Last month we wrote about how refinishing the floors at the duplex felt like a major turning point in a renovation that’s been underway for over a year. After so many hidden, expensive upgrades—plumbing, electrical, structural work—seeing the finished floors made the whole place feel like it finally belonged to us. Now we’re firmly in the fun phase: bringing in rugs, light fixtures, furniture, and accessories to shift the space from construction zone to home.
Let’s jump right in. Here’s the left-side main bedroom wall that we essentially rebuilt from scratch:
The rug here originally lived in the pink house’s living room but often felt a little heavy with a dark sectional. Placed under a fluffy white bed, it brightens up and complements the pink closet doors and the capiz chandelier we hung between them. That light used to hang over our dining table in the pink house, and moving it here feels like the perfect switch.
During framing we added two closets flanking the window because the room originally had no closet at all. Two closets keep the room symmetrical and provide much more usable storage than a single closet would, which would have intruded awkwardly into a corner.
Here’s the same bedroom as you see it from the doorway. We can’t wait to add thick wooden shelves in that little chimney nook we exposed during the renovation.
Below is the room as it looked when we bought the house: a plain box with a drop ceiling that masked mold and rot above. The transformation has been dramatic.
This next photo shows the back bedroom on the right side of the duplex as it looks now. Over here we reused the only original doors we could salvage: narrow pine doors with original hardware, tiny latches on each side, and faux drawers with old cup pulls. The quirks and character of these doors felt worth preserving.
Because these doors are shorter than standard, we added cubbies above them. Curved baskets soften the geometry of the room, and the curved chandelier echoes that softness.
We also made good progress in the kitchens during the holiday break, assembling cabinets on both sides despite a few hiccups. The appliances are en route, and counters will be templated and installed before the month’s end. Once countertops are in, we’ll add shelves, hardware, and a bold patterned backsplash, but the end is finally in sight.
The image above shows the kitchen on the right side and the adjacent mudroom/laundry room. We still need to build the storage cabinet in this space, but we’re waiting for the stacked washer and dryer to be installed first. Painted pocket doors in Oyster Bay by Sherwin-Williams lead to the kitchen and will probably remain open most of the time—useful for blocking noise during laundry but too charming to keep closed all the time.
We’ll add a lot of mudroom storage here—hooks, baskets, cubbies for shoes, suits, towels, and other beach gear. The outdoor showers are just steps from the back door, so this room will be a hardworking transition space.
Now for the left-side kitchen: we picked a moody blue-green-gray cabinet color. With the protective film still on, they read more blue in photos, but underneath they’re grayer and greener. The color feels playful and perfectly suited to a beach house.
Below is the mudroom off that kitchen. We used a similar tile pattern to the other mudroom but in a completely different colorway so both sides feel related without being identical—like cousins, not twins. We still need to install quarter-round trim after adding a few built-ins.
These are just a few spaces that already look so much better even before our big furniture delivery. We’re renting a box truck and hauling beds, tables, sofas, and more down in less than a week, and we can’t wait to share photos once the rooms are filled with furniture, curtains, art, and all the finishing touches. For now, we’re reveling in this beautiful progress.
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