This Cottage’s Packed With ‘60s Charm, Like a Dreamy Vintage Lavender Bathroom
Adrienne Breaux
·9 min read
Laura Bindloss, the founder of interior design PR and social media agency Nylon Consulting and the founder of YouTube channel Designer Home Tours, spent six months renovating this three-bedroom cottage in Bellport, New York. "We kept the original layout, original floors and fireplace, but it has new life in it," she describes of the renovation. Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"[W]e ripped out so much of the house including the kitchen, we repainted and re-drywalled every square inch of the house, ripped out floors, redid all the electrical (we put in a pool so had to upgrade it, and also put in decorative lighting) and reinstalled the kitchen and all flooring in kitchen and bathrooms in six months," Laura writes.
"People always think you can’t mix design periods but that’s untrue — we have a mid-century coffee table with a very traditional sofa, and we have an antique table from the 19th century (with chairs as well) with a really modern Pooky chandelier and it totally works ..." Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"...it keeps the space from looking like a museum or a catalog — you want things to be unexpected," Laura describes. Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
Laura says they kept the original fireplace as is. They just painted the brick. "It’s from 1962 when the home was built. Same with the wooden floors — they were just covered by carpet," Laura writes. Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"We ripped out all of the carpet ourselves — my husband got a mask on and spent a day ripping it all up since flooring companies charge a lot to do that," Laura writes of the proudest DIY. Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"The home is way brighter — we love color, but wanted the home to feel clean and uncluttered, so we kept the walls pale with colorful trim and fun wallpaper," Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"To me, the home feels layered, with different textures and various time periods — we have some things that are more contemporary (some of the art, the rugs from Jaipur Living, and the Pooky chandelier over the dining table) mixed with very traditional elements (the dining table, dining chairs, the sofa in the living room, the millwork in the kitchen, and the Pooky Lamps in the living room)." Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"The kitchen [is] by our client Isla Porter — I was so excited to get to work with them on something that was really custom, and choose fun choices like brass hardware (from British brand Corston Architectural) and a bold paint color for the interior of the cabinets (it's a bright red/orange)," begins Laura of the kitchen. Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"They put us through the full design process — it was fun to see the details of door options, various shelving brackets, etc. — I didn’t realize how many options there were in a kitchen to design. They also helped suggest different layouts or storage since we ripped everything out and could start over." Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"We have an appliance garage for the espresso machine and the blender. That means the counters are super clear, as well as a knife drawer." Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"In the kitchen I also LOVE the Monogram range — it's induction and also uses smart technology, so the dial is touch screen just like a phone is, and it updates automatically like a smartphone whenever there is new software available. It also has an air fryer built into the oven, which is so handy." Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"People always think you can’t put real stone countertops in a home when you cook or when you rent it because they’re not as durable as quartz or man-made ones," Laura writes. "I disagree — we ALWAYS use real stone countertops. If you really don’t like the look of etching then you can seal it with TuffSkin, but if you get a stone with color and movement, as we did with our Calacatta Burgundy slab from Aristic Tile, you really can’t see any etching (and also, patina = character)." Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
Laura says the finished kitchen is something people always ask about. "It feels so quality. The finish and doors and design of the space are the number one question we get." Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
Since Laura and Simon also share this home with renters, they wanted to make sure the style was "colorful, pattern forward, and with quality furniture, materials and appliances but not so that it would be too fussy or complicated with renters." Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
Laura says they had to "prioritize spending money on the kitchen renovation since a house is unusable without a kitchen, and we had to put in a pool to make it more attractive to summer renters." Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"Those two things, coupled with the budget we needed to rebuild some of the drywall that was falling apart and repaint and refinish the entire interior and exterior of the house meant that we had very little budget left for decorative products — which to me is so important as we want the home to feel special, and I refuse to buy boring furniture from big-box retailers," she continues. Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"We were able to make it work by getting almost all of the furniture and art from estate sales, vintage stores and church sales, which gives the home a collected quality that feels interesting and unique." Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"By putting in vintage pieces and selecting unique paint colors, wallpaper, and decorative lighting, the home was able to feel like a much-higher-end space than our budget would have allowed." Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"While we chose to use white walls throughout most of the house to keep it bright, we opted for colored trim around the windows, painted all the doors fun colors, and used fun wallpaper in the hallway and in both bathrooms to give it a punch," Laura describes. Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
"Our most successful DIY was the basement transformation. Over two weekends and about $3,000: Installed vinyl plank flooring ($2,500); sprayed all walls/ceiling bright white ($200); added new lighting on dimmers ($500). We also couldn’t afford to have our professional painter do the entire basement (he was repainting and wallpapering every other room and the exterior, so we repainted the entire basement ourselves. It saved us a decent amount of money since it’s a large space," Laura explains. Credit: Genevieve GarruppoCredit: Genevieve Garruppo
Laura Bindloss, the founder of interior design PR and social media agency Nylon Consulting and the founder of YouTube channel Designer Home Tours, says the biggest challenge with renovating this three-bedroom cottage in Bellport, New York, was time.
“The tight six-month timeline was our main hurdle, especially with supply chain delays. We needed the home rental-ready for summer, but materials like custom kitchen cabinets had 12+ week lead times,” Laura begins of the dated house, which had been lived in by the same family since the 1960s.
“There was carpet everywhere (which we removed to show hardwood floors) and peeling wallpaper in the kitchen and bedrooms. The family that lived there had smokers, so the house smelled and things had yellowed. The bathrooms were old and dated — all cabinetry was falling apart in them and in the kitchen. The floors were linoleum; the countertops were plastic. It felt like a time warp,” Laura describes.
But, Laura also says there were lots of charming vintage details to love about the home, including the bathroom’s lavender Rheem-brand vintage tub, sink, and toilet. “We also kept the fireplace, but the brick was cheap so we painted it to make it a feature. The bar and basement were awesome — but had old flooring, and the walls were laminate so we painted them. We kept the original bar as it was real wood and beautiful, and we replaced the floors.”
It was preserving some of the house’s elements (like the lavender bathroom and the basement’s bar) instead of replacing them that helped keep Laura and her husband, Simon, on their short timeline. Laura says they also “[f]ocused on high-impact changes (paint, hardware, lighting) that could be completed quickly and [u]sed local vendors and estate sales to avoid shipping delays” to stay on time.
“We knew from day one we would be renting this house out, so we were designing it as a fun weekend getaway for our family as well as for guests,” writes Laura, whose family includes husband Simon, kids Hugo (6) and Ceci (4), and pup, Oskar.
While day traders buy and sell stocks by the minute to try to maximize their profits, most financial consultants recommend taking a long-term view of the market. That doesn't mean stock investments...
This TSX monthly dividend stock looks really attractive for investors seeking stable income and exposure to a defensive asset class. The post An 8% Dividend Stock Paying Cash Every Month appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
This stock is a magnificent dividend stock that can withstand crises, generate wealth, and give inflation-adjusted annual payouts is down 39%. The post 1 Magnificent Canadian Dividend Stock Down 39% to Buy and Hold for Decades appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tire manufacturer Bridgestone Americas is closing its LaVergne, Tennessee, truck and bus radial tire plant and laying off 700 workers there, the company announced in a news release.
The best part of retiring is spending your time and money how you want to. Whether that includes traveling the world or playing a couple extra rounds of golf each month, you have flexibility during...
Here are the key reasons why BlackBerry stock could be one of the most attractive TSX stocks to consider today. The post I Just Bought BlackBerry Stock: Here’s Why You Might Want Shares, Too appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
Looking to create wealth over your lifetime? These four top Canadian compounder stocks could certainly do just that. The post Top Canadian Stocks to Buy for Long-Term Wealth appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
With their solid long-term growth prospects, these two value energy stocks could give you strong returns in the long run. The post 2 No-Brainer Energy Stocks to Buy With $1,000 Right Now appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
Do you want passive income in 2025? Then consider picking up these two top TSX stocks. The post Invest $20,000 in 2 TSX Stocks for $3,442.44 in Passive Income appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
A post-election surge sent stocks to record highs late last year, but since then things have eased off considerably. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has fallen about 6% since peaking at 45,074 on...
Investors seeking to stabilize cash flows in this volatile market can invest in these dividend-paying Canadian pipeline stocks. The post Canadian Pipeline Stocks: TC Energy vs. Enbridge appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
We recently published a list of 15 Stocks ChatGPT Predicts Could Make You Wealthy in 10 Years. In this article, we are going to take a look at where NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) stands against other stocks ChatGPT predicts could make you wealthy in 10 years. 2024 was a stellar year for the US markets, driven […]
Contrarian investors are wondering if BNS stock is undervalued. The post Is Bank of Nova Scotia Stock a Buy While it’s Below $75? appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
Finding a dividend stock is great, sure, but a dividend stock with a deal is even better. The post 1 Delectable Dividend Stock Down 11% to Buy Now and Hold appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
These stocks pay attractive dividends for income investors. The post 5 Dividend Stocks to Double Up on Right Now appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
We recently compiled a list of the 15 Best New Tech Stocks To Invest In. In this article, we are going to take a look at where SoundHound AI Inc. (NASDAQ:SOUN) stands against the other feminist stocks. On January 8, Rashaun Williams, Atlanta Falcons limited partner and venture capitalist, joined “Closing Bell” on CNBC to discuss […]
