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The No Pressure Life | Crafts | Decor | Organization

Practical home ideas for busy moms.

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    • Our Garrison Colonial Makeover
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Our Current Home {A Garrison Colonial Makeover}

Looking for ideas to inspire your garrison colonial makeover? We purchased our 1960’s garrison colonial in a Boston suburb in late 2014. After a major renovation, done in phases, our formerly outdated home is now a cheerful and comfortable place for our family.

What’s a Garrison Colonial House?

How do you know if your home – or the home you’re looking to buy, is a garrison colonial?

Garrison colonials have two stories, and the second story hangs over the first floor just a bit. They’re quite boxy, with a center entrance that opens into the main stairway, and smaller, closed-off rooms.

Photo of our home from our town’s archives, circa 1950-1960

Our Garrison Colonial Makeover – Exterior “Before”

The previous owners lived here for 40 years (read more about that here) so the home needed lots of love to bring it up to our level of comfort and appearance.

Garrison Colonial Makeover - original exterior
  • Every room in the house received refinished floors, paint, and ceiling lights (there weren’t any ceiling lights before!).
  • We also replaced all of the hollow-core slab doors
  • Completely gutted the master bathroom and kids bathroom
  • Remodeled the powder room ourselves
  • Converted the original dining room to a TV room
  • Moved the laundry room
  • Built an addition to create a new kitchen and mudroom
  • Replaced the roof
  • Painted the exterior
  • Ripped up hedges to create a casual front garden
  • Did a lot of decorating!

Whew! There’s still more decorating to do and room reveals to share, but I hope you’ll enjoy seeing our progress and get inspiration for your own garrison colonial makeover.

This post contains affiliate links that connect you to relevant products. If you click and make a purchase, I may make a small commission at absolutely no cost to you. For more information, please see my disclosures.

Exterior Progress

Garrison colonial exterior makeover. Cream with white trim, black shutters, and blue door.
That’s our doggie peeking through the curtain next to the door!

What’s left to do:

  • Replace concrete walkway and damaged steps
  • Continue landscaping
  • Re-pave the driveway

Updating a 1960s Garrison House Interior

The rooms in our Garrison colonial are smaller, have lower ceilings, and are more closed off than in modern homes. Open floor plans and soaring ceilings just weren’t a thing back then!

So, our home renovation efforts focused on opening up spaces wherever possible and using decorating tricks to make rooms appear brighter and larger.

The Kitchen: Before

The original 1960s colonial kitchen was in rough shape! The cabinet doors wouldn’t stay closed, the drawers were falling apart, and there was very little counter space.

Our 1960's Kitchen "Before"

To make matters worse, the most frequently used entrance by the garage went right into the kitchen – there wasn’t anywhere to hang a coat, let alone space for shoes and backpacks!

After about a year of living in our home, we hired an architect and builder to redesign and completely gut the original 1960 kitchen.

We took down a wall to open the room to the original dining room (now our family room) and built an addition for the new kitchen.

This gave us a fantastic new kitchen and mudroom. (The mudroom is now where you see the kitchen table in the above photo).

LOVE this blue and white kitchen! You should see the "before". Get kitchen renovation tips for beginners at The No Pressure Life.
Love this navy blue island! Get great kitchen renovation tips to create your dream kitchen! | The No Pressure Life

Read all about our kitchen makeover.

Kids Bathroom Before

Gender Neutral Kids Bathroom Makeover

Kids Bathroom After

Get all the makeover details here.

Gender Neutral Kids Bathroom Makeover

Shop the Look:

Boy’s Bedroom Before

boys room before

Boy’s Bedroom After

  • Get all the makeover details and see how to create an eclectic boy’s bedroom.
  • See how we organized my son’s Legos the easy way!
Eclectic navy blue boys bedroom

I gave this thrift shop desk a major makeover. Learn how to paint furniture the easy way!

How to paint furniture - tips for chalk paint and a great desk makeover!

Shop the Look:

Girl’s Bedroom Before

Little Girl's Bedroom Before Makeover

Girl’s Bedroom After

Book storage for small spaces

Learn how our family stores books in small spaces.

Guest Room Before

This room was the original master bedroom. Here’s the listing photo.

Before I targeted our guest room/craft room for the One Room Challenge, it was our home’s dumping ground. Ick!

Guest Room After:

Read all about the guest room makeover and get helpful decorating tips!

Bohemian Guest Room Makeover
Antique Dresser with Modern Round Mirror

Craft Space / Home Office Before

Craft Space / Home Office After

Learn all about how to create a small craft area in any space!

Small Craft Room Makeover

Screened-in Porch Before

Screened-in Porch Before Makeover

Screened-in Porch After

  • Get 7 ideas for decorating a small porch on a budget!
  • Check out our budget porch makeover!
This small screened-in porch makeover is so budget-friendly.

Shop the Look:

TV Room Before

Our TV room was a dining room before we knocked out a wall and a built-in china cabinet!

Dining Room with corner hutch before renovation

TV Room Progress

All the basics are in place, now it’s time to accessorize! See our progress and get ideas for decorating above a corner sectional.

Gray corner sectional

Shop the Look:

Laundry Closet Before

Check out how I gave our small laundry closet a mini makeover for free!

This laundry closet was so boring before! Check out this laundry closet makeover done in an afternoon.

Laundry Closet After a $0 Makeover

  • Learn how to make a cute lint bin (which doubles as a trash bin in this tiny laundry closet) for free!
  • Check out how easy it is to organize your laundry room with hooks.
Quick and simple laundry room decor ideas, plus free printable laundry room art. See the whole laundry closet makeover at The No Pressure Life.

Shop the Look:

Pin It for Later

Check out how this garrison colonial got a major makeover to both the interior and exterior to create curb appeal and comfort. The before and after is amazing! If you're looking to design, remodel or put an addition on your home, you'll love this home tour, which includes a porch, kitchen, and more. #homemakeover #homedesign #beforeandafter #housetour #hometour #colonial #colonialhouse

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I'm a working mom of two who loves making something from nothing, rearranging furniture, and finding a place for everything. Come learn more about me and my journey to a less-stress life!

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