Several months ago, we shared a before and after story on our blog, featuring one couple’s story of transforming their condo into a home that truly reflected their personalities and values in tangible ways. We explained that while we truly love the hunt for the perfect home, one of the things we love most about our jobs is getting to hear about and see the houses after they have been updated or accessorized to show off the potential and vision that our clients saw in them during the buying process.
We are pleased to treat you to a glimpse into another beautiful home transformed by some of our clients. Drew and Tess bought a home two years ago and updated it in ways that both fit their needs and prepared it for the market when the time came. About two months ago, they decided it was time to sell and had several offers for their charming place. We were so impressed and wanted to share their success with you! So enjoy hearing from Drew and Tess and seeing pictures of how their imagination and hard work paid off to give them an open and dreamy kitchen. Then marvel over how some paint and fun decor brought their sunroom to life!

-What features initially drew you to this house?
We were looking for a home in the city limits with character, a yard, a cute neighborhood, and something that would be in our price range. This home caught my attention because of the sunroom, that would make a perfect art studio for myself, and the huge shed in the back for Drew’s woodworking and other hobbies. We also loved that there were wood floors throughout the house, an amazing deck out back, two bathrooms, and just generally “good bones.” The kitchen … was not great.

-What changes did you make before you moved in? What was that process like?
We painted the entire house before moving in, but other than that, the rest was done while being in the house.

-What ideas were important to you as you made decisions about how you wanted your home to be arranged and to look and feel?
When we moved into the house, we knew we were going to have to do a pretty intense kitchen renovation if we ever wanted to sell this house on a strong foot. We saved for about a year and then started the conversation with a contractor. My uncle is an architect and helped provide some options for us. The contractor helped us price out the different options and helped us land on something that would meet our needs as well as fit our budget. All-in the kitchen renovation took about 2 1/2 months. Because of the layout of our home, we basically lost the use of 1/2 of our downstairs, which was a little difficult. We moved our dining table into the living room, made microwaved dinner, and just made the best of it. We thoughtfully chose to do this activity in the spring, to allow us the ability to grill meals and use our “outdoor living space” since the inside was a mess.

As we made selections for the kitchen, we wanted to choose things we loved, even though we knew we wouldn’t be in the house long term. We fell in love with the aesthetic of Devol Kitchens, based in the UK, and just started pulling inspiration photos. I think our kitchen works so well because all of our choices are unique and interesting, differentiating the finished product from the “grey” flips all around town.However, the colors are still very neutral and palatable, helped the house to sell.

Honestly, the new house we bought also needs a kitchen renovation, and we will likely make some of the same choices this time, especially the herringbone natural slate tile — that was one of my favorites.

As far as the rest of the home, we really love art, and all the art in our home is original work by family, friends, local Richmond artists, or myself. We didn’t opt for gallery walls in this space, and instead, just let each piece “own” a wall.

We also have a TON of books. They are hiding in every nook and cranny of our home, and we love it.

I don’t know if I have a true name for our style, but I think our biggest “house rules” are comfort and hospitality. We want our home to feel safe and inviting, not cold and uptight.

-What are a few of your favorite things about your home? Favorite spots, finishes, details?
I love everything about our kitchen. We made good choices and I’m proud. The transformation of my studio was also so fun. It was so dark and dreary when we bought the house, but after whitewashing and a big carpet to cover up the dark tile, the space became so warm and cozy and is a wonderful nook to hide in and work on art.

Lastly, we worked really hard in our yard to landscape it and make it lovely. We planted a wisteria two years ago and this year it is finally blooming. I think it’ll make a lovely “welcome” for the new owners! We also have planted about 100 tulips and daffodils, and so many other perennials, so the buyers of our home are really starting with a lot of good plants around.

We are excited to say that Drew and Tess enjoyed doing this, saw the incredible outcome, and have just moved to a new house to start this adventure over again. So we look forward to sharing more of their success with you in the future! In the meantime, if you missed seeing Philip and Lisa’s condo, look back at our blog here. Or if you are interested in looking for your own project or one that someone has already transformed, give us a call. We would love to look with you!