the midcentury ranch for a new generation
19 min readLooking for clever bedroom storage solutions designed to fit into to your (modest) mid-century bedroom? These bedroom storage secrets will help you create a mid mod inspired space that meets your modern storage needs.
Bedroom storage in mid-century homes leaves a lot to be desired!
So how can you and your mid century bedroom have at all? Is it even possible to make a space with ample bedroom storage, peaceful sleeping area, de facto, laundry folding station, and maybe a little work from home spot too?
Continue reading “Bedroom Storage Secrets”16 min readIf you are stuck in neutral on your remodel, the best way kickstart the work is to find a perfect first project. Piece of cake, right? Right!
My DM’s are full of tales of remodeling overwhelm and woe from mid-century homeowners who just don’t know where to begin. Overwhelm is not just for folks mid-remodel! We get to experience the doubts, the decision paralysis, the budget blues all along the remodeling journey. Including before construction actually starts. The best way I know to kickstart the work is to find a perfect first project.
I hear you out there yelling, “Della! I don’t know which project is the perfect first project!!! If I knew, I’d start already.”
I have good news for you. I know exactly which project is your perfect first project. In fact, it’s the perfect first project for almost any remodeler.
Continue reading “The perfect first project is a small bath remodel”17 min readA master plan will help you pivot when surprises and setbacks threaten to throw your remodel off track.
Every remodeling project gets stuck at some point. Life is chock-full of surprises, setback and unexpected twists – work or family obligations change, supply chain snags mean choosing different materials, shifts in the economy make scope or schedule changes a must.
But setbacks will seem less bad (because, #realtalk, they always feel sort of bad) when you are prepared to pivot.
Continue reading “Pivot With a Master Plan”19 min readAn owners’ suite has become a must have in modern homes, but less than a generation ago almost half of homes were still without indoor plumbing. So how did our bathroom expectations change so drastically in such a short time? And more importantly, how the heck do you fit an owners’ suite into a modest mid-century ranch?
Does the primary bed/bed configuration – the owners’ suite – in your mid-century home leave a lot to be desired? Maybe you a have a glorified powder bath tucked in next to your bedroom through a pocket door. Perhaps your ranch has one bath for you, the family, and any dinner guests who use the main floor!
If you wish for a little more from your bed and bath configuration … You’re not alone!!
Continue reading “The Owners’ Suite: A Brief History and Foolproof Advice”22 min readSketching is the most important visual thinking tool you can use to plan your remodel. Sketches help you generate ideas quickly, explore alternatives without risk and avoid getting bogged down in the details too soon. And YOU CAN sketch…even if you have kindergarten-level drawing skills.
Sketching is the most important visual thinking tool you can use to plan your remodel. Sketches help you generate ideas quickly, explore alternatives without risk and avoid getting bogged down in the details too soon. And YOU CAN Sketch…even if you have kindergarten-level drawing skills.
Now when you think about a drawing that’s related to your remodel plan you are probably thinking of a blueprint. If you are, there are two things you need to know. One, blueprints haven’t been blue since, oh, before I went to design school. And two, they are the least interesting drawings in your remodel.
They also take months, years or even decades to complete depending on the complexity of the project. A sketch can be done in moments. It’s simple and yet surprisingly effective and evocative.
And here’s why. It’s not just less, it’s centralized. It shows the details that matter and only the details that matter. A sketch is precise to the level that you create it with no expectation of accuracy. It allows us to talk about the shapes and forms of things, the overall relation of length and width.
Continue reading “The Power of Sketches”16 min readEasy summer projects can help you kick-off this year’s (mid-century) home improvement season! Here are a few of my favorites.
What feels like the true beginning of summer to you? Memorial Day weekend? Seeing the first lightning bugs? The last day of school? For me, my birthday in early June is the real start of summer!
It kind of feels like we just dived into the middle of summer in the last week or two and I have a feeling you might be in exactly the right headspace to take on some easy summer projects to make your mid-century home a little more your own.
So, grab your lemonade and a lawn chair and listen in for a few fun (and, okay some less fun but more necessary) summer project you can tackle right now to kick off your mid-century home improvement season!
Continue reading “Easy Summer Projects to Tackle This Weekend”36 min readCan’t get enough mid-century house talk? Listen in on updates from recent Ready to Remodel students.
I LOVE updates from our homeowners, both design clients and Ready to Remodel students!
Photos in the Facebook group are great. Emails with project pictures? A delight!
I bet YOU like to peek inside other people’s remodeling process, too!
This is one of my favorite parts of setting up a strong Mid Mod ReMod Squad – you get to hear all about everyone else’s projects.
Their wins can feel like your wins.
Their challenges make yours feel a little easier.
And their advice can prove INVALUABLE as you work to avoid remodeling regret for your own home.
So, I’ve borrowed a little Mid Mod ReMod Squad energy to share with you today.
Continue reading “Ready to Remodel Student Stories”20 min readA micro-space is an area within a room that does one specific job. Today, use micro spaces (or nooks) to maximize how your home “lives” …without moving a single wall.
What is a micro-space?
A micro-space (also know as a “nook”) is an area within a room that does one specific job. A few examples: a reading chair in the corner of a larger living room, an eat in area in the kitchen, a closet repurposed as an office or crafting space.
It’s also your SECRET (Design) WEAPON to make your house do more with less … or even more with more.
Instead of thinking of the total number of rooms in your house … and then wishing for an addition, try thinking about your house like a series of overlapping circles in a Venn diagram. Two spaces can occupy the exact same square footage of your house, but they can do different duty at different times of the day or year.
Continue reading “Use a Micro-Space to Maximize Your Home”18 min readQuick! Name your favorite Mid-Century remodel era! Do you love 40’s fab or 50’s space-race or earthy late 60’s vibes?
What is your mid-century remodel era?
I know you are here because you love mid century design. I know this because I love mid century design! And we all love to talk about “mid century” style…and then wonder what does that actually mean in terms of hitting that just right tone in an MCM remodel.
Mid Century is a broad term that covers anything from the immediate postwar building boom, up into the late 60s (or even the early 70s!).
When I’m planning a remodel for a design client, I need to know which end of the mid century era really lights them up in order to create a remodel that is right for them.
Continue reading “Name Your Mid-Century Remodel Era (Part 1/4)”24 min readOne of the easiest ways to make your front door shine is to upgrade your house numbers.
One of the easiest ways to make your front door shine is to upgrade your house numbers. I’ve been a big fan of Modern House Numbers, for quite a while.
I’ve got their numbers on my house, and I recommend them to a lot of my clients.
I didn’t even know how much I love this company until I sat down to chat with owner Brandy McLain recently.
Before we get to the goods … though, don’t miss this:
