MY LATEST PROJECT—AND THE BEST BEFORE AND AFTER PICS

allie • Aug 02, 2014

I have been working with a friend over the last 2 years…I know, that sounds crazy when I type it, but yes…2 years, on a total cabin reno project.  The reasons it has taken so long have been many.  1.)  We had Jules within that time.  2.)  It was a COMPLETE gut/remodel job. 3.)  We did a lot of the work ourselves, and 4.)  It is their cabin, and they are busy as well, so it was easy to not always make first priority.  I must say though, it has been one of the most fun projects I have done because….

1.)  The surroundings are beautiful!  (It’s on one of the most desirable lakes in MN)

2.)  I love the couple, it always pays to work with friends:)

3.)  I have never in my life been able to just go shop for whatever I wanted for the look in a short period of time and see it come together so fast.  I know….to me 2 years is fast:)  I love the DIY-ing and the hunt and the thrill of a good deal, but this was a little dreamy to just pull it all together and not have to worry about everything being a steal all of the time.

So, enough yapping, lets get to the eye candy.  I took a few before pics on my iphone but they aren’t the best.  You will definitely get an idea of what she started out looking like and an appreciation for how far she came.

Of course the hubby of this cabin thought there was nothing wrong with all the pine tongue and groove, and quite honestly it would be a dream cabin for my hubs as well.  But you know how wood and I get along.  Can you tell this is going to be a fun project?!?

Here’s the after….

Sorry boys, the wood had to go.  They had all the walls and ceilings sprayed, which gives an amazing finish, and we used Benjamin Moore’s Simply White in satin.  They also redid the flooring (which looks a bit familiar:) and added big chunky beams to break up the a-frame architecture and make it feel more cottage-y than cabin-y.

The furniture came from Pottery barn, and we scored a lot of the pillows from Home Goods and Pottery Barn.

This project was fun because I did get to still DIY quite a few of the things…like these paddles on the wall…

We found them at Home Goods as well and they actually had writing on.  I flipped them around, added rope, and painted the stripes to match the rest of the living room.

The shelf on the right was also a DIY .

This was another before of the kitchen before we got our hands on it.

And here’s the after….

The fridge is in the same spot to help you figure out the remodel.  They went with a complete new kitchen, with marble counters and farmhouse sink.  Yours truly was able to DIY the marble subway tile backsplash with my mad tile cutting skills;)

But I am so in love with this kitchen!

Another before…

and after….

I mean, look at that island!

And open shelving!

And it flows so nice into the living room.

From here we go upstairs where there used to be carpet..

and now there are cute little numbers to help you count your way:)  Trust me, we heard it from the guys on this one!

At the top of the stairs is an open loft where we needed to create a unisex bedroom since they have two girls and a boy.

The bedding came from Pottery Barn, except for the monogrammed Euro pillows I made to separate the beds.

And then they have a cute kids bathroom up here as well..

The vanity is a Martha Stewart one from Home Depot.

Drooling.

We had  a challenge trying to figure out a mirror for above it since there is a window in the way.  We ended up finding a hanging mirror at Home Goods and the guys figured out a way to make it stay.  I think it’s perfect!

And aren’t the chandeliers fun!  We have a matching one downstairs as well.  They worked so well with the high ceilings.  The trunks came from World Market, we just stenciled the numbers on cause they needed a little extra “something.”

And if you ask me, the kids have the best view in the place…

Out those windows all you see is lake and trees.  Gorgeous!

ps. this was the loft before.  Have I won over any other wood lovers yet?!?

On the main level is the master bedroom where we added board and batten.

The bedding again is pottery barn, except for another little Whimsy love…

And how much do we love that little apothecary nightstand from Target???

Down the hallway is the cutest bathroom..

We planked the ceilings in the bathroom, hallway, and laundry room.  I’m still jealous!

These are the DIY $7 shelves I made and had fun staging them…

We used all artificial greens at the cabin since they aren’t here all the time.  But I love the pop of green it adds, with no maintenance.

And at the end of the hallways is a laundry room to die for.

At a cabin mind you:)

it was starting to get dark so these pics aren’t the best, but isn’t she cute??

I stenciled the drinks bin so they can pull that out when they have company and fill it with ice.  They also have a clean and dirty basket up top and a super cute sink.

Lastly and quite honestly maybe the best room in the house is the screened in porch overlooking the lake.

The ceilings were painted a light blue and the walls were all sprayed white as well.

We got the table and upholstered chairs from World market, the others are fun flea market finds…

I darkened this pic just so you can see how the lake is right.there.  Swooning.

And this is where you’d curl up and have your coffee in the morning, listening to the loons.

I think I could handle it:)

We added curtains all the way around and tied them with rope since they blew in the wind quite a bit if we left them.  This gives privacy and also some shelter if it does rain hard.

But I love how this is a whole extended living room…

I hope you enjoyed looking at this pics as much as I had fun creating them!  Thanks so much Kelly Jo and Joel for letting me be a part of this amazing project.  Cheers to getting to enjoy the lake…..finally!!:)

P.s. for those of you following along on my pregnancy journey, there was no new “news” at my appt.  And so we wait!  t-minus 2 1/2 weeks!!!

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