The transformation in today’s episode of Decorate or Renovate is so exciting. Cynthia and Greg saved 15K on a renovation by decorating their living room and dining room for a tiny fraction of that budget instead. Leaving them more funds to visit their grandson in Australia.
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They were considering adding French doors off the dining room. The space felt flat and unfinished, and after forty years in the same home, it’s natural to start wondering if a renovation is the answer.
Dining room before
But then life shifted. Their daughter married and moved to Australia and flights to Australia to see their grandson became the priority.
And suddenly the question wasn’t “Should we renovate?” It was “If we’re not renovating… how far can decorating take us?”
Here’s the interesting part: this wasn’t a house with nothing in it. Cynthia and Greg have collected beautiful art for decades. Expensive pieces. Meaningful pieces. Seasonal pieces. Turquoise in the summer, winter landscapes at Christmas, fall art in autumn. Everything special.
And yet the rooms never felt settled.
The expensive rug they loved and had purchased after they replaced all the flooring 5 years ago didn’t have any turquoise in it. The art that coordinated only worked in one season. A mirror hovered above the mantel because nothing truly related. The room kept changing costumes but never found its identity.
So instead of cutting new openings and spending fifteen thousand dollars on French doors, we spent about $1300 editing, layering, and telling one clear story.
This is what happened when we chose decorating over renovating.
See the entire process and the afters in today’s video.
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I would have removed the sconces on each side of the fireplace. They are anchored to nothing.
Where is the beautiful art work?
When something is hardwired, it becomes part of the envelope. Decorating is often about making fixed elements work instead of ripping them out. That’s where creativity lives.
As for the art, in this room, cohesion and connection to the homeowner’s story and expensive area rug were the priority.
Thank you for showing the process. It’s very helpful!
It looks like a beautiful, put together space now.
I love what you did. I missed the link for the plateholders. could you send it to me.