For a long time we’ve happily fixed other people’s design problems while quietly cringing at our own. This corner of the house never made it into our before-and-after gallery — in fact, we usually avoid photographing it. But here it is in all its awkward glory: the other side of our master bedroom (which looks especially rough compared to the opposite wall).
When Sherry surprised me with a big, comfortable leather chair, we hoped it would complete that side of the bedroom. Instead, with the dog crate and a mismatched dresser serving as a side table, the area still felt off.
Here’s how we transformed that sad-before bedroom wall into a much more pleasing after.
First we decided to shop our own house for pieces we could reuse. We realized the space needed something taller and more vertical to balance the floor-to-ceiling built-ins by the bed. We dragged in a floor-length mirror from the third bedroom — a surprise wedding gift that had been living elsewhere — and it instantly added the height the wall needed. The mirror also reflected the room’s best features, including the built-in bed and the window above it.
We also moved in a small side table we’d picked up at Target, but it was too small compared to the chair and the mirror. The tiny top felt out of scale with the other, larger elements.
That was an easy fix. We’re comfortable making our own furniture tweaks, so we picked up a larger, 24-inch tabletop at the hardware store for about $19. We screwed the new top onto the Target base — the new top overhangs the original by roughly four inches, and the pedestal supports it without wobbling. The result is a table that feels properly scaled to the chair and mirror.
After securing the new top, we primed and painted it white to echo the pale colors found on the opposite wall and to break up the heavy dark wood and leather tones. We also relocated Burger’s crate to another room (he adjusted fine), and added an oversized vase we found at Marshall’s for $14 plus some free greenery from our backyard. The only purchases were the tabletop and the vase, bringing the transformation cost to $33.
Not bad, right? We even sold the old IKEA dresser on Craigslist for $30 since our new built-in closets made it redundant — so the actual project net cost was about $3. And if you miss the three sunset pictures that used to hang on that wall, don’t worry: they look great in the third bedroom, which needed some art after we moved the mirror.
What about you? Have you refreshed a space in your home on a budget or with DIY tweaks? We’d love to hear how you made small changes that had a big impact.