6 Things I Regret Doing in My Home Renovation… and how I’m fixing them

If you follow me on Instagram, you will know that I have been stuck at home sick with COVID the last few days. My symptoms have been fairly mild and I’ve felt pretty good compared to how a lot of people fare, so I am grateful for that! However, this time alone in my house has given me lots of opportunity to think about things I like, dislike, and want to change in my home. Don’t get me wrong, I adore my house and cannot imagine living anywhere else, but I did do my renovations very quickly upon buying it and did not give myself time to “live with my space” before jumping into major renovations. Here are the 6 things I regret doing (or not doing) during my renovation journey:

1. Patterned Tile in the Bathroom

I was obsessed with this tile and bought it almost immediately after buying my house because I had pinned so many bathrooms with this tile on Pinterest. However, as was a theme with a lot of these regrets, I did not take the house into consideration when making these choices. My style in my previous home was very “modern farmhouse,” and I just assumed I could pick that up and make it work here…wrong. The tile itself is not awful, but the current way it is styled is not working with the more traditional route my style has started to take. I plan to eventually completely gut my downstairs bathroom and do a full renovation to turn the tub into a walk in shower and expand the vanity and storage solutions, so for now I don’t plan to change this tile. But that doesn’t mean I won’t make other minor changes to the bathroom.

2. Painting My Fireplace Black

This goes along with the tile in the bathroom. I tried too hard to make my house fit the decor I already had. This included a lot of black and white/monochromatic decor I had for the living room. The black fireplace fit that vibe so so well, but as my style evolved and I started to add softer colors and patterns it just didn’t work anymore. I have since changed it and painted it a calm sage green/blue, and I love it so much.

3. Not Adding Color

I don’t know where my fear of color came from, but I was terrified to add color inside my house when I bought it. I obviously love color (my front door is freaking pink), but I wasn’t sure how to incorporate it into my decor. I started following traditional interior designers on Instagram and they really changed my perspective on color and neutrals. I slowly started adding pink into areas of my home and it has snow balled from there. I don’t know where the tip to “paint everything white and decorate with color because it’s cheaper to change your decor than repaint” came from because in reality, a gallon of paint adds so much more of a punch to a room and costs $60 while a nice throw pillow will run you the same if not more. I am excited to continue to add color to space in 2022!

4. Not Adding Enough Warm Elements to my Kitchen

I am never going to be someone who says white kitchens are going out of style, because they aren’t. I truly believe a white kitchen is timeless. However, I think there needs to be warm elements to a white kitchen in order for it to be timeless. In my opinion, I did not add enough of these warm elements during my renovation, but I am trying to fix that over time. I have added floating shelves in a warm wood tone, wood cutting boards, and other accents. I would like to eventually change out the hardware to move away from the farmhouse vibe and also potentially change my pendant lights. But I don’t hate my kitchen by any means, I just wish I hadn’t gone so trendy with some of the finishes at first.

5. Not Buying Second Hand

This one is more of a “I wish I’d done this sooner” than a regret since I did eventually discover the world of Facebook Marketplace and antique stores. Some of my favorite pieces currently in my home were bought second hand, like this vanity turned entryway table, and I wish I had sourced from these places in the first place. I have replaced so many cheap pieces of “fast furniture” that were never going to last with pieces that are decades old and will be with me forever. I am now trying to be more intentional with my furniture purchases, and I’m trying to avoid buying less sustainable options when I can!

6. Taking Other’s Opinions Too Seriously

I know this sounds like such a cliche regret, but it is something I have really had to work through when decorating this home. I have to realize that this is my house and my style isn’t going to match everyone else’s. I am starting to make decisions that feel right to me that I never would have made 2 years ago, and I call that growth. I will still ask opinions of my friend’s and family, but in the end if I like something, I am going to do it!

I would love to know if you have any regrets about your home and how you fixed them! Also, make sure to follow me on Instagram so you never miss any home projects or updates!