2025 Home Projects

2024 was a big year for us at the ‘McRaension’ with finally renovating our kitchen. Even though we redid our bathroom a few years prior, our kitchen renovation really solidified in me how much I love design. The kitchen is my favorite room in the house, and seeing my vision come to life gave me a lot more confidence in starting J. McRae Design.

The kitchen reno put the design bug back in me, and I can’t wait to transform another room in our house. I know we’re already in May, but there’s still time to share some projects we hope to continue or see through to the finish line in 2025.

• Living Room & Dining Room Updates
  • Earlier in the year, we already started updating our living room and dining room (the main room in our downstairs). Inspired by Grey Benko (one of my faves), I wanted to give our living room a fresh coat of paint and install built-in bookshelves for our ever growing library. With newly painted trim (Whythe Blue by Benjamin Moore) and walls (color matched to our Rifle Paper Co. wallpaper background), our upgrades are well on the way. I also purchased a new (to us) dining room table (with a leaf!) that still needs to be painted, a new light fixture, and have had the most fun in decorating our new shelves. We also plan on doing some electric work in the living room to finally hide those pesky cords and give ourselves more than two outlets in the whole room.
• Front Porch
  • As much as I wish I had a green thumb, landscaping is not my forte. I am not nearly as confident with outdoor design as I am indoors, and, currently, our front porch could use some help. Over the years, we have done a little bit to update our curb appeal – new flower beds, a new door color, a new light fixture, etc. However, our railing (currently broken thanks to Will) and brick pathway are both in dire need of updates. I think we’ll leave those to the professionals though. A new railing and pathway may seem minor, but I can’t wait to see how they add to the front of our house.
• Upstairs Bathroom Renovation?
  • It’s not a done deal yet (bc money), but Will and I have been considering finally updating our upstairs bathroom. I have never shared our upstairs bathroom for a reason, believe me. It is small, loud, leaky, and strangely laid out. However, I do love the slanted ceilings and the challenge (and opportunity!) those things bring for the design. I already have a look in mind – think very quirky English hotel vibes. We are in desperate need to update the plumbing upstairs. My thoughts are, if we have to update the plumbing, we might as well update everything else too! And make it gorgeous in the process.

Listing them here, 3 things doesn’t seem to bad. Yet, when I think about it, the bathroom and living room especially provide some pretty major updates to the look and function of our home. I can’t wait to get photos of our bookshelves done and finally show them off (I do have a few videos on my TikTok and Instagram though). Dreaming up projects is one of my favorite things, and I love our weird old house that provides constant opportunity for decorating.