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Annie Elliott Design, Washington DC

Annie Elliott Design

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Thinking about spring cleaning? Make it a makeover!

Annie Elliott | May 10, 2026

Gentle Readers, I’ve decided that spring cleaning is not enough this year. Spring MAKEOVERS are in store!

For inspiration, I thought I’d do a little before-and-after post of some past and present projects: heavy on pictures, light on commentary. It’s the blog version of a beach read to give you a jump on summer. Here we go!

Before: A serviceable but unexciting guest bedroom.

Bed with yellow walls, neutral rug, and beige chair.

After: Your guests will never leave!

Bedroom with bird-patterned wallpaper, green curtains, and a leather chair.
Photo by Stacy Zarin Goldberg

Before: A dark family room.

Leather couch, red and blue rug, and fireplace.

After: Lots of light for Henry the dog!

Light blue and white wallpaper, blue sofa, green chairs, and dog laying in the sun.
Photo by Stacy Zarin Goldberg

Before: Ho-hum. The sectional was new, though, so that was our starting point.

Gray sectional in family room

After: Crisp and bright! And the dark accent wall makes the big TV less prominent. (Accent wall…I know, I know; but sometimes they come in handy!)

Photo by Stacy Zarin Goldberg

Before: A festival of neutrals.

Living room in beige and gray

After: Blue and orange save the day.

Photo by Angie Seckinger

Same room before: The problem wall.

Two leather chairs against a wall

Same room after: The solution!

Blue built-in bookcases

For more in-depth reading about some dramatic makeovers, here’s a previous post about this family room:

Green reading nook - striped sofa in a bay window

And another about this breakfast room:

Brown and white desk against white floral wallpaper

Happy spring, everyone!

Annie Elliott Design is a Washington, D.C based firm, but we also love working in NYC and on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. We’re now scheduling projects for early summer 2026. Please contact us to discuss.

Category: Before and after, How-to, Living Room + Family Room, RenovationTag: before and after, makeover, spring cleaning

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