Happy New Year!! I’m so excited for all that 2023 will bring (including some BIG renovation projects on our house)! But before looking ahead to the new projects & DIYs to come, let’s look back on 2022 by sharing the posts that were reader favorites. If you’re new to Driven by Decor, now’s the perfect time to get caught up on the blog, and if you’re a long-time follower (thank you, I appreciate you so much!), you might just find a post or two that you missed along the way. Let’s get to it… (affiliate links included in post; full disclosure statement available {here})
Favorite Decorating Tips & Tricks
I love sharing decorating tips & tricks and they tend to be some of your favorite posts! For 2022 the most popular decorating tips post was {this post} on choosing & hanging light fixtures including tips on how high to hang chandeliers & kitchen pendants, how to choose the best nightstand lamp height, & more:
Two other popular decorating tips posts were {this recent post} on guest bedroom ideas for creating a welcoming retreat:
and {this post} on console table decor styling ideas.
Favorite Room Makeover
There are several rooms in our home that we did remodeling work on in 2022 including our family room (with the it-took-forever-to-remodel fireplace), our circus room with new shiplap ceiling, and our dining room. I’ll be finishing off those three room makeovers in 2023 with full room reveals so stay tuned for that! One of the two complete room makeovers we knocked out in 2022 is our powder room makeover that you can check out {here}. Our powder room went from this:
to this more stylish and functional space:
I also knocked out the last projects in our bedroom, including adding new bedroom lamps and hanging our drapes. Our room looked like this when we first moved in:
and now looks like this:
I have a full reveal post with more pics and details on our new bedroom lighting {here}. I got SO many questions related to our bedroom drapes that in 2023 I’ll be sharing an A to Z post on drapes including where to find the best drapes, how to hang them, what drapery rods I use, and more!
Favorite DIY Project
I knocked out a bunch of DIY projects in 2022 but the reader favorite was {this post} on our closet makeover using The Container Store’s Elfa system. I saved a ton of money by doing the installation myself:
and am so happy with how it turned out! We not only added a ton more hanging space, but also a bunch of drawer space. I share all the details (including installation tips) and lots of “after” pics {here}.
I also shared a post detailing all of the budget-friendly kitchen remodel ideas that went into our budget-friendly mini kitchen makeover that took it from this:
to this:
including adding marble contact paper to our countertops, a wallpaper backsplash, new cabinet hardware, and more. You can find all of the details {here}.
I also shared two DIY posts that I’d been meaning to knock out for years including tips on how to paint a room {here} and how to install wallpaper {here}.
Favorite Organizing Projects
The two most popular organizing posts of 2022 were {this post} with 15 small bathroom storage ideas (FYI, all of The Container Store’s over-the-door racks are 20% off right now – shop them {here}):
and {this post} on kitchen cabinet organization ideas:
Also check out my ideas for over-the-toilet storage {here}.
Favorite Cleaning Tips Post
Your favorite cleaning tips post of 2022 was {this post} with tips on cleaning your hardwood floors:
and just as importantly, what NOT to clean them with! Also, be sure to check out my 2022 post on my favorite cleaning tools {here} if you missed it:
Another Reader Fave
In 2022, I shared a designer looks-for-less post where I shared several low-cost lookalikes of higher end decor and furniture pieces {here} such as this splurge or save find:
SO many of you emailed and messaged me about how it was one of your favorite DBD posts ever! Look for volume 2 of my latest splurge vs. save finds in 2023!
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Favorite 2022 Home Purchases
1. Behind The Door Storage Cabinet
I added {this behind-the-door cabinet} to the back of the door in my daughters’ bathroom, and it added a TON of much needed storage space (they have a crazy amount of cosmetics 🙈). It attaches to the door hinge pins and opens and closes in unison with the door (there are magnets on each that keep them together) but the storage cabinet is easily separated from the door when you need to grab something inside:
My behind-the-door cabinet is painted white on the back, but there’s also an option {here} to have a full length mirror on the back instead.
2. Dining Chairs
I had been looking for upholstered chairs for our dining room for close to a year, but every chair I liked was $500+ per chair (which was NOT happening since I needed six). Then I found {these upholstered side chairs} on Amazon and not only do I love the look of them, but I also love that they’re on casters plus they’re about half the price of any similar chairs I had found:
Once I knew the side chairs were a go, I ordered two of {these end chairs} to complete the look!
3. Large Scale Art + Lamp
I wanted to add some large scale art above our dining room sideboard and found a bunch of well-priced art prints that I liked {here}. I ended up choosing {this unframed art print} in the 40″ x 55″ size printed on canvas. I stretched the canvas over {these custom stretcher bars} and added {this floating frame} in pine. I’m so happy with it:
I’m also loving {this triple gourd lamp} that I added on top of my sideboard. Finishing off the styling of my dining room sideboard is on my 2023 to-do list!
4. Serena Smart Shades
I recently shared in {this post} on my smart home products how much I LOVE my new Serena Smart Shades on our glass front doors! They look 100x better than the ugly wood blinds that they replaced and they allow the light to pour in when they’re up:
and give us the privacy we need at night when they’re down:
I also added them to the windows in my girls’ bedroom and love them there too (it’s so nice being able to put them on an automatic schedule to go down at sunset since their bedroom faces the street). Get all the details and see more pics of our shades in {this post}.
5. Clam Shell
I have no clue why, but I freaking LOVE my decorative faux clam shell! I’ve seen pricey versions of it at Pottery Barn & Restoration Hardware for $$$, but found mine {here} for under $50 (it’s also available {here}):
I got it just before the holidays, and it was perfect on our entryway console table filled with ornaments. It will be fun to change up the contents of it with the seasons and various holidays!
6. Cord Organizers
I tried out {these cord organizers} in 2022 and am hooked! I added them to several of my small appliances including my hand mixer and crock pot, and love that it keeps the cords nice and neat for easy storage in my kitchen cabinets:
A word of warning: the exact cord organizers I linked are super sticky and have stayed firmly adhered to everything I’ve used them on but there are a lot of similar organizers that don’t stick well at all so don’t just buy the cheapest ones you can find!
7. Bissell Carpet Cleaner
I bought {this Bissell Spot Cleaner} early in 2022 and have gotten so much use out of it!
It does a great job of sucking the water back out of the carpet once it’s been cleaned and I love that there’s a feature that self-cleans the hose (which got disgustingly gross in my old carpet cleaner). If you have carpet in your home, this is a must-have!
7. Bedroom Lighting
{These blush table lamps} that I added to our nightstands and {this floor lamp} that I added to our little reading nook were the exact finishing touches that our bedroom needed:
They definitely aren’t cheap but they’re super high quality, the perfect size for our space, and are fixtures I’ll have for years and years to come!
8. Desktop Vacuum Cleaner
{This USB charging desktop vacuum} is the best under $20 item that I bought all year! It’s a mini handheld vacuum that’s made for cleaning dirt, crumbs, and debris from desktops but I love mine for use around the kitchen! I keep it on the lazy Susan on our kitchen table and use it to quickly clean up any crumbs left behind on our tablecloth after meals. I also use it to quickly suck up crumbs on our countertop before spraying them down with cleaner. I’ve only had to charge mine once since getting it (the initial charge lasted over a month). Trust me, it’s a highly addictive little sucker that you’ll love using!
9. Hand Crocheted Stockings
My final favorite was actually a Christmas gift from my youngest daughter. She hand crocheted me five of these blue stockings which I absolutely couldn’t love more!
She used {this pattern} if you’re interested in making them yourself.
And with that, 2022 on Driven by Decor is a wrap! Thank you guys so much for stopping by the blog throughout the year! I look forward to lots of new projects, room reveals, tips, and DIYs in 2023. If you have any ideas for posts that you’d love to see, please let me know in the comments.
And if you aren’t already subscribed to get notified of new posts on Driven by Decor by email, now’s the perfect time to do that too! It’s typically only 1-2 emails/week, you can unsubscribe at any time, and you’ll no longer miss posts or miss out on favorite new finds (I always feature several in each post) by not catching them before they’re sold out. CLICK {HERE} TO SUBSCRIBE
Happy New Year everyone!
