How to Make Paneled Walls Look Even Worse

Our plan was to hold off on any kind of home renovations (aside from painting) until we’d been living here for a while. That was a cute idea.

Immediately after moving in we realized just how icky the wall-to-wall carpeting was. Apparently the previous owners did have it cleaned, but there were persistent stains everywhere, the dog had a couple accidents in the first week, and most importantly, whatever cleaning chemical they used was irritating my kids’ skin. So while we really didn’t want to do anything major like flooring yet… we did. We did leave the carpeting in the master bedroom, but tore out everything else from the living room, the hallway, and the kids’ room.

Now, if you know me, you know I love renovations. I am bursting with creative plans and dreams for this house. Demo, painting, and decorating are totally my thing. But, unlike buying chickens, there’s something to be said for renovating when you’re ready. I don’t know if I was quite mentally ready for something this big when we started out. The last major project I did was a bathroom makeover at our old house, way back in January. I’m a little out of practice!

Thankfully, starting the flooring project coincided nicely with a visit from my in-laws, who also live the DIY life. My father-in-law graciously completed the whole living room, and then after they left, my husband helped me get started on the hallway. I am notoriously bad at remembering to take “before” pictures of projects, so bear with me. Maybe the more I do, the more I’ll remember. Maybe. Plus, I think that one picture from the kids’ room is probably enough to go on.

Doing it at my own pace wasn’t so bad. It wasn’t until a week of moseying went by that things suddenly got INTENSE. My husband called me from work and told me we needed to get the whole project buttoned up as quickly as possible. We finally got an appointment scheduled for the appraisal on our house, and the appraiser would be coming in less than 48 hours. Imagine that, they don’t take kindly to all the flooring and trim being ripped out.

Unfortunately, my husband had to be away for his job for a few days, so I became the full-time floor installer. It was a ton of work, but I feel like I got pretty darn good by the end. If it hadn’t been such a race to finish, I think I may have actually enjoyed it.

Nah, I take that back. Flooring is awful. I’m never doing it again if I can help it. Give me a paintbrush any day.

I am really happy with the way everything turned out, and proud of myself for not just giving up and crying in a corner over a pint of dairy-free ice cream. However, the can of worms has officially been opened. I’ve felt the makeover high and now I’m super excited to tackle more projects. As you can see from the pictures, the walls and the floor clash beautifully. We are severely lacking in furniture. Any decor on the walls has just been hung on nails left by the previous owners. There is nothing cohesive besides the wood paneling pulling this house together. Somehow tearing out the carpeting made all of that way more obvious.

Oh, well. At least I have nice floors to look at in the meantime.