Before and After: Dining Rooms

You'd never know this is a 125-year-old waterside home. The next slide reveals the hidden charm.

After stripping the carpeting and paint off pine floors, homeowners installed era-friendly baseboards, window and door casings, and crown molding. White paint on woodwork means it stands out against the soothing green walls. Fabric and furniture add subtle elegance.

The warmth of traditional style was lost in this dining room. Click ahead to see the changes. 

Furnished with family heirlooms, the dining room is now a clubby, cozy spot. Rich wood, wallpaper, fabrics and paint get brightened with a little white paint on woodwork and the crystal lighting. 

This 1875 cottage pales in comparison to one with charm of its era. Click ahead to see its renewed look. 

A 19th-century pine breakfront and custom trestle table add a touch of formal elegance and warmth. The moss-green wainscoting matches cabinets in an adjacent kitchen.

The standard-issue chair rail and brass chandelier can't stand up to floral wallpaper trying for cottage charm. Click ahead to see how the owners injected style.  

There is nothing standard about the combination now. Blue-painted walls, an oil-rubbed light fixture, shutters and a fun mix of furniture create style fitting for a 1912 cottage.

Sunshine, but little else, warms this bungalow's dining area. Click ahead to see how a makeover doubled its impact.

Floor-to-ceiling shelves filled with books now line the dining room so it doubles as a den. A couch and reading chair make it just as easy to enjoy a book as a meal at the dining table. The books, pillows, masks and other accessories stand out against the white of the walls and shelves in this bungalow.

White is bright but cold before this room was remodeled. Click ahead to see how it got warmed up.

Colorful art and fabrics punch up this white dining room, keeping it bright while injecting personality. A sisal rug tops wood flooring that echoes the tones in the traditional furniture. Sweetheart fabric on seats adds a little kick to that furniture though! A graceful glass chandelier crowns the look.

Dark and dingy transforms into sunny and classy in this rehab. Click ahead to see. 

A pair of antique doors from a flea market in France flank the entrance to the revived dining room. Like architectural art, they hint at the more subtle architectural updates, such as the substantial clean-lined plaster moldings replacing cheap wood trim and wainscoting. Subdued color keeps the space peaceful.

This Edwardian home hadn't been updated for three or four decades. The next slide shows the updates. 

Chairs in comfort-extending upholstery surround a vintage-style wood table. Neutral yet textural grass cloth on the wall complements a group of drawings, which seem to reference the squares of the patchwork-look rug.