Before And After

Posted On November 27, 2012

Being a huge HGTV and DIY fan, I’ve always wanted to get those before and after pictures of my little design projects around the house and be proud of my accomplishments.

Finally, it’s time!

But first, I want to tell you the story of my house-hunting process, which ended when I found this home sweet home:

I had all these dreams about growing fruits and vegetables in my garden, so I was only looking for houses with a yard. But, considering all the facts and costs, I had a drastic change of mind and bought a condominium instead. The bad thing about condos is that you don’t have a yard and you can’t plant things in the ground. You can also not ride horses in your back-yard which is such a deal-breaker!!! But the good thing is; you don’t have a stand-alone house so your gas and electric bills are cheaper thanks to your neighbors and if you travel a lot like me, you don’t have to worry about mowing the lawn or shoveling snow!

As an ordinary Turk, I love to have big windows and lots and lots of light inside. My search was quite frustrating at first since it was so hard to find such houses. I really don’t know how people live in dark places. I would probably become suicidal in Ohio’s gloomy weather. But, people must love dark around here.

I searched for months to find something I actually liked. I was just as picky with houses as I am with….. well…. everything else!! Eventually, I had a love-at-first-sight with a little 2-bedroom condo I found. I decided to buy it the same day. When you have love-at-first-sight with a place, you can’t go wrong. When you don’t, decision-making becomes too complicated. And if it does become complicated, it’s a sign you’ll probably regret later. So, don’t even start thinking about it!

Hmm… Got a little lost in there. But, I’m still talking about homes, not men! Though, that’s what I think about both…

Now, I present to you the “before and after” pictures of my place. Most of the following BEFORE pics are from the previous owner of the house. It still looked cute but AFTERs are after my touches! Yeah, I am a little boring it seems.

Living Room

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When it comes to furniture, most people like ‘traditional’ around here and it’s hard to find multi-functional, modern furniture stores that are affordable in my area. I found these in a Turkish furniture store in New Jersey. You can check it out at istikbalfurniture.com. All my couches become beds or have storage underneath or they have some other useful function. The top parts also move up at different angles if you are tall and need to rest your head on it. I love them. The table set is from Ikea. People generally think Ikea furniture is not sturdy, but they really don’t break if you’re a tiny eco-size like me! 🙂

Kitchen

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Bedroom 1

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I turned this room into an office and I still need a lot of changes in it. It’s the one I neglect the most.

Bedroom 2

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And now, it’s time to show you my favorite place. My basement!

But before the pics, I must tell you something. When I first came to the US about 11 years ago, some of the first things I bought was plates, forks, cups and… a TV. In Turkey, a TV was considered a necessity. It still is… Nobody ever turns it off. During my visits to Turkey, which I usually do after being away from my family for at least a year and missing them greatly, even I get no attention during prime time when a favorite TV series of my family is on. Gotta admit Turkish TV shows are deadly addictive but in my new home, I decided not to have a TV. I love it. It saves me so much time and space…

But, as much as I don’t like watching TV, I love watching movies. And a few Turkish shows I have to confess… So I turned my basement into a little home-theater with the help of my good friends and with minimal budget. Got a HD 1080p projector, a Wi-Fi Built In Blu-ray player, a receiver, surround sound and there you go… Here are the pics:

Basement

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I was told that I should give credit to my LA-Z-Boy’s… Yes, I do love my boys! But, I think this is where they belong. In front of the screen, to recline and relax… They look too big and ugly in a living room.