Project Diary #16 – Efficiency Apartment Dining Area & Coffee Bar

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“Thyme” for another reveal! Squeezing in a dining area and coffee bar in an efficiency apartment can be a challenge! But a round counter heigh table, mix of bar stools and a coffee station/microwave cart fit perfectly tucked away in a corner of the room. 

Before…

Shaw Monterrey Grandview hardwood floors

After…

apartment dining nook

Before…

old floor with fireplace

After…

apartment dining nook

Before:

DIY craft studio // workshop - before room makeover @diyshowoff

After: A sneak peek of the kitchen too! See the full kitchen before and after reveal tomorrow!

apartment dining nook

I initially wanted a smaller table but kept coming back to this beauty. The size is a little bigger than I wanted but I was determined to make it work. 

And I originally thought I’d put the microwave and coffee maker on the kitchen counter but the gorgeous quartz kitchen counter was a splurge and once it was installed, there was no way I wanted to clutter it up. My Mr. DIY recommended a microwave cart and after a lot of online searching and shopping, I found one that fit perfectly behind the pantry closet door/short wall on the other side of the kitchen cabinets. Perfect solution!

coffee bar microwave stationapartment dining nook

And since the efficiency apartment sleeps 6, the addition of the pub/console bar behind the couch with barstools not only functions as a work station, but additional seating for dining as a breakfast bar. Perfect, right? 

breakfast bar console table with usb port

Looking from the bedroom doorway: 

apartment dining nook

Share your thoughts! 

What do you think? I mixed up the barstools that went with the breakfast bar with the seating I bought for the dining room table since the space is compact. I love the eclectic mix and how it all worked out. The leather barstools are my absolute favorite! That color and shape are perfect! 

Next up:

A gorgeous compact modern kitchen reveal! 

More about #helloredreno

The building has so much historical charm. It’s about one block from our town’s Main Street. The bus stop is literally steps away. There’s a gorgeous Butler, PA Bed & Biscotti across the street called Suite Retreat (how cute is that?!) and an antique shop nearby. There are breweries, the YMCA, shops, restaurants, salons, florists, candy/coffee shop, holiday parades and festivals within walking distance. So fun! If renovation from blah to ahhhhh is your thing, stay tuned!

So subscribe and be reminded of updates as the renovations progress! I’ll share before and after photos, projects underway and updates, plans and design boards, sources and links as they relate as well as fun events going on in and around the downtown area. I’ll be using a specific hashtag on social media to keep things all neat and tidy and organized.

#helloredreno and #suitethyme

I welcome your thoughts and ideas! And as always, thanks for your encouragement and support and for sharing in my joy and vision! 

The #helloredreno project diary:

Project Diary Entry #1 – Hello Red Reno!

Project Diary Entry #2 – Efficiency Apartment

Project Diary Entry #3 Color Passive Paint

Project Diary Entry #4 – Full Bathroom Demo Day

Project Diary Entry #5 – Sealing A Wood Plank / Shiplap Wall

Project Diary Entry #6: Bathroom Flooring

Project Diary Entry #7: Sealing Brick

Project Diary #8: Hardwood Floors

Project Diary #9: Carpeted Stairs

Project Diary #10 Vinyl Floor Tiles

Project Diary #11 – Living Room Before & After

Project Diary #12 – Christmas at the Studio

Project Diary #13 – Wallpaper Mural

Project Diary #14 – Entryway, Stairs & Landing Before & After

Project Diary #15 – Apartment Living Room Before & After Reveal

Project Diary #16 – Dining Nook & Coffee Bar

 

Project Diary #15 – Apartment LivingRoom Before & After

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We’re on a roll! Time to reveal the living room area of the #helloredreno #suitethyme series.  This room used to be one of the two upstairs bedrooms. The building is a house from the late 1800s. Upstairs was 2 bedrooms and a full bathroom. Now it’s a beautiful luxury apartment. So let’s get to the good stuff, the before and after!

And oh man, I really need to get some professional photos for the entire reveal. These looked okay at first but as I’m writing this post, I know they could be so much better so I’ll work on that but let’s stay on track for now. A living room before and after transformation. 

Before… plain, boring. Snooze. But potential! 

DIY craft studio // workshop - before room makeover @diyshowoff DIY craft studio // workshop - before room makeover @diyshowoff DIY craft studio // workshop - before room makeover @diyshowoff

then some new rustic wide plank flooring from Shaw Floors… (details here)

Shaw Monterrey Grandview hardwood floors Shaw Monterrey Grandview hardwood Shaw Monterrey Grandview wide plank flooring

and a stunning floral wallpaper mural and some resin decorative accents for the fireplace…

helloredreno before helloredreno mural wallpaperdiyshowoff roeshel

After… I can’t even believe this is the same room. There’s a lot going on but to me, it seems so much bigger and it works! 

A breakfast bar with usb pub table. Connect the lap top and work work work. OR grab the remote for the Smart TV and plop on that couch for some relaxation…it’s a getaway retreat, ya know. 😉 

How about that gorgeous wood plank wall feature from Reclaim Arbor and black paint paired with that dramatic floral wall mural for a bold and dramatic statement wall. It’s such a challenge to photograph a black wall but in person, there is so much texture with the rustic distressed wood planks in varying heights and widths (you can see it in pictures further down) and the black fireplace surround is gorgeous. I am so in love! 

airbnb small apartment living room airbnb small apartment living room airbnb small apartment living room airbnb small apartment living room airbnb small apartment living room airbnb small apartment living room

Share your thoughts! 

What do you think? It’s not everyone’s cup of tea. Mr. DIY jokes that all I need to do is cover up the wallpaper with more Reclaim Arbor wood planks. That entire wall was a little outside of my comfort zone but I took the opportunity for creative freedom in this space. 

The queen sleeper sofa, glass/brass console table, pub table with USB port with bar stools are all from Wayfair. 

Next up:

The dining area/coffee bar!  

More about #helloredreno

The building has so much historical charm. It’s about one block from our town’s Main Street. The bus stop is literally steps away. There’s a gorgeous Butler, PA Bed & Biscotti across the street called Suite Retreat (how cute is that?!) and an antique shop nearby. There are breweries, the YMCA, shops, restaurants, salons, florists, candy/coffee shop, holiday parades and festivals within walking distance. So fun! If renovation from blah to ahhhhh is your thing, stay tuned!

So subscribe and be reminded of updates as the renovations progress! I’ll share before and after photos, projects underway and updates, plans and design boards, sources and links as they relate as well as fun events going on in and around the downtown area. I’ll be using a specific hashtag on social media to keep things all neat and tidy and organized.

#helloredreno and #suitethyme

I welcome your thoughts and ideas! And as always, thanks for your encouragement and support and for sharing in my joy and vision! 

The #helloredreno project diary:

Project Diary Entry #1 – Hello Red Reno!

Project Diary Entry #2 – Efficiency Apartment

Project Diary Entry #3 Color Passive Paint

Project Diary Entry #4 – Full Bathroom Demo Day

Project Diary Entry #5 – Sealing A Wood Plank / Shiplap Wall

Project Diary Entry #6: Bathroom Flooring

Project Diary Entry #7: Sealing Brick

Project Diary #8: Hardwood Floors

Project Diary #9: Carpeted Stairs

Project Diary #10 Vinyl Floor Tiles

Project Diary #11 – Living Room Before & After

Project Diary #12 – Christmas at the Studio

Project Diary #13 – Wallpaper Mural

Project Diary #14 – Entryway, Stairs & Landing Before & After

Project Diary #15 – Apartment Living Room Before & After Reveal

Eclectic Sun Room Makeover

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This little room at the back of our house has gone through several transformations. We mostly call it the mud room but it’s more of a sun room, reading nook, sitting room, overflow from the dining room when entertaining (more seating)… a quite space off the dining room with French doors leading to the back patio.

Boho Sunroom Makeover

Well, the sun room got an unplanned makeover when we used some leftover paint from the man cave paint job. And it gave me a chance to turn Spring cleaning into something so rewarding – a room makeover with a zero budget by shopping the house. But first, let’s take a trip down memory lane for this little room…

When we bought our house, it had a single door and blue indoor/outdoor carpeting. Right away we added French doors, slate tile and a fresh coat of paint. 


It’s one of my grown up “doll house” rooms. I’m always changing it up in there by shopping the house for furniture and accessories. The HUGE mirror was frameless and above the fireplace in our living room when we bought our house. We moved it to this room to give the illusion of more space and light, added a frame and a vinyl monogram. 

sitting roomchristmas sitting room

Do you move furniture and decorative accessories around from room to room to freshen things up or do you call it permanently perfect and enjoy things as is for years?
sitting-roomsitting room makeover

There was even a brief stint as a breakfast nook.

thrifty sitting room

I love an eclectic vibe of the collected decor…can you tell?

This DIY half globe light fixture cover is one of my favorite projects: 

globe light cover

DIY Globe Light Fixture Tutorial

sitting-room-ceiling

And these DIY no-sew script curtains. They didn’t go back up this time but I’ll be finding somewhere else in our home to use them. Do you have decorative accessories that you hang onto because you’re just so in love?

DIY script drop cloth drapes

Remember when I had these vintage teacher desks in the kitchen too? Again, always rearranging. It’s just such a joy! Motivation to clean, something new without spending. I’m addicted. 

Holiday decorating too! 

Christmas sitting room DIYShowOff Sitting room at Christmas rustic Christmas sitting room Christmas sitting room

Remember these DIY painted chairs

sitting-room painted upholstered chairs

Okay, already! I took these beautiful Sauder chairs from our reading nookreading nook @diyshowoff @SauderUSA #puttogether

Let’s see the latest look, shall we? Finally, right? I am in love with the happy and bright atmosphere with the dark moody wall color! The collected decor from shopping around the house gives it an eclectic boho feel!

And all that’s new in this room is the wall paint (which was actually leftover, so again, zero dollars spent! Gotta love that!). Wall color: Carbon Copy (Behr)

Boho Sunroom Makeover Boho Sunroom Makeover There’s that fun eclectic globe light fixture again. Fits right in!Boho Sunroom Makeover Boho Sunroom Makeover

This is my Springtime in Paris floral arrangement from a few years back. So pretty!Boho Sunroom Makeover The dream catcher was a fall DIY project but I love it in this room. What do you think?

DIY hula hoop dream catcher/wreath

Boho Sunroom Makeover

Boho Sunroom Makeover Boho Sunroom MakeoverBoho Sunroom Makeover

Check back next week when this room has a whole new look and purpose! Just kidding!!! I think we’ll keep it for a while. Although, my orange velvet wing backs would look fab in here too. lol 

One more time. Before:

sitting-room

After: 

Boho Sunroom Makeover

Have a great week, DIY friends!