How to Decide Between Decorating and Remodeling Your Home in Northern Virginia

In Northern Virginia, Florida - or anywhere in between

You love your neighborhood. The schools are great. The yard is exactly what you wanted. The location works perfectly for your family's lifestyle and commute. There’s just one thing, every time you walk into your kitchen (or bathroom / living room, enter your troubled spot), something feels off. 

It might be the dated finishes. Perhaps its the layout that just doesn’t function as well as you’d like.

Or maybe this home simply doesn’t reflect who you are as a family. 

One of the most common questions we hear from homeowners is:

“What do I need to make this home feel like us? Do I need to redecorate? Do I need to renovate? I don’t know where to even start.” 

The answer depends on what's actually preventing your home from being that home that works beautifully, lives thoughtfully, and feels like you. And the best news is that we can help you find your starting point and guide you through the process.

Decorating & Renovating Solve Different Problems

Decorating your home involves looking at furnishings, rugs, artwork, lighting,  drapery, wallpaper, paint, and accessories. Our aim is to improve how things are laid out for aesthetics and beauty. Sometimes simply redecorating and re-styling can give your home that nudge it needs to finally feel like “you”.

Gratefully, decorating involves zero renovation; no moving walls, plumbing, or major appliances. We aim to enhance existing structures with decorating. 

On the other hand, renovating your home involves changing walls, layouts, cabinetry, plumbing, electrical, flooring, kitchens and bathrooms - oh my! The aim of renovating is to alter the way your home functions and is structured.

While we love a good renovation, many times a home doesn’t actually need any structural changes. It just needs attention from a professional eye, some creative problem solving and a makeover in decor! 

Signs Your Home May Need Decorating

Let’s take a walk through your home.

Does the layout work for you? (Or does it work well enough that you don’t want to drop $5,000 or more to change it?).

You have enough storage space. The finishes are in good condition.

But the lighting isn’t great, or maybe it’s seriously lacking character (hello, builder-grade homes), maybe some paint or artwork would help. But the issue you keep coming back to is that it just feels unfinished more than dysfunctional.

You might even like the space but you don’t love it. It needs to resonate with you on a visceral level. I always encourage my clients to have a visceral level reaction when they walk into their home. That’s when you know it’s you. It speaks to your eyes, your heart, everything just sings! What I love most about decorating is that we can completely transform a room without the cost and disruption of a renovation.

Remember the 1990s and early 2000s? When decorating shows ran the gamut on television? When the “greats” were decorators and not everything needed a gut renovation and a new layout?

The root of what I love is decorating. It’s the biggest visual impact for the least amount of life disruption. Now, it’s not always inexpensive. However it usually is less expensive than a renovation. I often consider changing our business name to include decorating but that would be a hassle, so I make a point to say often, “we offer decorating & design”. Decorating is not less than design.

Signs Your Home May Need a Renovation

I hope I didn’t scare you off from a renovation by now, but let’s take a walk through your home with a different perspective.

If your home’s layout is a daily point of contention, your storage (or lack thereof) doesn’t support your families needs, the way you move about your home feels awkward, cramped or stifled, you may be headed towards a renovation.

If your kitchen simply doesn’t serve the number of people in your household or the way you entertain, and your bathrooms are severely outdated and dysfunctional to the point that you’re constantly thinking or saying “I wish this ____ was built differently (better, less awkward, etc.)” 

Those are problems that no amount of decorating can solve. They are purely functional and we would want to address them as such. 

Not every renovation needs to be an overhaul, blow-out, re-arrange all the plumbing and stairs - type of reno. The benefit to hiring us for an onsite consultation is that we’re able to look at the least disruptive options for a renovation that still maximizes the impact on your day to day living. 

When You Need Both

While I’m not currently in your home, I don’t know where you landed on decorating, renovating or … here. In the space of needing both.

Why would a kitchen renovation need new furnishings?

Or a recently expanded family room needs new furnishings and accessories?

How about that renovated bathroom needing a new lighting plan? 

Too many times, we hear from homeowners who have completed a renovation and still wonder why their space feels unfinished. While renovating creates the foundation for your room, decorating gives it personality and character. And that’s where we come in!

If you didn’t hire us for your renovation and you worked directly with a general contractor, that may be a key reason why your newly renovated space doesn’t have character.

General contractors are great - at getting the job done! However, they are not a replacement for a designer (or decorator) and they’re not ones for adding character or personality to your home.

That’s where we come in! 

Our core belief (and what Bleu Bee Designs has been built on), is the ethos that a home should be more than beautiful. It should feel personal, meaningful, and deeply connected to the people who live there. 

The Value of a Designer & Decorator

Contrary to popular belief (thanks to Father of the Bride II and Franc!), my job is not to sell you decorations, furnishings, luxury items, or even renovations. It’s not to spend your money or upsell you.

The true value of what Bleu Bee Designs brings to every client is that every home has a story, and it's our joy to create a home that is personal, joyful, layered, meaningful and deeply connected to its inhabitants. 

How do we do that?

We listen.

We ask questions.

We develop a deep understanding of you, your family members, your lifestyle and routines, your holiday traditions, where you came from, what pieces are important to you, how you desire the background of your memories to look and feel.

Then we dive in with a clear direction and plan. Not products.

We’re looking at all the unglamorous things: goals, functionality needs, cost priorities, long-term plans. Because the right plan helps you invest confidently and avoid costly mistakes.

We are storytellers and stewards of your resources.

At Bleu Bee Designs, we help homeowners determine whether a space needs decorating, renovation, or a combination of both. Through thoughtful planning and a deep understanding of how your family lives, we help uncover your home's potential and create a roadmap for transforming it into a place that feels unmistakably yours. 

Every home has a story. Sometimes that story needs a few carefully curated layers. Sometimes it needs a more significant transformation. Whether your home needs decorating, renovating, or both, the goal isn't simply to create a beautiful space.  It's to create a character-filled home, beauty, meaning, and memories in the making. A home that finally feels like you.

Ready to uncover your home's story?

If you're thinking about home renovations, planning a renovation, or simply figuring out if your home needs interior decorating versus remodeling, we'd love to help.

Schedule a consultation with Bleu Bee Designs and let's create a plan for a home that feels unmistakably yours.

Our 60-minute ($250) in-home consultations for interior decorating and design are available currently in Northern Virginia (Alexandria, Mount Vernon, Belle Haven, Waynewood, Fort Hunt & beyond).

Not local to Northern Virginia but still want to chat? We offer virtual consultations as well! 

Please note that we serve clients along the East Coast - from Virginia to Florida. For upcoming travel schedules for an in-person consultation outside of Northern Virginia, please contact Brittany@BleuBeeDesigns.me