BEYOND BASIC

This California home shows how to use DIYs to breathe life into the bare bones of builder-grade architecture.

This California home shows how to use DIYs to breathe life into the bare bones of buildergrade architecture.

Before Ana Ochoa, an attorney, moved into her suburban Southern California home with her husband and pup, DIY renovations were an unknown territory. She’d never tiled a backsplash or used anything more than a handsaw. However, she knew she wanted to transform their builder-grade home into the vintage farmhouse of her dreams—and was determined to learn as she went. “I’ve always loved home styling and crafting, but this house was my first foray into real home renovation,” she says. “Now I’ve tried pretty much every power tool out there.”