Fresh Paint and a DIY Bed Swing Revamp a Sunroom Entryway for $500

In just four weeks, a bargain hunter created an inviting sunroom with a built-from-scratch relaxation spot and gained painting skills and power tool confidence.

Avery Michaels, who shares bargain decorating ideas on her blog and Instagram, Holland Avenue Home, knew her enclosed porch had potential. While mulling over design plans in an airport terminal, her project really took off. For a twist, she decided to leave the windows bare but add curtains and "a view" to an end wall in the 9x30-foot space. "Everything else fell into place from there," she says.

before sunroom makeover plain white
The long sunroom serves as an entryway to the Alta, Iowa, home. Courtesy of Avery Michaels

The makeover star is a bed swing Avery and her brother-in-law built for $150—a huge savings over the $1,000 swings she found as inspiration—using off-the-rack pine lumber, 40 feet of rope, and a twin-size mattress she owned. In fact, Avery spent only $500 on the entire facelift.

after bright sunroom makeover wood swing
Adam Albright

Avery's sunroom project involved woodworking, fabric dyeing, and sewing, as well as painting every square inch of the space. "The thing that surprised me most was how big an impact fresh paint made," she says.

rope screw hook hanger
Adam Albright

To safely hang the swing, Avery and her brother-in-law installed screw eyes with hitching rings (properly rated for the estimated weight) into the ceiling joists. The hitching rings on each screw eye ease rope threading. They threaded 1-inch-diameter rope through each ring and through holes drilled into each corner of the swing, knotting the ropes securely at the bottom and top. Waiting to insert the plywood seat support until the swing was in place left room to work.

bed swing rope bright simple
Adam Albright

After painting the walls and ceilings white, Avery created a feature wall using deep blue Chalk Paint from Annie Sloan. The art is a framed piece of wrapping paper ($9, Paper Source). A friend gave Avery leftover epoxy to spiff up the concrete floor. For visual warmth, Avery dyed plain white curtains from IKEA in her washing machine and pleated the top for decorative top-to-bottom folds.

stump table flower furniture
Adam Albright

Avery picked up the tree stump—free for the asking—at a local antiques store. She sanded and sealed it, then nailed a piece of felt and furniture glides to the bottom.

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