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Simple Dining Room Table Update Makes a BIG Impact!

Hi Friends! 

I hope you all had a great weekend! If you remember last week’s blog post, I was helping lead the Bloom event for our church this past weekend. What a success-over 400 women came out for a day of fun and living our best lives! We laughed, we cried, and had an absolute blast! Here’s a photo of me and my girlie, making the most of every moment!

Thanks, everyone, for coming out! Can’t wait until next time! : )

If you can’t view the photos on this blog, click here.

In today’s Tuesday’s Treasure, I want to bust the myth that in order to update your home, you must get rid of everything you have in your home and begin with everything new. Sometimes we get bogged down by thinking we have to make huge changes in our homes to create impact and make things more “up to date.” The fact is this way of thinking is just not true. Maybe you are not sure where to begin or how to go about this, but I am here to help!

Here is an easy example of adding little updates to your home. Just like in this photo, you can use every day items to create special moments in any space! This particular inspiration is quick and easy to achieve. In case you missed it, check out the post here.

On a larger scale, making the most of your items is important when achieving updates. In a recent project, I want to share with you how we took one client’s dining table and transformed it into something more updated, giving her dining room a fresh new look!

And here’s the newly updated table! We took the outdated style, sanded and refinished with Valspar’s Sunbleached stain and added a protective clear coat to keep the table protected for years to come!

refinished orange oak table with Valspar Sunbleached

Take a look at this before photo. The style of the table worked fine, but the stain was all wrong and needed a fresh look.

A huge thanks to Eileen for hiring us to do this dining table refinish.

What a beautiful transformation!! 

Thank you all for following along! If you’d like to get this blog in your email once a week, please sign up for our weekly newsletter by adding your email in the little box below my picture. 

If you’ve enjoyed this post, please like FunCycled on  Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest if you don’t already. Keep up to date on the newest finds, vote on colors and give your input on our creativity. We share fun tutorials, great before and after, and new design inspirations. 

We offer interior design, kitchen cabinet painting, and custom built tables, barn doors, and repurposed furniture. Thank you, again, for working with us and for taking the time to spread the word about what we do. 

Happy FunCycling Friends,

Sarah ;)

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Charming Kitchen Update in Delmar, NY

Hi Friends!

Do you have a kitchen that isn’t bad, but you’re ready for an update? This week’s post is a perfect example of how our kitchen cabinet painting, tiling, and new counters can totally transform a kitchen at a fraction of the cost of a new kitchen.

My weekend was so full, but I have no picture for proof so you’ll have to trust me! I’m helping to lead a really fun, free women’s event at our church this Saturday, and would love to have you join if you’re free! It’s at either noon or 4pm! Register here!

If you’re having trouble viewing the photos on this post, click here.

For this week’s makeover, here are the before photos:

We did a lot of custom carpentry work on this kitchen as well. We changed the shape of the island, and installed a drink cooler. We also removed the upper cabinets to the right of sink, and installed floating shelves instead. The wood tone wasn’t bad, but our client wanted to brighten up the space with painted cabinets.

We painted the main cabinets with the color Benjamin Moore Chantilly Lace and the island was painted with Kendall Charcoal. We also added all new hardware.

If you’d like to see how we paint Kitchen Cabinets, click here to check out our video on YouTube. 

Ready for the after photos?

Chantilly Lace Paint Kitchen Cabinets FunCycled with Kendall Charcoal Island
Chantilly Lace Paint Kitchen Cabinets FunCycled with Kendall Charcoal Island 2
Chantilly Lace Paint Kitchen Cabinets FunCycled with Kendall Charcoal Island
White kitchen cabinets with quartz counter and subway tile
long black cabinet pull on white cabinets
long black cabinet pull on gray cabinets
floating shelves in kitchen

A huge thanks to Kristen for hiring us to do the interior design, kitchen cabinet painting, and tile/carpentry work.

What an beautiful transformation!! 

Could your kitchen use an update? We’d love to help!! We can help pick out colors, finishes, product and do the cabinet painting, tiling, add new hardware. You can use our Contact Us form to request our design services or a quote for painting your kitchen. Please check out other kitchen projects on our For Sale page. We’ll need to see a picture of your kitchen, a list of how many doors and drawers there are, and where you are located to email you an estimate. This change ups the value of your home and gives you a whole new look at a fraction of the cost of new kitchen cabinets!

Thank you all for following along! If you’d like to get this blog in your email once a week, please sign up for our weekly newsletter by adding your email in the little box below my picture. 

If you’ve enjoyed this post, please like FunCycled on  Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest if you don’t already. Keep up to date on the newest finds, vote on colors and give your input on our creativity. We share fun tutorials, great before and after, and new design inspirations. 

We offer interior design, kitchen cabinet painting, and custom built tables, barn doors, and repurposed furniture. Thank you, again, for working with us and for taking the time to spread the word about what we do. 

Happy FunCycling Friends,

Sarah ;)

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Best Place to Stay When Visiting Magnolia Market

Hi Friends!

How are you? I hope you’ve been checking out our Instagram and Facebook feed over the last week because I’ve shared some of my Magnolia Market trip. If not, follow along today. I’ll be sharing more throughout the week. I’ve been to Texas many times to check out Joanna Gaines new designs, restaurants, and the other fun surrounding Waco. I believe this was my 7th trip, and I can tell you without a doubt, the best place I’ve stayed is at the Gathering Oaks Retreat Center. The 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom farmhouse that we stayed in is located right next to Chip and Jo’s farmhouse so we could see their farm animals roaming around. We dreamed that Chip and Jo would come up to the fence and say hi (it didn’t happen though – dang it).

I’m considering doing ladies Waco Trip for any FunCycled fan in early 2025 and renting out the whole retreat center!! If you’d be interested in learning more about this, and being on the email list for more detailed information, please fill out this form. Here’s a pic of me and the gals from this trip!!

If you have trouble viewing the photos on this post, click here.

We adored our stay in a farmhouse chic, full house with a view of Chip and Jo’s farm!! Check out some of the beautiful rooms in our stay at Gathering Oaks!

Gathering Oaks Farm House Stay
Gathering Oaks Farm House Stay
Gathering Oaks Farm House Stay
Gathering Oaks Farm House Stay
Gathering Oaks Farm House Stay

It was quiet, clean, styled so beautifully, and oh so fun!!! It’s a 20 minute drive from Waco, but I think it’s WELL WORTH IT to be Chip and Jo’s neighbor for a couple of days.

We, of course, visited Magnolia Home, Press, the Silo Bakery, and Magnolia Market.

Magnolia Market 2024
Magnolia Home 2024
Magnolia Silos 2024
Magnolia Home 2024
Magnolia Silos 2024
Church at Magnolia Market 2024

I’ve been really excited to check out Ferny’s at Magnolia for the first time! Even though it had fewer plants than I pictured it having since it’s a plant store, it still had a really cute design.

Since my last visit, Jimmy Don opened a JDH Iron Designs store right across the street from Magnolia Home! Jimmy was so kind! He remembered me and came right over for a big hug, met my friends, and signed every piece that we bought from him!

If you’d like to book a night at the Gathering Oaks Retreat, head here! If you love all things Magnolia, check out our other Magnolia Trips here.

There is a box at the top right of this page to enter your email address to receive notifications by email when I post something new on this blog. Please sign up today! 

If you like what you see, please like FunCycled’s Facebook page or Instagram page to keep up to date on the newest finds, vote on colors and give your input on our creativity. Or book a Virtual Design Consult with me for help in your home. 

We create custom furniture and will deliver for customers in upstate NY and offer shipping throughout the US. Send us a note with what you would like using our contact page. Or buy something that we’ve already designed from our Shop Page.

Happy FunCycling Friends,
Sarah ;)

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FunCycled’s Trolley House Flip – Exterior Makeover

Hi Friends!

Thank you for stopping by! I’m an interior designer in upstate NY, but our team also does amazing transformations from kitchen cabinet panting to the details in this flip. Like you’ll see in this post, we do much more than just painting. We bought this old trolley station stop at the end of 2022, filled it, and sold it at the end of 2023. We’ve shown most of the interior makeovers on the blog already for this trolley house flip, but I wanted to stop and show you the exterior work as well.

If you have trouble viewing the photos on this post, click here.

Here’s the exterior of the trolley house before any work was done:

FunCycled Trolley House Flip Before 1
FunCycled Trolley House Flip Before 2
FunCycled Trolley House Flip Before 3

The whole front section of the house (the section without the porch) needed to be ripped off and replaced because the supports were completely rotten, and the ceiling height wasn’t even close to code. We fell through the floor walking through it at closing, and a 6 foot door wouldn’t even fit in the ceiling height of the front room. We ripped it off completely, had a frost barrier concrete wall installed for a foundation support, and then had the structure replaced. One last minute decisions that was a complete game changer for this house was the fact that we decided to peek the roof on the front to match the roof line of the rest of the house. It was originally flat. You can see that better here:

The original footprint staid the same, but the height on the front made it feels so much bigger!

The quote for redoing the porch came in so much higher than we anticipated so we were debating on removing both side portions of the porch to make it one straight porch along the back. We went back and forth on this decision quite a bit, but I really didn’t want to lose the original porch size because that’s so much of the house’s history. People would wait on this porch to catch a ride on the electric trolley car.

So we decided to do the porch work ourselves to keep it in budget and save it! John and our team did such a phenomenal job on this! We couldn’t be happier with how it turned out. Here’s what it looked like mid demo!

FunCycled Trolley House Flip Porch Before

We also found out that this property needed a brand new septic… to the tune of almost 20k! Ouch! So while they were there doing the septic, we asked them to help us pull out the old shrubs and level the land. It made the yard so much nicer (not that you can tell in this photo).

We wanted to keep some of the windows, but they didn’t meet new code so we installed all new windows, but we were able to find the original door that went to the back porch and reinstalled it! So much better than the door that was on the porch area before!

Are you ready for the afters?

FunCycled Trolley House Flip Porch After
FunCycled Trolley House Flip Porch After 2
FunCycled Trolley House Flip Porch After 3
FunCycled Trolley House Flip Porch After 4
FunCycled Trolley House Flip Exterior Front After
FunCycled Trolley House Flip Exterior Front After 2

How about some side by side photos for comparison?

Exterior Design by FunCycled
Exterior Design by FunCycled

Thank you all for following along! If you’d like to get this blog in your email once a week, please sign up for our weekly newsletter by adding your email in the little box below my picture. 

If you’ve enjoyed this post, please like FunCycled on  Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest if you don’t already. Keep up to date on the newest finds, vote on colors and give your input on our creativity. We share fun tutorials, great before and after, and new design inspirations. 

We offer interior design, kitchen cabinet painting, and custom built tables, barn doors, and repurposed furniture. Thank you, again, for working with us and for taking the time to spread the word about what we do. 

Happy FunCycling Friends,
Sarah ;)

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Mid Century Modern Dresser For Sale

Hi Friends!

How’s your week going? We’ve been busy working away over here. Loving all the beautiful kitchen makeovers week to week, and enjoying repurposing furniture. Last week was all about furniture for us!

If you have trouble viewing the photos on this post, click here.

We custom built these desks in addition to redoing customers furniture for them.

This herringbone desk we custom built using spalted maple… which I LOVE!! Such a thing of beauty!

I thought I’d throw those into the post since I forgot to take a before picture of the dresser that we are featuring this week. Not only is it beautiful, well made, and one of a kind, it’s also up for sale on our Shop Page.

This piece is available to purchase. Be sure to visit our SHOP page to check out what other pieces we have available for purchase or custom order. 

Or contact us to get a quote to let us redo your furniture for you! 

Thank you all for following along! If you’d like to get this blog in your email once a week, please sign up for our weekly newsletter by adding your email in the little box below my picture. 

If you’ve enjoyed this post, please like FunCycled on  Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest if you don’t already. Keep up to date on the newest finds, vote on colors and give your input on our creativity. We share fun tutorials, great before and after, and new design inspirations. 

We offer interior design, kitchen cabinet painting, and custom built tables, barn doors, and repurposed furniture. Thank you, again, for working with us and for taking the time to spread the word about what we do. 

Happy FunCycling Friends,
Sarah ;)

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Airbnb State Street Design

Hi Friends!

Happy second week of the new year! I’m BEYOND excited to share another airbnb that I designed. This one is so special because of the view alone. It sits right on State Street in Schenectady so the view and how close it sits to all the shops and restaurants makes this destination top tier!

If you’d like to book this Airbnb to check out the design in person, head to my design clients Airbnb page here.

Please click here if you have trouble viewing the photos on this post.

Sadly, I accidentally deleted the before photo for this design. It was simply an empty room filled with construction materials when I first looked at it. We didn’t move any walls or change anything with the layout. It’s the finishes that made all the difference. Here’s the design board that I submitted to the client:

Here are links to some of the products for you:

Bed
Dresser
Comforter Set
Table and Chair Set

One of my favorite design elements in the room is the headboard accent wall. It makes such a dramatic difference adding the accent wood, and it helped make the headboard pop as well!

Check out the finished room!

I wanted to thank Adnan for working with me on this project as well as 4 other Airbnb’s! It’s been such a joy to work with him!

Could your home or airbnb use design help? I’d love to be a part of the project! Please message me today to set up a consult and get the project started! 

Check out more details about our Interior Design Services. 

Thank you all for following along! If you’d like to get this blog in your email once a week, please sign up for our weekly newsletter by adding your email in the little box below my picture. 

If you’ve enjoyed this post, please like FunCycled on  Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest if you don’t already. Keep up to date on the newest finds, vote on colors and give your input on our creativity. We share fun tutorials, great before and after, and new design inspirations. 

We offer interior design, kitchen cabinet painting, and custom built tables, barn doors, and repurposed furniture. Thank you, again, for working with us and for taking the time to spread the word about what we do. 

Happy FunCycling Friends,
Sarah ;)

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Trolley House Flip Living Room Makeover

Happy New Year’s Friends!

I really wanted to share all the highlights of the year with you on today’s blog post, but I simply didn’t make the time to get that done last week. After the last couple of months, pushing to finish up our first ever house flip while also keeping the normal work flow up, we are the more exhausted than we’ve ever been! We all needed a week to rest, do house project that have been neglected (who needs to clean out their summer clothes anyway), and pray over/plan out the next year. We are so thankful for the rest, and hope to share some of the highlights of 2023 in the weeks to come!

We closed on the trolley house the week before Christmas, and we are so excited for the new home owner to spend the holidays in this little slice of history that we poured so much of ourselves into!

For this week’s makeover, I thought it would be fun to share the living room makeover!

If you have trouble viewing the photos in this post, click here.

Here’s the living room when we started:

See those tiny steps? Those aren’t up to new building code so we had to work with the building department to let us keep them. When I came to look at the house, those little steps were what my eyes were drawn to on the inside. I loved them! The other thing that wasn’t to new code was the windows. They came too close to the floor so we did have to replace them all. I was sad about that because they were in good shape and beautiful, but the new windows were much more energy efficient so it was an ok trade off!

We were also able to keep the flooring. We refinished it, and it was painted over so that was no easy task. See those bowling pins and that hutch base? We used both to decorate in the house. The hutch is on the main page of our website right now!

I’ll have product lists for what you can order for yourself in this space after the photos below so be sure to scroll down for that!

Ready for the after photos?

Let’s do a side by side comparison as well!

Did something grab your eye that you’d like for your home? Good news! Here are the product links for you to order some of it yourself:

Couch
Throw Pillows
Dining Room Table and Chairs
Coffee Table
Accent Chair
Living Room Chandelier
Dining Room Chandlier
Curtains
Mirror
Rug
Wallpaper

Don’t you just love this room?!? It’s filled with patterns, history, and contrast! 

Would you like help designing a room in your home? Check out our Interior Design Services page or book your consult today! 

Thank you all for following along! If you’d like to get this blog in your email once a week, please sign up for our weekly newsletter by adding your email in the little box below my picture. 

If you’ve enjoyed this post, please like FunCycled on  Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest if you don’t already. Keep up to date on the newest finds, vote on colors and give your input on our creativity. We share fun tutorials, great before and after, and new design inspirations. 

We offer interior design, kitchen cabinet painting, and custom built tables, barn doors, and repurposed furniture. Thank you, again, for working with us and for taking the time to spread the word about what we do. 

Happy FunCycling Friends,
Sarah ;)

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Antique Sewing Machine Bathroom Vanity For Sale – Tuesday’s Treasures

Hi Friends!

Merry Christmas! I hope you each had a wonderful time with people you love! We host every year, and I loved spending time with family! If you missed it on our social media in the last week, we closed on our Trolley House Flip last week! What a better time to share our family photos this year; we had them taken at the trolley house!

If you’re having trouble viewing the photos on this post, click here.

Please consider this our Christmas card to each of you! Merry Christmas!!

For this week’s makeover, I’m excited to share an antique singer sewing machine that we have created a whole new use for!

Here’re the sewing machine before:

We took off the top board and added a new board to the top and front. Then we cut out the holes for the new sink and sealed it with a marine grade poly. Then we installed the new sick and faucet on top.

Isn’t it a thing of beauty?!?!?

This piece is available to purchase, but be sure to visit our SHOP page to check out what other pieces we have available for purchase or custom order. 

Or contact us to get a quote to let us redo your furniture for you! 

Thank you all for following along! If you’d like to get this blog in your email once a week, please sign up for our weekly newsletter by adding your email in the little box below my picture. 

If you’ve enjoyed this post, please like FunCycled on  Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest if you don’t already. Keep up to date on the newest finds, vote on colors and give your input on our creativity. We share fun tutorials, great before and after, and new design inspirations. 

We offer interior design, kitchen cabinet painting, and custom built tables, barn doors, and repurposed furniture. Thank you, again, for working with us and for taking the time to spread the word about what we do. 

Happy FunCycling Friends,
Sarah ;)

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Demo Day by Magnolia Painted China Cabinet for Sale

Hi Friends!

How was your weekend? We enjoyed so many holiday festivities over the weekend! From a Christmas Jazz concert in Saratoga to lights in Washington County Fairgrounds. It was so nice to celebrate and enjoy with my family!

If you have trouble seeing the photos in this post, click here.

For this week’s makeover, I wanted to share a china cabinet makeover that we just finished and added to our online shop! You can purchase it today and have it delivered by Christmas!

Here’s the china cabinet when I bought it to rescue it:

We painted this piece with Magnolia’s paint line with their color Demo Day, installed wallpaper to the back panel on the inside, and added new hardware. This piece still has the glass on the front door, we just removed it for photos so you can see the inside better.

If you want to see how we paint furniture, check out our How to Paint Furniture post. 
Here are the after photos for you:

This piece is available to purchase, but be sure to visit our SHOP page to check out what other pieces we have available for purchase or custom order. 

Or contact us to get a quote to let us redo your furniture for you! 

Thank you all for following along! If you’d like to get this blog in your email once a week, please sign up for our weekly newsletter by adding your email in the little box below my picture. 

If you’ve enjoyed this post, please like FunCycled on  Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest if you don’t already. Keep up to date on the newest finds, vote on colors and give your input on our creativity. We share fun tutorials, great before and after, and new design inspirations. 

We offer interior design, kitchen cabinet painting, and custom built tables, barn doors, and repurposed furniture. Thank you, again, for working with us and for taking the time to spread the word about what we do. 

Happy FunCycling Friends,
Sarah ;)

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Black Antique Vanity For Sale – Tuesday’s Treasures

Hi Friends!

How are you all? I hope you had a nice weekend! We had a pretty low key weekend getting things around our house ready for the first snowfall this year. We also went up to Lake George to the Winter’s Dreams light and music display, and it was amazing! You should make time to go see it this winter season!

If you’re having trouble viewing the photos on this post, click here.

For this week’s furniture makeover, I’m sharing a piece that is available on our online shop. I updated the shop this week so now you can purchase smaller items and furniture right online, and choose to have furniture delivered or have it picked up at our shop.

Here’s the vanity before:

We painted this piece with Valspar’s Lincoln Cottage Black, lightly distressed it, sanded and stained the top with a mix of classic gray and early American stain by Minwax, sprayed it with a protective clear coat, and added new hardware.

If you want to see how we paint furniture, check out our How to Paint Furniture post. 
Here are the after photos for you:

This piece is available to purchase, but be sure to visit our SHOP page to check out what other pieces we have available for purchase or custom order. 

Or contact us to get a quote to let us redo your furniture for you! 

Thank you all for following along! If you’d like to get this blog in your email once a week, please sign up for our weekly newsletter by adding your email in the little box below my picture. 

If you’ve enjoyed this post, please like FunCycled on  Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest if you don’t already. Keep up to date on the newest finds, vote on colors and give your input on our creativity. We share fun tutorials, great before and after, and new design inspirations. 

We offer interior design, kitchen cabinet painting, and custom built tables, barn doors, and repurposed furniture. Thank you, again, for working with us and for taking the time to spread the word about what we do. 

Happy FunCycling Friends,
Sarah ;)