Before & Afters From Our $5,000 Room Refresh with Designer Joel Bray!
IT’S NOT EVERY DAY THAT JOEL has to refresh an entire condo on a shoestring budget. Over the years I’ve learned not to question Joel when he brings home a $4,000 rug, but I also know not to bat and eye when he picks up furniture on the side of the road.
For this $5,000 condo overhaul, Joel maximized the minimal budget by reusing some of the winners’ existing furniture, sourcing items from big box stores and filling in the blanks with vintage finds. (He totally wanted to keep the vintage trunk we used in this makeover for our house, but alas, it went to a good home!)
BEFORE
AFTER
Beige walls and limited pantry storage were the first things you saw upon entering the condo.
BEFORE
The old dining area was located off the living room. There was room for six dining chairs but most of the time the homeowners only used two. “Our space feels cramped with oversized furniture,” said the contest winners in their contest submission. “We have a large counter-height dining table that seats 6-8, but we didn't account for how small it makes our space feel.”
BEFORE
This landing zone off the entry was home to plenty of storage, but Joel decided that adding a dining nook to this area would be a better use of space. He relocated the wooden hutch (far left) to another corner of the condo and repurposed the smaller wooden hutch as a TV stand.
BEFORE
The homeowners’ large hutch offered great open and closed storage so Joel decided to keep it and move it to where the old dining table was.
BEFORE
A pair of chunky wooden cabinets made this pass-through zone between the dining and living areas feel dated. Although these cabinets had lots of storage space, having a desk area to work from home was more important to the homeowners.
BEFORE
It was hard to miss the large red sofa as soon as you walked in to this condo. “Our living room lacks cohesion and it's not pleasing to the eye",” said one of the contest winners. “I believe we took the ‘What's the most affordable?’ approach when it came to buying furniture.”
BEFORE
The old living room had green walls, an oversized red sofa and a large dining table. “The colour of our walls are dark which makes the condo feel sad and unwelcoming,” said the contest winners.
Now inky blue walls, contemporary artwork and a lantern light make for a great first impression.
AFTER
In the new dining nook there’s room for a smaller round table that can be extended and four dining chairs — plenty of seating for everyday dining. Joel had the cushions on the vintage chairs reupholstered in a navy blue to nod to the new wall colour. The homeowners ended up loving the blue walls so much that they painted their bathroom with the same colour!
AFTER
Joel used Ikea’s Billy bookcases with glass uppers to create a wall of storage in the new dining nook. He painted the inside of the glass uppers so that the contest winners can conceal what’s stored in their pantry but still have the airy look of glass.
AFTER
Simple re-styling at its best! Cookbooks and tchotchkes are now artfully arranged on the hutch and during dinner parties this is a great bar area.
AFTER
Joel replaced the chunky wooden cabinets with a sleek white desk. He kept the original artwork — a pair of sentimental paintings of Prince Edward Island where one of the contest winners is from — and added two new inexpensive pieces to create a mini gallery wall.
AFTER
The finished living room has a cozy rug, vintage trunk and a comfortable sleeper sofa that’s perfect for overnight guests. “My mother comes to stay with us from time to time, so it’ll be great to have a proper bed for her instead of a blow-up mattress,” said one of the contest winners.
AFTER
A large mirror acts like an additional window by reflecting light and a sleek recliner offers ultra-comfy additional seating. The new warm white wall colour is bright and airy.
After photos taken by Michael Currie at n49photography.