Beach House Downstairs Before and After Photos

I’m not sure I’ve ever been this excited to share before-and-after photos. Last month marked the two-year anniversary of buying the beach house, and while we never call a home completely “finished,” this place has come so far that it felt like the right moment to look back at what we’ve done and document what’s still ahead.

We dug up dozens of before photos, including many we’ve never shared, and matched them as closely as possible with current shots. There are so many angles and details to cover that today we’ll focus on the entire downstairs—kitchen, dining, living room, entry, mudroom, pantry, and the downstairs bathroom. We’ll follow up soon with the upstairs once we can photograph and organize that round of before-and-afters.

Key paint colors and sources for each room are available on our Shop Our Beach House page if you want to check them out later. Before we dive into the photos, you may also want to watch the original before video tour that documents our first walkthrough. Note: if you read this in a feed reader and can’t see the video, you may need to open the full post to view it.

The Exterior

Before we walk inside, let’s look at the outside. This sidewalk shot shows the house when we first bought it—what some called “the greenish-gray house” back then. It had cream trim, mismatched windows (some boarded up), and cinderblock steps.

And here it is from a similar angle after renovations—a photo we took this summer:

Another before shot shows the rotted siding and the cinderblock steps. Despite the rough exterior, the house had great bones that we loved.

With a new roof, new siding and windows, rebuilt steps, and a repointed brick foundation, the house looks a lot happier now. After much debate, a coffee cup color match led us to choose pink for the exterior—Sherwin-Williams Mellow Coral—with SW Snowbound trim.

Here’s another front angle. Fun fact: the vine that grew up the porch had actually made its way inside the house and was growing through the structure in places.

We repainted the porch ceiling and floor in colors that match the original palette: the ceiling in a traditional haint blue tone and the floor in a complementary muted hue. The ceiling already had hooks for a porch swing, so we hung one and called the porch done for now.

We still have landscaping and hardscaping to do on the side and back, but the transformation of the previously rotten side of the house is dramatic. That enclosed porch had been finished poorly with interior floorboards instead of proper siding, leaving holes you could stick your fist through. It had to come off and be rebuilt.

The side of the house was torn down and rebuilt due to a sinking foundation and rotted support beams. That rebuilt section now houses the mudroom, pantry, bathrooms, and bunk room. The exposed black wall on the second floor in earlier photos is now where built-in bunk beds are located.

Today that side looks much better (after removing a giant shrub that was actually a tree growing faster than we wanted). We still need to add a stone path to the outdoor shower and finish the landscaping, but it’s a huge improvement.

The Entryway

Despite crumbling plaster, unfinished drywall, and water damage, the foyer charmed us from day one. The mantle in the original photo wasn’t original to the house; it was one of many items collected by the previous owner.

This is the foyer today. We installed fresh drywall and paint, refinished the original heart-pine floors and sealed them with a clear water-based finish that won’t yellow like oil-based poly. We salvaged enough of the original trim to reuse throughout the first floor and used a warm non-white trim color throughout the downstairs inspired by the foyer’s original tone.

Items visible: mirror | similar light | lamp | dresser

We tried to keep the stair railing as wood and stain it to match the floors, but the wood species differed and would have clashed. Instead we painted the railing a slightly deeper gray than the trim so the warm floors remain the visual star.

The Kitchen, Dining Room, & Pantry

The largest room off the foyer became our combined kitchen and dining area. It was a mess at purchase, but a beautiful original light fixture we found was rewired and now hangs in the pantry.

Rather than jump straight to the final reveal, here’s a progression: a demo photo showing the cleared but unfinished room, a rebuild shot showing new framing where the side of the house had been torn down, and then drywall going in as the systems—plumbing, electrical, HVAC—were updated. These photos show the journey from chaos to a functioning home.

After a lot of debate about the floor plan, we ultimately kept the dining and kitchen functions relatively close to their original locations. The result feels open but cozy, and the layout downstairs is so successful we often wish our main house had the same plan and back staircase.

Items visible: dining chair | chandeliers | sconces | pendants | barstools

Here’s the before shot again for comparison:

One interesting discovery: pink beadboard ran along a back wall and appeared in early photos, which made us wonder if the house had been hinting at its future color all along. We preserved the original back door and back staircase—features some similar houses have lost—and shifted a doorway to make room for the vintage pink stove that now sits in the kitchen.

The doorway at the back left of the kitchen now leads to the pantry; that space used to be a full bathroom with pink trim. Moving the bathroom freed up room for our walk-in pantry, a feature that involved some trial and error but ended up being one of the most functional spaces in the house.

Sherry often calls the pantry her favorite room—especially in cooler months when she stands on the floor vent to warm her feet while snacking. My favorite is the quirky back stairs: a compact, original detail we weren’t sure we’d use much, but now love for the extra privacy and access they provide to an upstairs bedroom.

We reorganized the stair doors so the proper code-required landing is at the top; now there’s a landing with a built-in dresser and pocket doors that offer privacy without blocking the view from the kitchen.

Here’s a before view from the stairs showing the blue door. We kept and encapsulated that original painted door, careful to encapsulate any old lead paint, and rehung it in the mudroom doorway. It now remains open most of the time and adds a lovely patina and history to the space.

Wondering where the kitchen used to be? During various stages of demolition it wasn’t clear exactly where appliances had been, and because the house lacked a working water meter when we bought it, it’s likely the kitchen hadn’t functioned for decades. We donated the old cabinets and appliances to the local Habitat ReStore.

Another before image shows the previous dining area with a giant hole in the floor and greenery creeping in. Today the dining spot is warm and functional. We’ll probably refinish the secondhand table leaf someday and may consider adding a rug under the table, but for now the easy-to-clean floors suit our beach house lifestyle.

Items visible: dining chairs | benches | chandeliers | curtains

The Living Room

The living room was damp, cluttered, and trimmed in maroon when we bought the house. Paintable wallpaper and two old stoves were among the previous owner’s belongings. In the renovation we removed the non-original mantel, exposed the original brick chimney, and brightened the whole room.

Items visible: chandelier | rug | bookshelf | media cabinet | curtains

We stripped and clear-sealed many of the original doors, hung them throughout the house, and used warm finishes to complement the exposed brick and pine floors. Adding an overhead fixture and a decorative medallion balanced the ceiling and gave the room a finished feel.

Items visible: rug | media cabinet | curtains | chair | table

One more angle shows how the dining table doubles as overflow seating for the living room, which has been handy for hosting large groups. The open layout keeps the downstairs social and flexible.

Items visible: rug | dining chairs | benches | chandeliers

The Mudroom & Bathroom

The mudroom and the downstairs bathroom were added in the section of the house we rebuilt. Originally that side had gaps in the siding and daylight shining through. We split the rebuilt area into two functional rooms: a mudroom/laundry area and a full bathroom.

The mudroom, entered from the side door, houses a laundry area, a bench with baskets for shoes, oversized hooks, and tall storage that hides the tankless water heater. Practical finishes like tile floors and ample hooks make the space work hard for daily life.

Where the washer and dryer stand now, there used to be an open, sunlit space. We added a partition wall to create the bathroom, and we reused and refinished original doors in the process. We even framed and hung some “before” photos so visitors can see how far the house has come.

Although the downstairs bathroom didn’t exist as a separate room before, its layout echoes the original downstairs bath that we converted into the pantry. We selected tiles, fixtures, and a mirror with wood accents to pick up on the house’s original wood doors.

To wrap up the downstairs tour: we filmed a video tour the weekend before the house was packed with duplex materials, but the footage had a focusing problem and didn’t turn out. We’ll re-film a better video soon and follow up with the upstairs before-and-afters as well, so stay tuned.

PS: If you’re missing a source, you can likely find it (or something similar) on our Shop Our Beach House page. You can also browse all of our beach house posts and projects to see more details and updates.

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