I’m sure with any renovation, large or small, the owners look back and dissect the details of what they love and what they would have done differently.  And so is the case with our house.

First of all, let me just say that we LOVE our house. It was touch and go there for a while — it became a huge source of stress and angst, and at times Charles and I wanted to kill each other. But that time has passed, and now we’re not only content but excited to live in our home.

There are lots of little things we’re happy with, and a few little things we’d change. And trust me, the good far outweighs the bad! Here are the big, expensive things on the list.

The things I’d change…

1. Install an air vent in our master closet. Face. Palm. Seriously, how did we forget that? Better yet, how did our contractor forget that? We basically created a walk in master closet from scratch when we renovated the bathroom. I love our closet, and I have big plans for it, but now those plans include incorporating a fan in some way.

2. Install heated floors in our master bathroom. At the time, it seemed like an unnecessary expense. But lately on these cold mornings, we’re regretting the decision to forgo the heated tile floors in the bathroom. It wouldn’t have been cheap, but considering it’s our “forever” home and the amount we spent on completing the bathroom, it really wouldn’t have been so bad.

3. Paint our office a different color. I love the navy in the office. I repeat, I loooove the navy! But for us right now, it really is impractical and has become one of my biggest regrets. Silly, I know. But none of our black-framed diplomas, licenses, and art really work against the dark navy walls. Not to mention we have a navy love seat in there as well. This room wasn’t so expensive to paint (we did it ourselves!), but decorating it might prove more expensive that we had hoped.

The things I’d do all over again…

1. Build back porch stairs to match the front cheek walls. We could not love the look of these back steps more. Even with the porches still unpainted, your eyes are drawn to this beautiful staircase that matches our front cheek walls perfectly.

2. Install a new, efficient heating and air system, complete with new duct work. So this one wasn’t so much our choice. If you go way back to this post, you’ll find that our copper was stolen out of our working HVAC units while we were away for Charles’ law school graduation, rendering them useless. It was a major blow to our spirits and our wallets, but it really was for the best. The units were quite old, and any repair we had planned on would have just been an expensive band-aid. Now we have incredibly efficient units that heat and cool the house very well. (PS- we have a Nest thermostat and it’s the best thing ever!)

3. Go ahead with our master bathroom renovation. After using our upstairs guest bathroom for a few months while the master was being finished, we were reassured each day that we made the right choice in completing the master bathroom. Trying to use a pedestal sink for all my makeup and climbing in and out of the tub each day proved less than ideal. We love the tile shower, separate water closet, and large vanity in our new bathroom!

You can also read my renovation lessons here.

Have you been through a reno? Are there any decisions you regret? What’s the biggest lesson you learned?

Are you following along? Find me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest!