Den Reveal (just don't look too hard)

This room is the den/guest bedroom. It is off the eat-in kitchen and provides the sole point of access from house to backyard. When I first moved in, there was lots of brass, and two walls covered in orangy wood paneling.

Fireplace surround. While this is not a true "before" shot, can we say ew? None of the fixtures match - check out the grey? spotlights above, brassy fireplace and bare metal? forced air return. From the color scheme (orange walls, pink carpet, salmon and yellow curtains) we'll assume the previous owners were color blind. Although....does orange + pink = salmon?

Looking into the kitchen. Notice the stripe of original color at the bottom, and the touch up paint near the wall switch [in a different sheen].  I have no idea what was the source of the dark spot. This too is not a true "before" shot, as the left wall has been denuded of paneling

Paneling, partially removed.  I was very lucky that whomever built the place drywalled and textured before paneling. Doorway on right is to the kitchen.

What happened when I tried to plug my vacuum cleaner in. Safety FAIL.

Apparently I also failed to take any photos of the fourth wall (with the windows). And the brassy ceiling fan/light fixture. Just use your imagination.

Now for the prettiness:

Fireplace and new closets. When I move again, it'd be nice to list the house with an additional bedroom. This requires two exits (already there) and a closet. So I framed in the two niches by the fireplace. Unfortunately, there was no carpet in these areas, so I ended up installing laminate. If people want to use this as a den/playroom in the future, the closets are tame enough for everyday storage. Well, they will after I install shelving. Please don't look too closely at the fireplace. The reason why is the topic of a future post.

West wall. Remember those scary curtains and shiny wood trim? Much better now. The curtains are from Ikea, $20 for 2 panels, and I only used 1 panel per opening. The ones over the window are lined, too. I heart Ikea curtains - and since there isn't one in my state [grr], my mom was sweet enough to tuck them in her luggage on her last visit. Thanks Mom!

Another view of the whole room. Yes, that is a pot rack hanging out on the bed. Check out my posts regarding the fireplace surround, fan and dresser.
We are currently using this room as a guest bedroom. It's nice to be able to offer visitors a space that is separate from our bedroom area, which is upstairs. I wanted to put the dresser right next to the bed, but the wall just isn't quite wide enough. And of course, accessorizing. 

Project breakdown ~
Lumber for framing/mantle/trim:     approx $50
Laminate flooring                                 $60 [the kind with underlayment pre attached]
Primer:                                                    $15/gal [didn't use the whole gallon]
Wall paint:                                              $15/gal [didn't use the whole gallon]
Ceiling paint*:                                        $15/gal                 
Trim paint:                                              $15/gal [didn't use the whole gallon]
White semigloss spray paint               $4.25 
   [for heat registers, recessed lights]
Curtains:                                                $50/5 panels
Closet curtain rods:                             $6.50/2 sets
Window curtain rods:                          $17.98/2 sets
Fan project:                                           $2.97
Dresser project:                                    $79
Fireplace project [so far]:                    $18
outlets and faceplates:                        $20
New exterior door:                               $116
New entrance door knob:                   $13.47

Total room cost:                                   $498.17
without exterior door or dresser:      $303.17                 

TODO: Last bit of trim install [painting now], closet shelving, dimmer switch. I expect to spend $50-75 for the closet hardware, for a final project total of ~$600

*Note: I started by using the Valspar pink turns into white ceiling paint, which gave really crappy coverage and later switched to regular ole flat paint.