Apartment Therapy Submissions

Avery's 1980s kitchen was dark and dated, then the owner decided to go with her gut and chose a color and style that matched her personal tastes.

Her chief complaint was its size and how separated she felt from the living and dining areas.

With a mix of gifts, Craigslist items, and new purchases, this renter turned a bland apartment into a welcoming and charming home.

All while retaining its original charm.

It's now "coastal beachy shabby eclectic vintage."

Just wait until you see the kitchen!

Renters, take note!

We're not sure what we love more: the gorgeous island or the concrete floors.

If you have a thing with floors ...

It's so perfect. And so temporary.

It's also where you'll find the homeowners' proudest DIY moment (cool shelves!) and their biggest indulgence (a fancy faucet!)

"I can cook pretty much anything you’d make in a full-sized kitchen."

The whole house got an upgrade, but the kitchen is, by far, the best room.

We have before and after photos of the entire house.

The new space looks so much bigger and brighter! And it was done on the cheap!

The counters now look like marble!

From old in a bad way to old in a good way.

It's small in space, but huge in style.

The kitchen feels so much bigger now.

The kitchen is so dramatically different!

We have some serious heart eyes for the floor!

Everything looks so different!

The kitchen is the homeowners' favorite space now — and ours too!

We're obsessed with them.

It's unrecognizable now!

Those cabinets!

We're not sure what we like best: the kitchen or the bathroom.

The kitchen is SO GOOD.

The cabinets = pure perfection.

She updated her island with washi tape!

That new backsplash, though!

The after shot is a million times better!

This kitchen makeover is gorgeous and impressive on its own, but when you factor in that it’s a rental, it becomes mind-blowing. Check out all sorts of magic Eliza, the design wizard of note, worked out on her kitchen. She even faked her way into a temporary herringbone floor!

Stacy and her husband found themselves with a very trying kitchen on their hands. After two years of living with not enough storage, poor ventilation, and lots of mice, they decided to take the plunge and create a kitchen that was clean, functional, and easy on the eyes. From Stacy: Our kitchen had a hard life. We bought our home back in 2011, a recent flip after the previous owners had foreclosed.

There’s nothing wrong with a bold color in the kitchen — if it’s executed well. Sadly that was not the case for Shannon’s sporadically navy blue kitchen. She made some small updates to the space when she first moved in, and after living with the kitchen for a few years, she decided it was time to give the space the true makeover it deserved. From Shannon: When we first bought the house six years ago, the kitchen walls and cabinet panels were painted a dark navy color.