I Dream of Shoestring Remodeling.

 I woke up with the strangest urge to go to IKEA this weekend. I suddenly have a vision for This Olde Condo and I want to test it out in my head before I ever start spending money.

A few months ago, while house hunting with first time buyers, we saw a couple of really nicely redone older houses (unfortunately, in an area that wasn't really convenient to anything).  Both had the same kitchen cabinets and were listed by the same agent, so I'm guessing these were investor fix-and-flips.   Both houses were nicely done, but the kitchens were the best updates - they were both done with clean, simple light wood cabinets with frosted glass inserts, glossy solid surface countertops, stainless steel appliances, and industrial-hip lighting.  If you'd asked me if that was "my style" I'd have said no, but it says something that I remember those kitchens months later.  I'm pretty sure I saw the same cabinets in an IKEA flyer (though I didn't see them on the website when I checked).  I'm not hung up on those exact cabinets, of course, just the general vibe - clean, fresh, updated, simple.

And it might be my vision for my remodel of this place next year.  I suddenly have the urge to take this place not just out of the 80s, but into the 21st century. Not cold, hard, ultra-modern, but sleek and clean and fun.

Maybe it's because I've been in a lot of 80s era properties lately, because this area was developed in the 50s-late 80s for the most part, but I'm suddenly fired up on updating ideas.  Yesterday I was in the sweetest 2 bedroom townhouse - it's dirt cheap at $56,000, great schools, neighborhood amenities, it has everything going for it, but damn, it needs a lot of love.  It needs flooring, wallpaper removal, a new kitchen, new bathrooms, new window treatments, you name it.  But I was running the numbers in my head and seeing it with tile floors on the first floor, and a nice durable carpet up the stairs and in the two bedrooms, and a sleek modern kitchen and similarly updated bathrooms, and new lighting, and take down the wallpaper and paint it in warm, contemporary colors, and it'd be just adorable.

But decorating begins at home.  This place, while totally livable (that place was NOT) is also stuck in the 80s.  I'm thinking I want to go with my original concept of neutral tile floors with bright area rugs, update the kitchen and bathrooms (they are in fine shape, they just need new bathroom vanities and flooring to make them look part of this century) and of course new lighting.  The 80s call every few weeks asking for these light fixtures back.    I've lived here almost a year and grown fond of the quirky and dated everything, but next year it will be time to get serious about updating this time capsule.