What I’ve Learned About Remodeling

You just bought your first house, or perhaps you have owned your home for several years and can finally remodel it. As someone who has been through three houses and quite a few projects this is what I’ve learned about remodeling.

This was the living area in our first home. It was so small, and it needed so much work.

Remodeling, it all seems so simple at first….

As I mentioned before I have been through a remodel a few times now and let me tell you it is not for the faint of heart. We bought our first house back in 2015. It was a tiny 625 sqft house. It needed work right away and I knew it going into it. The location was great so we thought why not? After all, we were 20 and only had one baby. Plus tiny houses were super trendy.

small starter single family home yellow with blue door

Looking back, I wish I had better pictures of our first house, but I never thought I would one day write a blog about it.

What I learned about Remodeling

Unless you have unlimited resources remodeling takes time! I cannot stress that enough. For our first few remodel projects we did everything ourselves because we did not have a big budget. I look back and I know part of the problem became a lack of planning and having unrealistic expectations of our time. This meant I lived in a half-finished house for a lot longer than intended. We bit off more than we could chew so to speak.

progress shot of home remodel, exposed glue from wood paneling on walls and mostly gutted kitchen

We were pretty quick to gut our first house and did too much too fast.

small bedroom completely gutted down to the block walls and studs remodeling mistakes

After getting the house down to the studs putting it back together became a challenge.

progress shot of kitchen remodel plywood for counters remodeling lessons

We soon ran out of many and our house looked like this for a long time.

Time-lapse

Looking back at all these pictures I cannot stress enough there are years in between. By the time we got the house mostly remodeled, we had three kids and were running out of room.

picture of concrete floor with no tile before adding new laminate floor what I've learned about remodeling

mostly remodeled kitchen with white counters and stainless steel appliances

We eventually installed new flooring and added a pantry and counters to the kitchen just in time to rent it out.

What We Are Doing Differently This Time Around

Fast forward almost 10 years, two houses, a new state, and three more children. I am once again in the midst of a remodel. This time is the bedrooms in our current home. We are adding a master suite to our house. Here is what I think is making this project a little easier.

We knew what to expect.
We have a budget that allows us to hire help.
I also think that we are only doing things ourselves that make sense.
We have a timeline on when things need to get done so decisions faster.

Applying What I’ve Learned

Set a Timeline

I will admit we are still not the most sober-minded people about timing for projects. Since we have decided to embark on this master suite adventure just 5 weeks before my due date. Did I mention I am planning a home birth? However, setting a timeline of when you want the project done will help you decide the scale of it.

pregnant women with quizzical expression

Yes, this is me questioning my sanity a bit.

Set a Budget

Another important aspect is the budget. Here are some questions to consider. Can I realistically afford to finish the project now? Can I hire out some or most of it to keep to a deadline? Did I account for the unexpected expenses that come with a remodel? Also, is my home worth the amount of money I am putting into it? Here is a good way to figure out how much money is reasonable to spend per room.

Set Realistic Expectations

Once again I will admit I struggle with this one. I think of a finished room as something on my Pinterest board. However, your room will most likely not look like that for a while. It will be finished but that curated look you see online takes a lot of time, thought, and yes sometimes more money. I have to remind myself that our goal for now is to have a functional clean slate I can one day piece into the master bedroom I always wanted.

some walls up in a remodeling progress picture

Number One Thing I’ve Learned About Remodeling?

Everything looks like it will never be done until it is.

remodeling progress picture of a master bathroom

This is the site of our new master bathroom. Believe it or not, so much progress has been made. The electrical is in and even some plumbing. Every day we get closer to having walls up.

One day soon this will be the home of our vanity. For now, it’s just rough plumbing and studs.

The main takeaway? Avoid getting discouraged when you are in the midst of it. Yes, it is chaotic and messy and sometimes uncomfortable but I try to remain thankful for the luxury remodeling my home truly is.