Top Ten of Oh Nine

Hello! I thought we could ring in the new decade here at Better After by taking a little look back at some of my very favorite projects from this year. So, without further ado, in no particular order, here they are!

#1 Autumn's Living Room

We don't have to look too far back for this one, it's the last thing I posted! I told you I love it. It's the coffered ceiling that gets me! And that light fixture.

#2 Chrome Lamp

Long ago, this lamp was one of the very first things that inspired me to start this whole Better After blog. It's such a dramatic change using only pocket change! One of my very faves.

#3 Michelle's Master

I envy every single thing about this room. Michelle knows what she likes and knows exactly how to execute it. My bedroom is currently this very same color, so who knows? Maybe the new year will bring a funkdified bedroom makeover for me!

#4 Kate's Staircase

A major change that she created with her own bare hands! Paint, moulding, wallpaper and lots of elbow grease pay off in a major way. I was proudly showing off this project before I even had a blog, like I had done it myself or something!

#5 Rocky Bella

I've featured Karli several times, and this particular post is one of my favorites. What I love about her is her fabulous eye for color. While I'm deciding between white or off-white, she's fearlessly turning out things like this turquoise table and mossy green buffet. I resolve to make this a Fearless New Year!

#6 Lil' Kitchen

I asked my husband to pick one of his favorite posts, and with hardly a second of thought he named this one. I have to agree, it's a classic!

#7 Kid Rock Coffee Table

How could this one NOT be on the list? It is definitely has a place in Better After history. Lindsay rescued this horrible, horrible coffee table emblazoned with a poorly painted Kid Rock and Britney Spears motif and not only transformed it, but resurrected and exalted it.

#8 Chandelier Party

This was a fun one. It was the same cheap, builder-grade chandelier that could be found anywhere and that's what made it fun, because EVERYBODY had one! So many different takes on the same thing. A few more chandelier makeovers trickled in after that, see them here and at the bottom of this post here.

#9 Tomkat Kitchen

So many great, great kitchen redos to choose from, but I think this one might be my very favorite.

#10 File Cabinet Planter

The post that started it all. A perfect example of flipping something on it's head and looking at it in a totally new light. Add a little spray paint and what was once ugly and unloved is transformed into something functional and beautiful.

Well, there you have it. That was hard! There were many that I wanted to include. I could have done a Top 50! What were some of your favorites? What would you put on the list?

Anyway, thanks for a great year, and for your support of my blog. It means the world to me! I've got some good stuff lined up and please keep those projects coming my way!

Happy New Year!

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Merry Christmas!

Hello friends! I am taking a short blogging break for the holidays! See you next week!

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Autumn's Living Room

I have a feeling this one is going in my top ten list. I don't really have a top ten list, but I was thinking of maybe putting one together for the end of the year, what do you think? What are a few of your Better After favorites? Maybe I should post a poll? Ok, ok, on to the good stuff:

CHECK THIS OUT, HOLY WOW:

This is what happens when an interior designer marries a contractor.

This is the part when I bemoan the fact that my husband is better suited for fantasy football than building me a coffered ceiling.

Sigh.

Check out the whole transformation on Autumn's blog, Design*Dump.

Thanks Autumn, it's simply amazing!

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Home ... Plates

Awhile back I mentioned that some of my favorite redos are outdoor redos, and so Cherry Blossom took the hint and sent me pictures of her home's recent updating.

Looks about ten thousand times better, I'd say! And that new garage door is reminding me of a Hershey's bar. (I love chocolate too, hint hint, feel free to send me some, hint hint!) ;)

And she also redid a ho-hum wall in her dining room to show off her cool collection of plates as well as her love of collages! See more of that too on her blog Beauty in All Things.

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Nursery Dresser

Holly from Reid All About It recently made over a $15 thriftstore find into a cheerful red dresser for her baby's nursery. She also lined the drawers with pages from an atlas, fun touch! Check out her blog for more pics. Thanks Holly!

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Kirsty's Kitchen

I know, I know, I just posted a kitchen redo, but here's another great one. Done on the cheap, just white paint on the cabinets, and some beadboard wallpaper on the island. (Easier said than done, it's true.) Looks brand new! Kirsty gives the full run-down on her blog here.

And check out Kirsty's fan redo here, and while you're there, be sure to click "Butterfly Projects" on the right-hand side of her blog to see all her great projects and before and afters. Seriously, she's got a Christmas stocking made out of a sweater over there!)

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Glam Room Redos

Raquel from The Glamorous Life had an outdated kitchen that wouldn't quit. Red walls? Check. Wallpaper border? Check. Tile countertops? Honey oak cabinets? Florescent lighting? Check, Checkity, Check. So she gave her kitchen a complete overhaul, and it looks fantastic! My favorite things are the green tile backsplash, the wall opened up into the dining room and the fact that the stove-top is no longer right in the middle of the countertop peninsula. What is that?

And it would just be wrong to have a sexy kitchen right around the corner from a frumpy living room. That would be like wearing Crocs to your wedding. (Please don't wear Crocs to your wedding.) So the living room got a makeover too! Read all about it on Raquel's blog The Glamorous Life.

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Lisa's Pottery Barn Table

Holy smokes! Thanks for the love! I was honestly stunned when I opened my email and saw all those supportive comments! You guys are the coolest. Pity party is officially over!

On to business. Here is a table redo I loved. The after looks so high end, like something you could easily find in Potter Barn. And good thing too, because Pottery Barn was actually the inspiration behind this makeover by Lisa from Popcorn Served Daily.

And styled here with some simple vases and mixed chairs. Love this!

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Pity Party of One

I've been in bit of a blog slump, sorry friends! Just been busy doing stuff and more stuff. You know how it is. Also, something else put me in a slump recently, but I feel silly talking about it. Ok, ok, I'll tell you.

So I admit, I was googling myself, and what to my wondrous eyes should appear? Some grinch of a girl had taken to her blog to trash Better After, and trash it soundly. She re-posted several projects that have been featured here, cattily mocking them and the people who made them.

I know I shouldn't have let it get to me, but darn it, it hurt my feelers! Believe me, I realize not every project I post has the potential of ending up in some fabulous design magazine. More often than not, modge podge and scrapbook paper are heavily involved.

But if all it takes is a can of spray paint and a $6.99 desk from Goodwill to lift a person's spirits and get them excited about personalizing the space around them, then where's the harm in that, right? Not everything is "better after" to everyone, but I hope at least everyone can find some point of inspiration and see potential in things they may have previously overlooked.

Sigh. I feel better.

So, in the spirit of kindness, I have a favor to ask!

Check out this table. Leah, aka Momma O sent this in and said:

"I've found such a deal on this kitchen table and chairs ($50!), but I'm not loving it in the state it's currently in. I have a classy modern taste and this doesn't fit my style at all. I know I would like to redo the table to be painted white or an espresso brown...but the chairs? I don't like at all. Do you (or your readers) have any suggestions of ways to make them look more modern and stylish, or is it worth it to splurge on new chairs?"

What say you readers? Any super creative ideas to help her out? Let's hear 'em!

and I'll be back and slump-free on Monday! Happy Weekend!

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Re Viewed Room

I love seeing a room transformed through staging, because it's not a huge, expensive renovation. (not that I don't love those) It's amazing that just looking at a room through new eyes and rearranging items you probably already have, you can create an entirely new look. This room was done by JoAnne of Rave Re:view. (clever name for a staging business, huh?)Check out her blog for more!

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Take a Seat or Two

Couple of chair redos comin atcha! First up, another great redo by Cassity at Remodelaholic. She got this chair for free after it had been crushed in shipping. She made its boo boos all better and un-blandified it with black spray paint and pretty new fabric.

Next up, this cane chair made by Stephie. Check it out on her blog, Made by Stephie. She received this chair from her grandma, and wasn't really feeling the grungy orange and battered wood look for some crazy reason. So she freshened it up with glossy white and some new fabric. Thanks ladies!

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Damask Breadbox

Have you been looking for a way to make your friends jealous of your breadbox? Well, just in case you were, here's one way to spice it up from Katherine at Classic Campell. Looks a bit time consuming, but it the effort pays off with a dramatic effect!

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Wisor Manor

Rebecca at Older & Wisor has done the impossible. The seemingly impossible, at least for me. She has redone her entire house, top to bottom, inside and out. Within a year. Check out her post here to see ALL the pictures, but here are a few of my favorites.

It looks like custom wainscoting, but I think they simply painted over the paneling that was already there.

Once upon a time, this dark, depressing, coffin-like surrounding yourself in wood paneling thing was all the rage. Why, I don't know. Probably someone tried it out once on accident and everyone else copied it and next thing you knew it was panel-palooza everywhere you looked.

But oh, with the white! It's a whole new room! I love the mantel over the original bricks, so homey! What I love is her ability to create a cohesiveness in the entire house. That trait seems to elude me. Can someone teach a class or something?

And the Grand Finale!

(Let me just tell you, these exterior before and afters are my FAVORITES! If you have one, what are you waiting for? Send it to me!)

Wonderful stuff Rebecca, I don't know how you do it!

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Brand Spankin New

Cassity from Remodelaholic recently sent me several of her great projects and here is one I liked a lot.

I don't know about you, but I would feel a bit iffy about putting a baby in that cradle in its "before" condition. But how about that after? I love the colors, mixing the bright green and black and white fabric with traditional blue. See more here! Thanks Cassity!

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How Does She Shutter Stuff

I like Christmas cards. Who doesn't? (I secretly keep all the cards I receive, year after year.) (Well, not such a secret anymore). They are so cute! I think it would be fun to find little frames for a few of the especially nice ones and make a gallery of tiny Christmas card art.

Anyway, if you're looking for a fun way to display your cards, (past or present) look no further than Alison at How Does She... for this shutter/message board. I love the glossy red. Thanks Alison!

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Lisa's Desk

Lisa from Recaptured Charm always has a good redo up her sleeve. This desk was given a simple distressed white paint job, but with a fun pop of color lining the drawers and displayed under the glass top. Thanks Lisa, great job!

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Crackle Door

Did this before door have any sort of charm whatsoever? Not that I can see. Cindy gave it a crackle-paint job, which I think looks right at home in a place named Applestone Cottage.

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Tasha's Nightstand

Better After reader Tasha wanted a Pottery Barn nightstand for her son's room, but honestly, who wants to pay $2o0 for a nightstand? Not me, and not Tasha, so she found this one for $6.99 at a thrift store. With a little paint and effort, she now has a solid-wood nightstand and $193 extra!

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Shotgun Shelf

"A gun rack? What am I supposed to do with a gun rack? I don't even own A gun!" Quick, name that movie.

I'm pretty sure this is not a gun rack, but it sort of looks like one. It look like it would be right at home hanging on a country cabin wall with some duck decoys perched on top, surrounded by deer heads.

But just look at the after! So cute! It looks perfect for Christmas, don't you think? Thanks to Better After reader Jeanette for this great redo!

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