See inside: Young couple transforms abandoned Mint Hill colonial home — and talks renovation costs

Quick background: Inna and Vitaliy, both in their 20s, design homes professionally through their business called Vik House to Home. And they have two young children.

They recently bought an abandoned 1967 colonial in Mint Hill and within six months, transformed the home inside and out, mostly on their own. They tore down walls, gutted every bathroom and kitchen, and installed a dog shower.

The house: The house is approximately 2,100 square feet with four beds and two and a half baths. Before the renovation, the house had a pretty standard colonial layout with a family room and separate formal living room.

Inna’s style: “My style is a blend of traditional and modern with splashes of Parisian,” Inna said. “I love french paneling, wall moldings, and classic architectural detailing paired with contemporary art and fixtures along with antique accent pieces. It feels sophisticated yet playful when such different styles mesh together.”

Here’s what it looked like before.

Money: Transforming a house from top to bottom isn’t cheap, but Inna and her husband (like many others who’ve shared their fixer uppers with us) saved money by doing as much of the work on their own as possible.

“Budgeting for a room can be tricky,” Inna says. “For a renovation of the likes we did, such as new flooring and everything, you will pay more than paint and decorating. You can refresh a dining room for $1,000 or completely transform it for $10,000. It all depends on the project and the scope of the work.”

Inna and Kovalinskiy spent $25,000-$30,000 on their kitchen alone — and that was the budget-friendly route, Inna noted. If you’re totally gutting a kitchen, expect the remodel to cost $25,000-$90,000. If you’re doing a refresh (painting the existing cabinets and new counters, backsplash, and fixtures) it’ll cost $10,000-$15,000.

“Not everyone is looking to renovate an entire home all at once, but tackling room by room is very feasible,” Inna says.

For example, renovating a small powder can cost you between $2,000 to $10,000, but to remodel a master bathroom, you can expect to pay between $15,000 to $35,000.

Subcontractors: Inna and her husband did a lot of the work on their own, but they hired three subcontractors to take on the projects they couldn’t. They used LEP Construction for quartz install (941.276.6164); Charlotte TWP for flooring (980.289.9300); and LRD Services LLC for painting (704.779.5095).

Fun design fact: “The home was built in 1967, and the tile rug was something I designed to honor the original family that built this house,” Inna said. “It was in the family all these years up until we purchased it. Right behind the house, on the property, are the remains of an original horse and buggy road in Charlotte. There is a lot of history on the property surrounding the home.”

Inspiration: Inspiration for the design comes from the couple’s trips to Europe — especially Paris, Prague, and Vienna — and Pinterest, design accounts on Instagram, and driving around town.

“I am obsessed over the Haussmann Parisian interiors that I incorporate small elements of that style into almost every room,” Inna said.

Shops: For vintage pieces, Inna swears by the Habitat for Humanity Restore on Wendover, the antique shop in Matthews, and the Salvation Army. But newer items, like bathroom vanities, are from Costco and Lowes.

Smaller items, art, and lighting are mostly from Amazon, Target, and Houzz.

Advice from Inna: “It’s funny what big dreams can do. We dreamed of owning this home when it was never on the market. We dreamed of starting a design and contracting firm when we already had our jobs and lives ‘sorted out.’ We dreamed of walking our dog with our kids on this street. We dreamed of owning all this land to build ourselves another future home. None of that was even on the horizon for us, just dreams. ”

But after prayers and time passing, Inna says opportunities started opening up.

“And now, a year later, we are walking our dog with our kids on our dream street and slowly opening up our own business. So in danger of sounding very cheesy, hold onto that big dream you may have because you never know when it might just come true.”

Photos courtesy of Inna. Follow Vik House to Home on Instagram here. Interested in inviting us into your home? Email [email protected] for a chance to be featured. Want to see inside more interesting properties? Check out our Home Tour archive.