In the past couple years, we all spent an unprecedented amount of time in our homes. So no wonder so many people rolled up their sleeves and decided to either fix things that had been bugging them for too long to remember, or just go into full DIY renovation mode. And truth to be told, not everyone seems to have succeeded, as this previous article we published recently suggests.

But this time, we are taking a look at the incredible examples of renovation projects that completely transformed people’s homes. Whether it’s brightening up a blank room by repainting walls, redecorating an entire apartment, remodeling a living room, or creating something entirely new from scratch, like a bookcase that perfectly blends into the wall, there’s no limit to people’s persistence and creativity.

And thanks to this great online group on Reddit that’s devoted to sharing original content of “real people and their real rooms,” we have a lot of wonderful inspiration to scroll through. Upvote your favorite home renewal projects and ideas, and if you’re also working on something like this, be sure to share it in the comment section!

#1 The Before And The After

Image credits: RoryBowcott

#2 Small Bathroom Remodel. Before&after

Image credits: DIY_Lion

#3 Living Room Before-And-After. Had To Work With The Existing Dining Table And Chairs, And Media Cabinet. Feels More Home-Y Now!

Image credits: watermelonpep83

In order to find out more about common home improvement and renovation mistakes to avoid, Bored Panda reached out to Philippa Main, the professional realtor from Tampa Bay who went viral for her brilliant and insanely funny listing description about “the worst house on the street” a while back. Philippa happily shared some very useful advice with our readers, so if you have a project on your mind, be sure to see what she had to say.

The realtor explained that there are so many errors people make when doing home renovations, but they can be summed up by the idea that it is more expensive to try to do something cheaply. “Because it will inevitably cost you more in the long run when it has to be redone in order to make it right,” she added.

#4 Before & After Of Bedroom Office Space (Atlanta,ga)

Image credits: Hollywoodsrp

#5 Bedroom Makeover For My 9 Year Old Son. Denver, Co. After vs. Before

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#6 Before And After Of My Patio

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Another common mistake to avoid when renovating a home is hiring unlicensed professionals to do the work, and that’s very common practice among people. “I had a client go under contract on a home recently that was in the process of having a covered patio installed,” Philippa recounted.

“During inspections (before the covered roof was even complete) the home inspector discovered none of it was up to code and it could have potentially been a hazard in high wind situations. In order for it to pass county inspections and for the buyer to feel comfortable moving forward with buying the home, the sellers had to replace the entire structure. So they paid once for it to be done poorly, then paid to have the materials removed, and then paid for new materials and for a professional to properly install it.”

Philippa continued: “On top of that, the unqualified person they first hired to do the job actually ruined the main roof of the home during the installation, so they had to hire a roofer to repair their roof as well.” The realtor assured that all that could have been avoided if they had hired a professional who was licensed and insured to do that kind of job from the start.

#7 Dull Stairway, Before And After. Scotland, UK

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#8 Ensuite Redesign Incl Before & After Pics, Norwich, UK

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#9 I Remodeled My Parent’s Upstate NY Kitchen During Covid. I Did A Lot Of This By Hand, Myself And This Is My First Time Ever Doing Anything Like It. I Had A Blast. Would Love To Hear Your Thoughts! Before And After(S) Below!

Image credits: NYsoul

Another useful tip from the realtor is knowing what to save on and what not to. “People may try to save $200 by not pulling a permit, but when a buyer discovers that when the owner goes to sell, it could cost the seller a lost sale or thousands of dollars to get it properly permitted after the fact,” she said.

“One of my biggest pet peeves is when people replace flooring but only some of it, especially when the areas are adjoining (like replacing the carpet in the living room with wood plank, but leaving the kitchen that connects to it with original 1980s ceramic tile). It makes it difficult for the new owner to properly match it (even if you leave them materials) because of the way the floor is installed, so they either have to live with the ugly tile, or pay to replace the whole floor,” Philippa explained.

#10 Bathroom DIY Upgrade. Before And After

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#11 Before And After Of My Small Apartment Kitchen. I Don't Miss The Orange! (Louth, Ireland)

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#12 Redid My Bathroom During Quarantine (Aurora, Co)

Image credits: coloradoguy1989

The realtor also pointed out that seeing a nice granite or quartz counter on 50-year-old kitchen or bathroom cabinets is also frustrating. “Modern-day cabinets usually have different dimensions, and removing the counter to reuse it on new cabinets is not always possible—essentially the sellers have paid several hundred dollars (or more) for an upgrade the buyers will have to re-pay for,” she concluded.

#13 Living Room Before & After

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#14 Above Pic Is Before We Moved Into Our New House In Ohio.... Bottom Pic Is After A Solid Paint Job!! Feels So Much More Open And Airy Now And I Love It

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#15 Our Bathroom Is Complete. Total Gut, New Subfloor, Added Window, Moved Plumbing From The Floor Into The Wall

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#16 Feb 2020 To July 2020. I Wanted To Make My 650sq Ft Apartment A Place I Can Actually Feel Comfortable During The Quarantine! (Excuse The Laundry On The Floor) - Astoria, NY

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#17 Hexagons Are The Bestagons. Bathroom Remodel In San José, Ca.

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#18 Dartmouth, Nova Scotia - I Just Finished My Bathroom Reno!!! It Took A Month And I Had To Shower In My Backyard Through The Whole Thing

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#19 Before And After Renovation Of My Tiny Scottish Apartment Bathroom

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#20 Our Kitchen Renovation In Bath, England, Before & After

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#21 Before And After If Our Dining Room

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#22 Before And After Of My Renovated Bathroom - Nj

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#23 My Parents’ Family Home They Bought In 2007 And Renovated Themselves! So Proud Of Their Vision And Work

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#24 A Before And After Ft. A Poor Man's Backsplash - Done While Being Stuck At Home. Detroit, Mi

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#25 My Bedroom Two Days Apart, Did Everything Myself

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#26 Tiny Bathroom Update (Virginia)

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#27 Before And After Of My Renovated Kitchen - Nj

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#28 Our Bathroom Remodel In Austin, Tx. Before And After

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#29 Before And After Of My Kitchen Update

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#30 Our Living Room, Brooklyn, NY (After / Before)

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#31 Before & After, Rennovated Hallway. 1890's Victorian Terraced, UK

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#32 Dining Room - Edmonton, Ab

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#33 Makeover Of Our Tiny Kitchen. Still Small But Now Cleaner And More Functional - Manila, Phl

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#34 Master Bath Remodel - Colorado Springs, Co (Before/After)

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#35 Finally Done With Our Bright Living Room In Our New Home In Orange County, Ca! Before Photo Included

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#36 Before And After - East Machias, Maine

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#37 We Bought A Fixer Upper. Here’s The Before And After Of Our Living Room! Tulsa, Ok

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#38 (After/Before) Our Living Room, Beaverton

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#39 Before And After Of My First Interior Decorating Project As A Sole Proprietor! Downingtown, Pa

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#40 Guest Bedroom Before And After | Austin, Tx

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#41 Before And After Of Lake Side Cottage In Ontario, Canada.

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#42 Our Kitchen Remodel Is Finally Done!

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#43 Finally Finishing Out Our 4 Month Kitchen Reno [reston, Va]

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#44 Covid Delayed Our Couch Delivery By Almost 12 Weeks But It Was Absolutely Worth The Wait! [lakeville, Mn]

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#45 Home Bar

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#46 The After And Before Of My Teeny Tiny Studio Apartment In NYC

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#47 Before/After Kitchen Remodel (Bay Area, Ca)

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#48 Bright Bathroom Update In Nashville, Tn!

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#49 Completed The Guest Room Just In Time For Our Guests Tomorrow! [guest Room In Small Town South Carolina]

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#50 Five Years Ago I Used The First Time Home Buyer's Credit To Install New Cabinets. Thanks, Obama. (Before And After)

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#51 Before & After! We Renovated An 1800s Cabin In Upstate New York

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#52 Living Room After/Before, Nova Scotia

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#53 Philly Suburbs Living Room: Before (Previous Homeowners) & After

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#54 A Before & After Transformation Of My (Now) Favorite Room In The House! Dallas, Tx.

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#55 Kitchen Update - Bristol, UK

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#56 1 Year Transformation Of My Small Bedroom!

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#57 Before And After Of My New Wfh Space! Northern California

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#58 New Kitchen Before And After. UK.

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#59 Pretty Proud Of This Project That I Completed By Myself Here In New Jersey!

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#60 My Bedroom Before (From The Listing) And After I Got My Hands On It. Portland, Or

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#61 Before And After Of Our Kitchen Upgrade / Sydney, Australia

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#62 Under $100 Bathroom Overhaul In My Jellybean Rowhouse; St. John’s, Newfoundland

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#63 Seattle Retro-Renovation! I Turned My Ugly Powder Room Into An Atomic Half Bath

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#64 After 5 Years, We Finally Updated Our Ugly Master Bathroom!

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#65 Kitchen Remodel In Our 1920s California Bungalow (After/Before)

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#66 So Proud - I Did This All By Myself! Kcmo

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#67 Just Wanted To Share My (Mostly) DIY Bathroom Reno. I'm Proud Of Myself And I Hope You Guys Dig It! :)

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#68 It’s Crazy What A Little Elbow Grease And Paint Can Do. My Kitchen Before/After (Kansas City, Mo)

Image credits: salmonerd202