Maria Killam’s House Tour; Here are ALL the Before & Afters

Entry hall

Now that my house is completely renovated from the inside and out, I thought it would be fun to post ALL the photos in one place.

Watch and learn, as this is a great example of how to create flow! The colours are fresh, you’re not walking from the yellow laundry room into a sage green powder room (for example).

First we renovated the exterior

Let’s start with the exterior, because it was simply so hideous and the transformation was so beautiful.

And let me just say AGAIN. It would never have been so beautiful without my Landscape Designer MaryAnne White. She lives in New York and we did it ALL long distance. I have never met her in person.

I specify lots of exterior colour in my eDesign department, especially at this time of year when everyone is planning their new builds. The advice we constantly give to people who want to add too much stone or too many different siding elements (because they are afraid it’s going to be boring) to their home is ‘Don’t forget about the landscaping’!!

It’s the same as if you spent all your money on the most expensive finishes for your new build and then you run out of money to install the look and the feel. Which is created with artwork, area rugs, accessories, AND no-one-ever-has-enough, table lamps.

Spread your money around PLEASE. My motto is ‘Have it all’. Instead of waiting forever to have the most expensive EVERYTHING.

Expensive does not automatically equal beautiful

High and low is a very good way to decorate. Spend more money on the furniture you sit on every day and less on the decorative stuff.

Anyway, here was what the exterior of the house looked like when we took possession:

Related post: 10 Steps to Planning your New Build

(before) My nephew, so excited that we moved from the city!

After in 2017 | Can we just pause for a moment and admire my new 10″ column without the downspout attached to it!

And then the transformation of my design studio in the backyard

Before (look at the cedar hedges that had not been trimmed for years, above)

 

After

Update in 2022:

I took this photo when the sun was setting and the light in the garden was so pretty!

When we took possession there was a gazebo here which we posted on Craigslist and someone came with a big flatbed truck, cut the roof in half and took it away!

After (love my english garden Tutears)

 

After (Full post here)

 

There was A LOT of concrete in the original backyard.

After | I love all the curvy beds MaryAnne specified

I really disliked the tiny metal posts but we couldn’t replace them without replacing the deck (because there would be no support for new posts) so instead I decorated it (below):

Related post: Two Questions to Ask Before you Renovate vs. Decorate

My motto is, if all else fails, decorate!

After

After

Let’s see the inside next!

Here is the living room in the real estate photo:

Before | the real estate photo

After

This was the first renovation of the kitchen which we completed before we moved in May 2012 (below):

After | Photo by Tracey Ayton

The island always bothered me because it was done on a budget at the time. So, when I renovated my bathrooms in the summer of 2017, I added panels and a solid moulding around the bottom.

My good friend Jan Romanuk helped me with the kitchen and bathroom designs!

Then after the Ballard Designs refresh I painted the island again so it flowed with my dining room:

 

Powder room before

Powder Room | After

The powder room is located close to the back door beside the laundry room. I wanted a large sink in here so it could also be a laundry sink and a garden sink.

I’m always arranging flowers and in Terreeia’s way when she’s cooking in the kitchen so this is a real luxury to have!

Related post: Maria Killam’s Garden Powder Room

Here’s the laundry room before:

 

And here it is, after. I painted it the same yellow as my hallway and the powder room repeats the accent colour in the living room.

Laundry Room | After

The family room millwork needed some upgrading:

Here’s what it looks like now (below):

Family room | After

This was our main bathroom

Main Bathroom | (after) See all the photos here

Then in 2021, I painted it blue:

This was the master bathroom, before:

My favourite room in the house now is the master bathroom because of all the fabulous framed botanicals and the bathtub!

Master bathroom After | See all the photos here

Before

This bathroom did not have a shower and it woud have killed the pretty layout to add one so I chose to renovate it with the same footprint.

Master bathroom | After

This was the real estate photo (above).

After

After

And here are the kitchen and bathrooms all together:

Hope you enjoyed the tour!

Which room do you like the most?

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Easter Time and my 500 White Tulips are Blooming

First Rule of Design: Boring Now Equals Timeless Later

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