Before and After: This Is No Longer ‘The Ugliest House I’ve Ever Seen’
It would be fascinating to meet the person who decided to decorate this living room—in what its new owner described as “the ugliest house I’ve ever seen”—with bright green walls and all red furnishings, but we’ll have to be content with seeing how this Christmas-y space was transformed into a bright, modern, and colorful—but not quite as colorful—room.
Before we gawk at the finished results, let’s hear how the owner described this home pre-renovation:
When we toured this house I declared it “the ugliest house I’ve ever seen” but then 24 hours later, we made an offer on it. We realized that besides some really ugly paint colors, the layout was perfect for our family of four. The great part is, no one else wanted it so we got a great price on it!
In the immortal words of Liz Lemon, “Why can’t people look past paint color?”
This is so fun! The walls and carpet make for a bright room that must be a joy to live in on dreary days, while the cushions and that cute chair add plenty of color and personality. This remodel was done by Sarah Knight of ROC Girl Gang, who cannot be accused of jumping on the current “Paint It White” bandwagon, as she painted everything in her home white a full five years ago:
I knew that I couldn’t live with those colors and we only had a week. I decided to go ultra-bright white on EVERYTHING. So many people questioned my decision but five years later, I’ve never gotten sick of it! I love decorating with color and patterns and white allows you to do this.
We had a week before we moved in so we painted NON STOP for a week straight! We painted every single room in the house and all of the ceilings as well. I would be happy to never see a can of ultra bright white ever again.
Just as the white walls of a gallery allow all focus to be on the art, these white walls let the pillows, art, and other playful pieces to really pop.
Try not to get too distracted by that cheese plate—we’re here to discuss the decor. I really love the pink, navy, black, and white color scheme Sarah has created, and especially the way that palette is grounded by all of the beautiful wood elements, such as the floor and coffee table. The aesthetic of the couch is great and classic, but I appreciate that it appears to be chosen and styled based purely on comfort. There are plenty of sofas out there that are lovely but look like they would cause serious back problems if you actually attempted to sit on them. The white shades on the windows make for uninterrupted stretches of brightness, making the room feel even more spacious than it already is.
Now that Sarah has both completed this massive amount of painting and lived with it for several years, she has this advice to share:
You need to have vision and stick to it. I think people thought we were CRAZY! Make sure you get the right paint and prime everything first, especially with those bright colors.
I love how bright and clean everything looks. How a can of paint can truly can TRANSFORM a room (or house in this instance).
Thank you, Sarah Knight!