Residential Renovation - Before/After
Residential Renovation - Before/After from Kailey Mikulencak
Residential Renovation - Before/After

This is a collection of Before/After photos from the renovation of my first home. I intentionally purchased a home that needed LOTS of work, as I wanted to put my new degree into practice. Boy did I ever! With the help and encouragement of a wonderful man who would later become my husband, I ended up completely gutting the kitchen/living/dining area (ceiling included), swapped bedrooms around, added a laundry closet and office space, and even raised the ceiling in the living room! The only work that was hired out was the tape/mud/texture and coating of the bathroom tiles, as those jobs required special training/equipment. I bought the home in 2015 and in just 3 years, sold it for 200% of the original purchase price.

A bit of ironwork demolition and a new front door made the entry much more inviting.
In this side-by-side, you can see the opening that was created to the front entry (above the new sink), allowing a flood of light to enliven what had originally been a very dark and unwelcoming foyer.
The kitchen was completely gutted and rebuilt from the ground up. Originally the most neglected area of the home, this space became everyone's favorite place to be.
Remember how I said the kitchen was gutted? Yeah... But the good news is we were able to raise the ceiling by 6" in the living area by replacing with wood paneling *above* the joists!
This image is a good indicator of the level of construction we delved into on this project. Some walls were torn down, others were added, and in the end, the home displayed much more balance and functionality.
The before photo here is actually mid-renovation. The new walls area already painted and the new flooring installed. However, this is the best view I have of the opening that was created to bring in the existing floor-to-ceiling windows that had originally been part of a bedroom.
I snapped this Before picture during my first ever showing of the home -- I knew then that I would one day open up this wall and bring all that wonderful light into the primary living space. This is my favorite aspect of residential architecture: unlocking an old home's potential.
Unfortunately, this before picture is from the listing and is not the best. However, you can see that what had been a close in a bedroom later became a built-in office space. This is a rarity in a 3/2 home of this size (1500 sq.ft.).
Once I took in one bedroom to bring in all that natural light, it became necessary to add back a bedroom. I added a wall by the front door to turn what had been a functionless den at front of the home into a third bedroom.
This is the opposite side of that same wall (above). The door and small alcove to the right had been a coat closet, but I turned it into the entry for this new bedroom.
What a difference a few 6-panel doors can make! On the far right of the After image, you can see the closet door that became the bedroom entrance.
Not much changed structurally here, but the transformation is one of my favorites! Rather than tear out several inches of concrete to replace these tiles, we had them professionally refinished.
From vintage pink and neglected to timeless and clean!
My husband's favorite part of the renovation. We designed and built these custom work benches to house all of the tools and materials we had acquired during the 3 years of renovation work. Since I am a bit short, we built risers for me that could be stowed underneath when not in use.
gLike
Residential Renovation - Before/After

This is a collection of Before/After photos from the renovation of my first home. I intentionally purchased a home that needed LOTS of work, as I wanted to put my new degree into practice. Boy did I ever! With the help and encouragement of a wonderful man who would later become my husband, I ended up completely gutting the kitchen/living/dining area (ceiling included), swapped bedrooms around, added a laundry closet and office space, and even raised the ceiling in the living room! The only work that was hired out was the tape/mud/texture and coating of the bathroom tiles, as those jobs required special training/equipment. I bought the home in 2015 and in just 3 years, sold it for 200% of the original purchase price.

Available
Freelance, Moonlighting
Kailey Mikulencak
Interior Designer Waco, TX