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Orientation — What This Is

Cedar & Linen is a journal of home improvement projects, discoveries, and lessons learned from renovating and maintaining a house. Whether you’re planning a major renovation or tackling a small DIY project, you’ll find honest assessments of what works, what doesn’t, and what we’d do differently next time. This is a homeowner’s perspective, not a contractor’s — we’re learning as we go, and we share both the wins and the missteps. We started this site because there’s a lot of home improvement advice out there written by people selling something — tools, services, products. Not much of it comes from someone who just lives in a house and fixes it.

The Key Figures

If you’re new to home improvement, understanding typical project timelines and budgets can save you from costly surprises. Most people underestimate both, which is why so many DIY projects stretch longer and cost more than expected. Here’s what we’ve tracked across five years of renovation work — kitchen remodels, bathroom updates, painting projects, landscaping, flooring, and countless smaller repairs:

What	Range	Source
Average project timeline	2–6 months	Our own renovation history
Cost overrun rate	15–25%	Industry average + our experience
Planning time investment	4–8 weeks	Pre-project research and materials
Confidence building	6–12 projects	Before tackling major work alone

Next Step

Once you’ve read this introduction, browse our Topics section to find projects similar to yours. Each category walks you through what to expect, real costs and timelines, and the questions to ask before you start. We’ve organized them by scope — small projects you can finish in a weekend, medium projects that take a few weeks, and larger renovations that span months.

The most important lesson we’ve learned in five years of renovation is that the planning phase saves more money than you’d expect — sometimes more than any single material choice. It’s not exciting work. Measuring twice, sketching layouts, calling contractors for quotes, and researching building codes won’t show up in a before-and-after photo. But it’s the difference between a project that runs smoothly and one that spirals into stress and unexpected costs.

Every hour spent planning saves three hours of scrambling during the actual work. That’s been true across every project we’ve tackled, whether it’s painting a bedroom or replacing kitchen cabinetry.

Common Sticking Points

Questions that come up again and again from homeowners starting out:

Do I need a permit for this project?

Check your local building department’s website or call them directly. It varies wildly by jurisdiction and project type. Surprise permit violations are expensive, and inspectors have seen every shortcut. When in doubt, ask.

When should I hire a professional?

If the project involves electrical work, structural changes, or disturbing surfaces in homes built before 1978, you probably need professionals. As the EPA’s Renovation, Repair and Painting Program explains, roughly three-quarters of homes built before 1978 have lead-based paint somewhere in them, and disturbing it without the right precautions is the actual hazard, not the paint sitting there undisturbed. We have found this especially true when a “quick” trim or window job on an older house turns into more prep than the project itself. For cosmetic work and simple repairs, most homeowners can manage.

How accurate are the timelines I read online?

They’re usually for experienced people working efficiently. Budget 1.5× to 2× the stated timeline for your first attempt at something new. That feels like failure until you realize you’re actually learning.

Browse around, pick a project that interests you, and see what we’ve learned. Home improvement moves at its own pace — there’s no timeline but the one you set. If you have questions as you read through, or if you’ve done something we haven’t written about yet, head over to our contact page. We love hearing how other homeowners tackle their projects and where they’ve found success.