In preparation of listing our house to sell (for more details, click here) we decided to make some changes to the interior to focus more on the space and structure rather than the items, and paint colours, in it.

Perhaps one of the easiest, but most dramatic, changes was the paint colour in the entryway and hall. We change the wall colour from a Kelly green to a classic taupe. We were truly shocked with the change and how much brighter and larger the space seemed and how much more alive the floors and lights fixtures became. We left the mirror that was there, but painted black and switched out the marble top desk for a classic gate leg table.

Before

After

Next up was the living room. The biggest change in this room was the major edit of everything in it. Most of the accessories and wall hangings were removed and the 7ft French Provincial couch was switched out for a more contemporary and versatile sofa (from Hambly’s). Otherwise, I think the changes in the room speak for themselves. What do you think?

Before

After

The man-den. Oh, the man-den. It’s gone. No more bear skin rug. No more antlers. No more deep purple. Like the living room, this room was also heavily edited so as to showcase it’s size, versatility and brightness. The walls were painted a lovely light green that goes well with the neutral furniture.

Before

After

The upstairs bathroom received a fresh coat of paint. The steel grey is more calming, more versatile than the previous colour. It works well with the counter-top, fixtures and accessories. Grey is such a lovely, inviting and versatile colour. One of our favourites.

Before

After

So, comments appreciated. What do you think of the changes to 292?

Well, nothing like a clean slate! This young couple contacted us a while ago for help with their master bedroom. When they moved in the house was full of wallpaper, dated hardware and carpet. They took it upon themselves to undo all this decorating but once they got it undone, weren’t exactly sure how to get it back together. In we came.

A lovely couple to work with, their only wish was to once again make the room functional so we started with the basics – flooring and paint colour. A bedroom they had in a previous home was grey, and they really liked it. However, rather than repeat that colour on the wall we decided instead to put it in the flooring. The grey, with hints of taupe, is beautiful on the floor and offers and neutral palette and a lovely, cozy feeling to the room. Next we moved onto the paint which is a “Harrisburg Green” from Benjamin Moore. The green and grey work very well together.

Another issue with the function of the room was the closet. We called in the Closet Dr. to make it as functional as possible and although you can’t see it, he did a wonderful job. The husband of the couple was able to do much of the other work (flooring, paint etc.) himself so this saved considerably on the budget. He took it upon himself to spray paint the hardware in the room changing it from a harsh brass to a perfectly matched matte black.

Most of the other furniture was already available from within the house. However, we did opt for low profile bedside tables and shorter (but shiny!) lamps due to the slope in the ceiling. The mirrored lamps offer a great bit of pizzazz to the room. The bedspread is a lovely grey that is keeping within the theme of the room. For a punch of colour and visual interest we had pillows and a matching valance custom made. The two, contrasting fabrics work perfectly in the room and help tie all the black together. Purple is the favourite colour of one half of this couple (guess which one!) so purple piping was added to the pillows for an extra hit of colour. Also, the purple rugs work beautifully on the grey floor and offer something nice for their feet when they get out of bed in the morning.

This room is a brilliant example of working with what you have. With the exception of the accessories and bedside tables, everything else was already in the home. With a new lease on life these pieces look beautiful in the new master bedroom that has been put back together and we think, is being enjoyed.

Here are some before pictures from when the couple first moved into the house.

And a few pictures after the room was “taken apart”.

And here’s what the room looks like now.

And a couple more before & afters.