Last week we took a last minute whirlwind trip to LA to fix up my Brother in Law’s new apartment. Like most rentals, it was a beige wonderland. Complete with vertical blinds, popcorn ceilings and oatmeal carpet.
The original plan was to throw a few new rugs and pillows down and maybe add a little bit of art. Um. That didn’t happen. Instead we packed everything we possibly could into the time we had there and worked our butts off.
He had a few good staple pieces of furniture (like the couch from West Elm) and the rustic wood kitchen table but that was about it.
I’ve learned a few things in my DIYin’ days the most important being, you are going to pay with your time, or you are going to pay with your money. There were a million projects that I would have LOVED to DIY in this makeover but 3 days just wasn’t enough time to pull them off. So the good news is that if you aren’t really a DIYer you can duplicate so much of this room because its all for sale! (I will link everything below) We did do a few projects though, so watch for tutorials throughout the rest of the week!
Just a reminder, this is where we started.
This is what it looks like now:
Wall Mirror | Fringe Pillow | White and Gray Tribal Pillow
We decided to flip the couch and divide the big room into 2 smaller spaces.
One of the biggest struggles with such a fast turn around is that ordering things online wasn’t an option, we were limited to what was available in store at that moment. Our main shopping sources were World Market, Target, CB2, Homegoods, IKEA, and the flea market. I feel like everything that we bought was really affordable.
The second that I saw that orange and grayish tribal rug I knew it would be so perfect in the room. The problem is that it wasn’t big enough to live underneath the couch and both of the chairs. The solution was to put an awesome geometric sisal underneath.
Sisal Rug | Orange Tribal Woven Rug
The chairs are literally my favorite thing in this entire space.
The cute little side table is a planter from IKEA with a wooden plate on top of it.
Navy Striped Pillow | Bolster Pillow | Brass Lamp
Desk | Shelf Brackets | Rug | Aqua Teapot | Brass Vase | Basket | Calendar (Target in store, similar) | File Holder | Folders | Hourglass | Ceramic Peanut | Stapler | White Planter
This giant wall was a killer. We knew that something needed to go there but we just could not for the life of us find anything! At the very last minute we found this shelf at a random furniture store. It’s the perfect size for the wall and the wall hanging (a table runner from target!) is such a great accent.
Wall Hanging | Black and White Picture Frame | Mint Bowl | Vintage Fiat Photo | Glass Jars | Brass Candle Lantern |Cardboard Boxes (Target in store) | American Flag Pillow | Yellow and Gray Pillow (Target in store)
One of the easiest (and most effective) ways to customize a space is to update the lighting. In the dining area I took out that white monstrosity of a fan and replaced it with this super cute wicker pendant light. We took all of the blades off of the fan for easy storage and changing the light made it so we could center the whole room.
Alex already had the table and chairs so all we needed to do was add art and a rug.
I’ve seen this black and white watercolor buffalo picture floating around the internet and was super happy that it was in store. The flag we found at a vintage clothing store. Its got the perfect amount of fade on it.
Black and White Rug | Buffalo Print | White Pitcher | Gem Bowls
For art on the wall by the window I did this super quick brush stroke piece with black acrylic paint (tutorial here!). I didn’t want to add more color because the flag was plenty, so doing it in black and white was sort of a no brainer.
Wow that was a lot of pictures! But just for fun, here is a before and after again.
Tomorrow’s post is all about breaking down how we solved all of the renters woes and a few things I wish I could change, so you wont want to miss it!
The post Alex’s 72 Hour Apartment Makeover | Reveal appeared first on Vintage Revivals.