A few weeks ago, I was getting my nails done when Katie, who owns the nail salon I’ve been going to for years, happened to ask me, “Do you like winter?” Yes, I replied, I’m ready for sweater weather it’s been hot this summr!
When I asked if she liked winter she said “NO, I mostly just go home and curl up in my bedroom”.
Well, that immediately got my attention. I said, I’ll tell you why, you don’t have any lamps! Show me your living room!”
So she pulled out her phone and showed me a room with a big grey sectional, grey floors, a black fireplace surround, white shelving and a very busy grid wall dividing the living and dining rooms.
She wanted that grid wall gone!
But here’s the problem. Removing that grid wall wasn’t necessarily a simple demolition job. The flooring ran right up to it, which meant taking it out could trigger drywall repairs and potentially replacing flooring throughout several connected spaces.
Suddenly, a wall she hated could become a $10,000-plus renovation. And I could see that she didn’t need to spend that kind of money to make her living room beautiful.
Can You Decorate Around a Grid Wall Instead of Removing It?
Before you start tearing out something you hate, consider what removing it will affect.
In Katie’s living room, taking out the grid wall could have meant drywall repairs and replacing flooring in several connected spaces. An expensive project before we’d even started decorating!
Instead, we worked with what she had. The large painting that helped disguise the grid wall cost approximately $200, while the entire living room makeover came to about $2,400.
This is why I always recommend looking at the whole room before deciding what needs renovating. Sometimes the most expensive change is completely unnecessary.
Watch how we transformed Katie’s living room in one day, without a renovation.
Related posts:
3 Ways to Style a Bookshelf; Before & After
8 Makeovers that saved 54K In Renovations
I thought this Room Needed a Renovation
So cute. I love the big art on the grid and the patterned pillows.
I think it is amazing how “yellow” the pink beige samples look against the blue grey walls.
Thank you! I’m happy for Katie and her family for the beautiful and cozy transformation and for the joy it brings them. I’m happy for me for the creative and inspiring lesson.