Don't Like It? Paint It!

You've heard it before, but I'll say it again: the fastest, easiest, and cheapest way to update a room and make a statement is to paint.

And yes, that does include wood. At least in our book.

It seems that some people are completely terrified of painting wood. And others opt to completely replace an element in a room rather than paint it. So, let's take a quick peek at some of the rooms in our house we updated by simply painting the wood, and how it made a world of a difference in the look and feel of our home.

Within 2 weeks after moving into our new home, our priorities changed: the Basement went from being on the bottom of our To-Do List straight to the top. As it became more humid outside, we realized that there was something really fishy down there - it smelled. Bad. So while basements are typically the last space in a house to get a remodel or update, ours was the first. After ripping out the smelly carpet, we tackled that gloom-and-doom outdated basement paneling with all we had.

And after a few weeks of - yes, we admit it, very painful - painting, and the helping hand of some family members, we turned this nasty outdated space into a fresh and clean spot to relax and gather with family and friends in.

The biggest "wow" factor was definitely painting the paneling.

And you know what? We've seen this white wainscotting/beadboard in many other places since - Pottery Barn, House Beautiful, etc. In every case, the paneling was white.

The Guest Bedroom received the same treatment:

We took this room from a Nebraska Cornhuskers Nightmare to a serene and restful retreat for our overnight guests. And again, we couldn't have achieved this same effect without painting the wood.

Do we have you convinced yet? No? Let's take a look at our Kitchen.

There's no doubt that our kitchen, the heart of our home, was the biggest eyesore and the most outdated of any room in the house. I mean, check out that tile! It still makes us cringe in horror.

Once the basement was smelling good and was liveable, we tackled the kitchen. Or began the process of tackling the kitchen. Because even though we've done a lot to it so far, we're still not done.

But the biggest change and bang-for-our-buck in the kitchen thus far has hands-down been painting the old, lackluster wood cabinets (from the 60's) white.

Our mantra through all this? If we don't like it, change it. And boy, has that change felt good!

So there's our argument for painting something if you're unhappy with it - especially wood. Usually by painting you can also help the environment by updating an object rather than replacing it, and keeping it out of the landfill. Yup, we pretty much feel that there's nothing you can't do with a paintbrush and can of paint.

How about you? Are you among the brave and fearless painters out there, or do doubts of the value and results of a painting project send you running? Do you agree with our 'paint-to-change-it' motto? Any other ideas of ways to update something without paint? Throw it out there! We'd love to hear your thoughts

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