We really enjoyed renovating this 1950's ranch house in the Phoenix Central Corridor. We made lots of changes inside and out including adding square footage, increasing the size of the backyard, and giving the interior a modern update. Here are the Before and After photos with descriptions of what we did to find the potential of this wonderful home.
Curb Appeal
The house had actually recently been painted this blue color, but we decided that was not a color we wanted to stick with, so the house and block wall were painted Simply White. The black trim under the eaves and on the window shutters is Tricorn Black. Both colors we've used before and will use again because we like them so much. The front door was painted Rain to add a pop of color blue color.
The next thing we did was add some grass to the front yard. It's a really big yard and we didn't want to do the whole thing (we do live in a desert), but even this amount really changed the look of the front yard.
There was a huge side yard in the front (on the left) that was not being used at all, so we moved that into the back yard by knocking down and rebuilding the block wall on that side. More photos of that when we cover the back yard.
Finally, for that extra curb appeal we added a pergola and paver patio by the front door along with a new mailbox, shutters, house numbers, lighting, and some plants. And yes, new windows all around.
Living Room
So, what didn't we do here? Obviously, that carpet was the first thing out the door! It was so awful. We opened up the living space to the dining room and kitchen, but left a partial wall so we could add a fireplace with an amazing tile surround. Every house we renovate, we try to imagine how potential buyers would describe it. So many houses are similar, so we like to give them something that stands out or sets it apart from the other homes they're viewing. For this house, we hoped buyers would say, "You know, the one with the beautiful fireplace." We also eliminated the window into the garage (it used to be a carport long ago) and turned it into a proper wall. As always, new lighting, floors, windows, doors, baseboards, etc.
Kitchen
The original 1950's kitchen cabinets were still in use, but they just weren't cute enough or in good enough condition to keep. Besides, we had structural changes happening in the rest of the house that were going to affect the kitchen, so the old cabinets had to go. In their place we installed white uppers and gray base cabinets. Where the old door from the living room into the kitchen was, we added more cabinets (the fireplace is now on the other side of that). We also moved the refrigerator down to the end so we could create the island. Appliances and lighting were upgraded. But you may be asking, "Where did all of those great windows go?" We did miss having the window over the sink once it was gone, but felt like the tradeoff was worth it. We enclosed part of the patio to create an office, which spanned the whole length of that wall. So many people work from home these days a home office is a must-have on many buyers' lists. Plus, we were adding square footage. The windows at the end of the kitchen were actually looking into the garage, so no awesome view lost there! We did add a skylight that lets in lots of natural light, along with all of the new canned lighting we had installed. We made a short hallway to attach the separate laundry room and connect it to the rest of the house, also adding a door directly from the garage into the house. Previously, the only way to get into the house from the garage was by going around and through the back patio, so we think we changed that for the better too.
Dining Room / Home Office
Taking out the wall into the living room and also the one into the kitchen, really opened everything up. It made such a huge change to the entire feel of the house. As much as we hated to lose that carpet again (yikes!), we think it all turned out pretty good. Double French doors from the dining room into the office mirrored the French doors that lead out onto the patio. Now our 3 bedroom house was a 3 bedroom WITH an office and we still had a covered patio.
Master Bedroom / Bathroom
It's amazing how much just doing cosmetic changes to a room can change it. New doors, windows, trim, baseboards, flooring, paint, and lighting pretty much go into every room of every house we renovate. Even light switches and electrical outlets are usually switched out as they are most often old and dirty (and oddly, usually painted too.) So even if there aren't any dramatic structural changes, everything looks clean (so important!) and new. Bathrooms, generally get gutted, and everything in there is brand new. In this bathroom we put in a gorgeous marble tile on the floor and added a two-sink vanity, changing out the hardware to match the faucets. Adding floor to ceiling tile behind the mirrors was a lot of work but so worth it! This sink area is one of our favorites that we've done.
Main Bathroom
We had to move some stuff around in this bathroom to make it more functional. First of all there was this really great (original) cast iron tube in the corner, but it took up nearly the entire room. The sink was really tiny, and that was pretty much the whole bathroom. In order to squeak out a little more room in this smaller bathroom, we moved the door to the center of the wall, flipped it, and added floor to ceiling storage shelves behind it (you can kind of see that area reflected in the mirror). The sink area now has some counter space, and there's even more storage underneath. The toilet got moved (and replaced), and the shower and tub are now standard size.
Laundry Room
This was one of our favorite changes to the house. When we think about buying a house, the first question we ask ourselves is "Where's the equity?" When we saw this unattached laundry room, we knew this was it. It was a pretty big space and we knew if we could connect it to the main living area, we'd not only be adding square footage to the house, but we'd be giving the owners an air conditioned laundry, garage access directly into the house, and so much more. (Enclosing part of the back patio gave us even more square footage.) This room already had everything we needed like electricity and water, but we didn't actually want to be able to see those pipes and conduits, so we had it all put behind the wall where they belong. Then we added the short hallway and enclosed the old door that lead out onto the patio. We added a door leading in from the garage, a window, and a TON of storage. We switched out the old wash tub sink for a new vessel sink, cabinet, and farmhouse faucet, and then built the mud room coat rack and shelf. It ended up being a bright, pretty laundry instead of the old, sad laundry that it used to be.
The Backyard
This yard didn't need much work, but we did make one really significant change. The house sat on a pretty big lot, but not much of that was in the back yard. So we moved the side wall out and forward and brought all of that space into the private backyard. It also put the side bedroom windows in the backyard, which we liked better. There were already some great plants there, so we just kept it all as it was, only adding a paver separator between the grass and rock. Then it was all about the paint. A fresh coat of paint makes everything look better, and we even had the block wall painted to match the house. We really liked the mid-century look of the blocks on the patio, so we kept those. The patio cover was painted black, and we added a couple of ceiling fans. The old alley gate we replaced and made taller for more privacy.
So that's it. That's pretty much everything we did for this home makeover. Leave a comment and tell us what you think. Now it's on to the next renovation!
