Decorate in Snow-White Style

The charming stone exterior attracted Deserae and Derek Crafts to this 1870 schoolhouse, which they bought in 2003. In addition to a school, it had served as a home and a bed-and-breakfast, so the structure had gone through multiple renovations.

Seasoned do-it-yourselfers, the couple continued with the changes, tearing down a wall to connect the living room to the sitting room, replacing too-brittle wood floors with reclaimed maple from a gymnasium and remodeling the kitchen with $2,500 cabinets found on Craigslist.

Deserae records the renovations in her blog (peekingthruthesunflowers.blogspot.com). "I started the blog as a way to express my designs," she says.