Best of Driven by Decor 2020!

Happy new year!! I’ve never been so glad to ring in a new year and I’m sure most of you feel the same! 2021 is going to be a big year for us since our youngest will be heading off to college, making us empty nesters (which seems so surreal). I’ll share more about our plans in a later post but it will definitely be a year with lots of change and LOTS of projects to come!

Before jumping into my first projects of 2021, I’d love to take a look back on 2020 and share the posts that were reader faves! 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 so appreciate it!), 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

I love sharing decorating tips & tricks and they tend to be some of your favorite posts! For 2020 the most popular decorating tips post was {this post} where I share tips for mixing different metal finishes in your home, which is something I did a lot of in our new master bathroom:

My post includes tips on what metals mix best, how many different metals you can get away with mixing, and more.

Two other popular decorating tips posts were on paint colors including {this post} on readers’ favorite blue paint colors and {this post} on Benjamin Moore Chantilly Lace (one of my favorite white paint colors) and how it compares to other whites you might be thinking about using in your home:

Also be sure to check out {this post} on must-have bathroom measurements if you missed it, especially if you’re planning a bathroom makeover or renovation in 2021. It has tips on how high to hang things like towel hooks and TP holders along with detailed measurements for shower niches and more:

Favorite Room Makeover

Your favorite room makeover in 2020 was no big surprise since it’s the one I poured ENDLESS hours into – our master bathroom addition (which you can see {here})! This was actually my all-time favorite project because it was a completely new addition rather than a renovation of existing space. So instead of trying to figure out how to work around an already established footprint, it’s the first time I was able to work on a design from scratch. It was so rewarding to see all of my plans and ideas come to life!

SOURCES: Bathtub Nook – Rattan wall tile in front of bathtub | Freestanding bathtub | Freestanding tub filler (brushed nickel) | Large rattan pendant available {here} and {here} | Dip dyed wood stool | Open Shelving – Floating shelves (Pickled White finish) – use this link for 25% off | White woven basket (medium) | Kumquat tree & stacked boxes – no longer available | Gray & white striped planter (holding snake plant) | Colorful moth art print | White wood frame | Glass canister (1 gallon size) | Bath bombs | Belly basket with tassel (small) | Favorite bath towels | Lidded seagrass basket below shelves for hamper (large) Shower – Bianco Bello 2″ Hexagon Tile (shower floor) | Bianco Bello 3″ x 12″ field tile (shower walls) | Glass shower enclosure – Mr. Shower Door | Shampoo & Conditioner Pump Bottles (16 oz white/gold) | Body brush | Sea sponge | Driftwood teak shower bench | White tassel bath mat | Razor | Shower valve trim (satin nickel) | Shower head | Hand shower | Square shower drain

Along with visiting our master bathroom reveal post {here}, you might also want to check out {this post} with my ten favorite master bathroom ideas if you missed it!

Another favorite makeover was the makeover of our back porch in NC that I shared in {this post} – we’ve never have a covered porch before and absolutely love spending time out here now:

Porch Sources: Indoor/Outdoor rug (denim/gray) | Seating & table set | Basket set | Throws

Another 2020 room makeover project was the makeover of our breakfast nook that you can see {here}:

Sources: Round jute rug | Round white table | Gray & white chairs | Woven pendant

Favorite DIY Project

Dressing up my daughters’ twin bedroom with {this peel and stick wallpaper} was your favorite DIY project of the year. It was mine too because I had been dying to try out peel and stick wallpaper for years and now I’m hooked! You can check out the finished room and my peel and stick wallpaper hanging tips in {this post}.

Two other DIYs that were favorites were the painting of our front doors – I share the step by step for knocking this project out {here}:

And I shared some super simple, inexpensive spray paint projects {here} – it’s amazing what a difference a can of spray paint can make:

Favorite Organizing Projects

Your favorite organizing projects of mine in 2020 were ones that I tackled in our kitchen. They include my pantry organization project that I shared in {this post}:

It’s full of tips for how to make the most of your space and also how to organize it in a way that it STAYS organized.

And the other favorite was {this post} with 8 budget-friendly kitchen organization ideas including my tip to use one of {these pan organizers} to make the most of your space while also making your pans much easier to grab:

A Personal Fave

While my personal favorite of the year was our master bathroom addition, a close second that I haven’t hit on yet is our new master closet that we created with the IKEA PAX system – you can see all the details in {this post}.

Having shared a small closet with Jeff for the past 7 years, having this new large walk-in closet has been heaven!

And a personal highlight of the year was our adoption of Cricket – I shared her adoption story in {this post}:

I still have a hole in my heart from losing Hope that will never be fully filled, but this sweet girl has already brought us so much joy! She came with a bit more “baggage” than we anticipated (we found out a few weeks after getting her that she had a cancerous tumor) but she has since had surgery and after a rough week post-surgery she is now doing really well and expected to have a good long-term outcome. So thankful!

Favorite 2020 Home Purchases

1. Pretty Shower Pump Bottles

Once our master bathroom shower was done, it felt wrong to throw ugly plastic bottles in it (ha!) so I went on the hunt for some pretty shampoo and conditioner pumps and found the perfect ones! I chose {these 16 oz. white/gold glass pumps}:

but if you’d rather have plastic than glass you can find them {here}. I wasn’t sure if the labels would hold up over time with all the moisture in a shower but they look just like the day I bought them!

I also bought two of {these 16 oz clear bottles} for hand and dish soap by our kitchen sink:

The striped tray that they’re sitting in is no longer available but I recently swapped it for {this tray} that’s also a perfect fit!

2. Stylish Ceiling Fan

I’d say that about 95% of ceiling fans are pretty freaking ugly but after a lot of searching I found {this brass globe light fan} that I love!

I ordered a second one to replace the dated fan in our guest room too! If you want to see my other favorite ceiling fans that I found in my search, check out {this post}.

3. Magnetic Measuring Spoons

I did a whole post on favorite Amazon kitchen finds {here} if you missed it but the find I love the most is {this set of magnetic measuring spoons} (they are popular and go out of stock frequently – {these spoons} are similar if mine are out of stock when you check). I love how they stay together so neatly in my drawer but separate easily for use and that there are two ends for every size so it’s like having two sets in one:

4. Driftwood Shower Bench

When trimming a few things from our master bathroom addition plans to lower the budget, our built-in shower bench was one of the things to go. I ended up finding {this driftwood shower bench} and am now SO glad I didn’t spend the extra money for a built-in bench. I love the look of this teak bench, it’s not cold like a tile bench, and I’m so happy with the clean-lined look of full shower glass panels on all sides (which we wouldn’t have had with a built-in bench).

5. Star Flush Mount Light

Another small makeover project I did in 2020 was re-wallpapering the laundry room in our house in NC and swapping out the dated light fixture. I chose {this star flush mount light} which is one of my all-time favorites – love it!

Other lighting that I bought in 2020 and am super happy with are {this large pendant light} above our bathtub, {these vanity lights}, and {this rattan lamp} in my girls’ room.

6. Mini Power Scrubber

I’m such a gadget girl and I’m also all about finding things that make cleaning easier and faster so {this mini power scrubber} (the basic kit) was one of my favorite finds of 2020. It’s battery operated and rotates to do a great job cleaning hard to reach spaces!

I also bought {this pointed grout scrubber head} attachment which is awesome for cleaning grout!!

7. Floating Wood Shelves

When shopping for floating shelves in our bathroom, I needed a non-standard length so was super glad to find a company that makes them in any length you want. Not only that but you can choose the wood type and stain and the thickness too! You can find find all of their floating shelf options {here} (this link gives you 25% once you add them to your cart!). Also if you’re thinking about buying them be sure see {this post} which details all of the floating shelf options with pictures of finishes, etc.

8. Ninja Foodi 5 in 1

If you’re looking for some new easy dinner options, I can’t recommend my Ninja Foodi 5 in 1 enough! I got mine several months ago and am pretty obsessed with it – it has a ton of features but my favorites are that you can use it as an indoor grill (and the food gets seared and is nice and juicy) and as an air crisper. Even better, all of the components you cook with can go straight into the dishwasher so clean up couldn’t be easier. It’s made making dinner easier and given us a lot of new, easy to cook options.

I got mine {here} when they had several color options (but it looks like they only have the copper color stocked right now). You can also find it in stainless steel {here} where it has a ton of five star reviews.

And with that, 2020 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 2021. 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!