Last month we shared how refinishing the floors at the duplex felt like a major turning point in a renovation that’s been going on for over a year. After months of work—much of it structural and invisible like plumbing and electrical upgrades—seeing the floors transformed made the house feel like it was finally becoming a home. Now we’re firmly in the “fun part”: bringing in rugs, lighting, furniture, and accessories so the space stops looking like a construction zone and starts feeling lived-in.
Here’s the wall of the main bedroom on the left side, which we essentially rebuilt from the studs up:
That rug was originally bought for the pink house’s living room but felt too dark next to our dark sectional. Paired with a fluffy white bed and the room’s lighter finishes, it brightens up beautifully. We also love how the pink closet doors and the capiz chandelier—relocated from our dining room—come together to give the space personality.
During framing we added two closets flanking the window because the room originally had no closet at all. Placing one on each side gives the space more storage and symmetry; a single closet would have eaten into the corner and upset the balance.
This is the same bedroom seen from the doorway. We’re excited to add thick wooden shelves in the chimney nook we exposed during the renovation—functional and decorative storage that will make the wall feel intentional.
Below is a photo of the room when we bought the house: a plain box with a drop ceiling hiding a lot of mold and rot. Stripping it back and rebuilding allowed us to address those issues and create something much healthier and more attractive.
On the right side of the duplex, the back bedroom now features the only original doors we could salvage—skinny pine doors with their original hardware. Those little latches and faux drawers with old cup pulls are full of charm and give the room real character.
Because those doors are shorter than standard, we added little cubbies above them. I love how the curved baskets soften all the rectangles in the room—especially paired with the curved chandelier.
We made significant kitchen progress over the holiday break, assembling cabinetry on both sides despite a few hiccups. Appliances are on order and countertops should be templated and installed before month’s end—so we can actually see the finish line. After counters and appliances, we’ll add shelves, hardware, and a bold patterned backsplash to complete the kitchens.
This is the mudroom and laundry room adjacent to the right-side kitchen. We still need to build a storage cabinet here, but we’re waiting on the stacked washer and dryer first. Painted pocket doors (Oyster Bay by Sherwin Williams) separate this space from the kitchen and will probably remain open most of the time—they’re handy to close when the laundry is noisy and they’re just plain cute.
This mudroom will get plenty of functional storage—hooks, baskets, and cubbies for shoes, towels, swimsuits, and beach gear. With outdoor showers just steps from the back door, this room will be a practical drop zone for sandy, wet days.
On the left side of the duplex, the kitchen cabinets are a moody blue-green-gray that can read more blue under some lighting. They’re still protected with a film we won’t remove until after appliances and counters are in place, but beneath the film the cabinets are quieter, more muted, and perfectly suited for a beach house—playful without being loud.
The mudroom off that kitchen uses a similar tile pattern to the other mudroom but in a different colorway. We like that each side of the duplex feels related but not identical—like cousins, not twins. We still need to install quarter round trim in this room after building a few planned built-ins.
These are just a few of the rooms that already feel so much better—even before our big furniture delivery. We’re renting a box truck and driving down our furniture in a few days, and I can’t wait to share photos once beds, sofas, tables, curtains, and art are in place. For now, we’re savoring the momentum and the visible progress of this duplex renovation.
P.S. To see our duplex progress from the beginning, we’ve documented the journey through multiple posts covering buying, floor planning, rebuilding, tiling, and refinishing the floors.
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