Dining Room Renovation Update: Before and Current Progress

Dining Room Before

The Dining Room Before & After

Sometimes tackling a room slowly can be frustrating. You don’t get an instant dramatic reveal — progress happens in small steps. Each change makes the space a bit better, even if it takes time to reach the look you imagined.

Working on a project over time, using mostly items you already own, can be rewarding but it isn’t always the simplest route. It asks for patience while the space feels unfinished, flexibility as plans evolve, and persistence to keep moving forward.

It took me two years to reach the point I’m at with this dining room. It might sound like a major remodel, but most of it was painting furniture and walls, rearranging pieces, and living in the space while I made changes. Even so, most updates were completed in the past seven months, and now the room finally feels like it’s heading in the right direction.

Step-by-Step Dining Room Progress

1. I waited patiently for 10 months for my old house to sell so I could move furniture here.
2. I hung an antique stained glass window from a former church to screen an unpleasant view.
3. I painted the dining table, chairs, and armoire to lighten the room and unify mismatched wood tones.
4. This fall I installed temporary curtains left over from my previous home while I decided on a final option.
5. Right before the holidays we painted the walls Behr All in One Studio Taupe, which warmed and updated the space.
6. I added a new lantern that gives the room character and better light.
7. Finally, I removed a dresser and brought in a baker’s rack to better suit the room’s function.

Dining room during —
prior to the walls being painted and the dresser being moved

Dining Room Now

Now

Now

Dining Room before and now.

Here is the side-by-side view showing the difference two long years made.

The before and now — two long years apart.

When progress feels slow, reviewing photos from the start and tracking each step can be encourageing. It makes clear how far the room has come.

Yep. It has come a long way.

If you’re curious for more, I later updated the room with new curtains made from a cherished 16-year-old fabric.

Thanks for following along through the many posts and photos of this dining room. The next update was the new curtains, sewn from fabric I’ve treasured for years.

Note: All the furniture shown was reused from my previous home, so it was free to me. The only purchases were the lantern (a Pottery Barn piece that I received), the paint (Behr Studio Taupe All in One), and a seagrass rug from Cost Plus.