Minimalist Here

Job Site Visits

Job site visits today! 

This remodel project involves turning a dated 90's contemporary property into a more traditional home.  The fireplace is coming along. 

Traditional corbels and paneling and an appropriate scale and weight for this big space helps transform the look.

Right after demo.  All mouldings and tile were removed as well as stepped sheetrock detail at the ceiling.

Fireplace Before - smallish, plain, and unimportant

On to the bathroom! 

Tile work looks great.  A warm golden color scheme was desired by my client, achieved with the Angelica travertine for flooring and bathroom tile.  Fitting a traditional tile pattern and layout around the existing modern window helps marry the styles and looks purposeful.

 

Shower tile work

Niche at the tub area. Waiting for the Angelica limestone ledge.

On to another job site. 

New  paint on the dark wood paneling and new wood flooring. 

Before

After - Yea!!! 

I've been soooo busy this summer, not quite on top of my blogging. Busy is good though!  I've got a fun apartment decorating project to post next.  I'll be back next week!

The Elephant in the Room

image from spongeist.wordpress.com

I do a lot of design for remodels......kitchens, bathrooms, etc. When I meet with homeowners for the first time, they have usually done some homework and have created a list of what areas of the space they want to affect. Sometimes I agree with their scope or choices of items to replace or redo, but sometimes due to budget constraints or a desire to minimize the remodel, they want to leave the biggest eyesore in the room and they ask me to work with it.

While I pride myself on being able to improve any project and make things work for my clients, I sometimes feel this is a bad investment of time and money for the homeowner. We are trying to make an ugly or dated or out-of-character thing look like it belongs......the elephant in the room.

image from atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com

Any designer will tell you this is the most difficult of all challenges. The more fixed variables you have to work with, the more limited you are with what your solution or design will be. For example, if you have all your furniture, paint, window treatments, etc. and are looking for the perfect rug to tie it all together, you've really got a struggle ahead of you. You've limited your choices by having so many of the variables fixed. But that's beside the point. An elephant will always be an elephant no matter how you disguise it.

image from amyabrahams.com

I think this is sort of an HGTV get-your-house-ready-to-sell approach to design. You are just sort of making do, making the best of what you have, making it look so much better than it DID, etc., but it may not really be giving you the end result you want. If you are planning to spend a certain amount of money on a master bath remodel and due to the limitations of the budget, you have to leave the dated, yellowed tub because tubs are expensive purchases in a bath remodel, then the tub has become your elephant. No matter what you spend on the remodel, that tub will still be there, telling everyone what year it was installed and that you didn't have the money or the insight to tear it out when you installed your beautiful new shower or vanity.

I'm all for making existing things work when you can. I've worked with many an existing tub, existing cabinets, existing tile floors, etc., and it definitely can be done and can be done well. I'm not arguing that. I just think it's important for homeowners to ask themselves this, "Will I be happy a year down the road, after this process is over, with that item remaining in my new space?"

It's a hard decision, but sometimes it's better to wait and save until you can redo the whole space the way you want rather than go half-way. Then when you are ready to go for it, you can wholeheartedly plunge ahead without many fixed variables and you can really get the look you want.

Here's a nice big elephant below. Luckily the homeowner agreed and it was OUT with this dated monster.

 
She got a lovely, up-to-date bathroom with a free standing tub and beautiful stone floor. Yes, it was a big remodel, but it definitely made a big impact. Would you have been happy keeping that large sea of cultured marble in your freshly remodeled bathroom?



The elephant in this remodel above was the builder grade, ceramic tile floor that was all over the kitchen, living room, and long entry hall. It was cold and uninviting, no matter how many rugs you threw on it. The kitchen cabinets were a given, the homeowner wanted a warm, inviting look and liked the cabinet color. The big question was what to do about all that tile. It didn't enhance the look of the wood cabinets or get her the warm look she wanted. Luckily, they bit the bullet and changed the floor to a beautiful slate that complimented the cabinet color and upgraded the look of the whole house.



Much better, right? We warmed up all the finishes to work with the one existing thing we wanted and had to keep, the cabinets.

Before


After

Before - Entry Hall

After - Entry Hall

If you are thinking about remodeling, you should stop and consider these things.

1. How long do you plan to be in this house? (Remember, most people stay longer than they intend!)
2. What is the condition of the items in the space to be remodeled? Are they functioning properly? Are the yellowed, cracked, stained?
3. Is your tub sunken? (Okay, personal pet peeve.)
4. Are you leaving builder-grade products in the space because they are in "okay" condition? If all other products are upgraded, that one might scream, "You left me here to annoy you!"
5. Is this something you really hate and it bothers you, but it would be so expensive to replace so you are leaving it anyway?

If you've answered yes to any of these questions, you should carefully consider the scope of your project, even if it means holding off for a while until you can do what you want. Just remember, you don't want to have any regrets after you've finished with all the mess, disruption, and expense.

One last thing.....in this economy, the much chanted myth of getting what you put into the house back out of it when you sell is no longer a given.....period. Just give up on that for now. These days you're doing a remodel because you want to live in it and use it and your home will give you much satisfaction in the years to come. Updating for resale is a totally different animal. :)

If you need help with your elephant in the room, contact Aston Design Studio for a consultation!