Wait. When Did our Home Become Dated?

My wife and I visited the desert every year before we finally moved here from the Bay Area. We couldn’t wait to buy a Spanish-style hacienda. The architecture was so different from Sausalito, and we loved it.

Then, after living here for a while, something shifted.

I couldn’t tell you exactly when. But seemingly overnight, the browns and creams we’d been perfectly happy with started looking dated. And apparently, it wasn’t just us. So many buyers here seemed to be having the same reaction at the same time.

Had we all received a memo?

It’s a funny collective consciousness thing. You think your taste is entirely your own, and then suddenly everyone wants an updated kitchen—including you.

Remember when shag carpet was fabulous? People chose that. Enthusiastically.

Now we’re in the middle of a remodel. Here’s how we’re approaching our home’s facelift.

Step One: Call the Friends with Excellent Taste

We started by tapping friends with impeccable taste who had just remodeled their own home. It helps to have people who can see the possibilities when you’re still staring at the same walls.

We also used a little AI rendering to explore design concepts. Seeing how different choices might look in our home helped us figure out what we liked—and plan accordingly.

Step Two: Give the House a Fresh Direction

First up: painting the walls White Dove. The browns and creams were going.

We want a cleaner, more contemporary feel while honoring the home’s Spanish architecture. That means thinking about how the new finishes and furniture work with the house itself.

We’re changing the lighting, updating the hardware on doors and cabinets, and adding a little texture to a few walls. You can change the feel of a home in many ways before you start tearing out a kitchen.

Step Three: Plan the Big Projects—and an Escape

The kitchen and bathrooms were our two biggest priorities. We figured summer would be the time to tackle those projects, when we could travel and take the dogs with us.

That was the thinking, anyway: coordinate the work, pack up the dogs, and give the contractors a little room to get on with it. I could still manage from afar and periodically return to check on progress. 

Step Four: “Pop Over” to Restoration Hardware

We wanted an inviting, elegant seating area—somewhere to settle in with friends and stay for a while. So we popped over to Restoration Hardware.

“Popped over” sounds so innocent for something that cost a crazy fortune.

Yes, consignment stores were an option. Plenty of beautiful furniture from luxury estates is available here. But I know myself. I don’t have the patience to crawl through warehouses looking for the perfect piece. I admire people who do.

I want it now. There. I said it.

Step Five: Keep What You Love

We have beautiful tile floors, so we decided to keep them and have them buffed. We still love them—no need to invent another big project.

We’re also keeping the way we use our four bedrooms, two of which are offices. We made those into cozy work areas. We spend enough time in them that they deserve as much thought as the rest of the house.

Step Six: Make Room for the She-Cave

And then there’s my she-cave.

We have a separate golf cart garage that’s getting its own transformation: a mini-split, beautiful lighting, a textured floor finish, and window shutters.

I may be particularly invested in that part of the plan.

It’s interesting to go through this in your own home. I spend so much time listening to what buyers want, and here we are, making many of the same decisions. We still love the architecture that brought us here. Our taste in what goes inside has changed.

Of course, someone once stood in their newly remodeled home admiring the shag carpet and thinking, “Yes. This is groovy. I dig it.”

They say if you stick around long enough, even bell-bottoms come back in style. Oh, wait. They already did.

Clearly, none of this is stopping me. The backyard and pool area are on the list, too. I already have ideas.

One step at a time, JB.