Have fun with it.

I was going to say what Sabrina said. Landlord should pay for materials including paint, permanent window coverings, kitchen backspash or hardware.

If the landlord does not want to pay for the permanents, you should be sure to consider them yours - example - you will remove the kitchen hardware and new blinds when you leave.

Don't move the appliances. It's not your house.

Paint and a beautiful shower curtain will go a long way in that bathroom.

The landlord should be paying for all materials and machine rentals. You are providing the labor...free. Very bad deal for you. Save the money you would spend...and spend the time working a second job. In a few years YOU will be the owner of your own property. Very good deal for you.

I agree with everyone else, unless this is a rent to own situation, I am not sure why you would be providing materials, labor and updating anything. When you renovate an owned home, the benefit of renovation is that it adds value to your home but in a renting situation, it's a waste of money as not building equity. That being said, if I were to give advice to a home owner-

The cabinets are laminate, and while they can be paint, unless done correctly, they will end up looking worse than before. Do not under estimate the labor involved in painting cabinets! I would recommend replacing the cabinets all together with reasonably priced cabinets but unless you have a friend who is experienced with setting cabinets, it may be wise to hire a professional to install. As far as the range/refrigerator placement, these are not appliances that can be moved to any location. The gas stove requires a gas line hook up and both require GFCI outlets. New cabinetry, like a tall slender pantry or refrigerator panel would help give some separation and make them seem more integrated to the kitchen.

For the bathroom, I personally like the blue cabinetry! I would get rid of the wallpaper. This is a laborious task but can be done DIY fairly easily using vinegar or fabric softener and water.

Painting is an easy update and cost effective! How about SW Waterloo for the door and Olympus White for the walls?

I wouldn't do more than paint the walls, maybe a new blind. It's a big job to paint cabinets - you don't own it - don't spend your time and money on improvements.

I'd try to get rid of the wallpaper in the bathroom, but honestly, outdated funkiness is part of the fun of renting, so I'd save your back and live with most of it the way it is. Get your landlord to replace anything that can't actually do its job, but otherwise, unless he's cutting your rent to repay the renovations, forget it!

You are paying the landlord extra with your labor unless you are getting a discount on the rent at a fair wage. Stop.

Congratulations on your first little place...

We always did a little work on our rentals...(note: "little")...true, it costs in labor, but I wanted to be happy when I walked in the apartment, so it was worth it to us and our landlord was very happy.

That said, have a look at your floor and see if a simple cleaning of the hardwood will suffice....a long time ago, before "finishes", people used to wax their hardwoods (I have a friend who did nothing except wash with vinegar/water and her floors were lovely.)

Your door, while outdated, has a funky charm to it. I would be happy with that, so clean it up and paint it, and the woodwork in the living room white. I like a white ceiling, too but use flat paint for that.

Have the landlord in to see if you can remove the spindles going into the kitchen...it shouldn't be difficult but DO ask specifically first...and have him sign an okay. If he does, it will just require you to patch and paint and that should be simple (as long as you're not too aggressive with the removal..so take care with that)

The bathroom, if that's wallpaper it should go....and you need a boat load of bleach cleaner (ventilate!!) for the floor and tub tile, which doesn't look to be in bad shape....

I would really (REALLY!) do this one thing at a time (starting with the floor that you've already begun) and have him sign off on it....that way he can come in and see what you've done after the first improvement and see if it's up to his standard (he does own the place after all) and, for you for if you really want to do this diy, and it will give him confidence to approve IN WRITING the next step....honestly, you don't want to get caught up in an insurance/legal nightmare...

So...one thing at a time.

whatever has been said..your landlord sounds like a real nice guy..:) unless of course you have agreement that your improvements hugely lower your rent?

what I'd do though..if I was as handy and as eager as you..

-the mosaic in the kitchen where the backsplash is-hard to see whether a real backsplash or wallpaper? if wallpaper-get rid of it and repaint. if real mosaics-just repaint. ETA-ok reread your post..real mosaics. I love peel and stick options that do exist, but I'm not sure I'd go for them here..it's not so much mosaic as its placement..countertop backsplash plus mosaics plus wrap around..too much. And it won't be easy to find something that will work. But. Check your options. Etsy has pages upon pages of tile decals, for example. https://www.etsy.com/search?q=tile%20decals&ref=auto1&as_prefix=tile%20decals

-you seem to have no space next to the stove..I know IKEA carries these narrow tables you know? or something of the kind..that you can put in between the stove and the fridge, have some landing surface, spot to place a pot you know

-is the floor in the kitchen real tile or linoleum/vinyl? you can try and cover it with something if it irritates you of course(to me it's actually the worst offender. along with the blinds that I'd take out and put on curtains. but you're going to do that anyway). it can be tile decals, it can be floor cloth, it can be big inexpensive rug..

the rest of the kitchen, just deep clean and let be. new paint will make a huge difference

-your door is fine..hard to see the living to make helpful furniture placement suggestion, but generally I find that sofa plus two chairs is the most versatile in most cases

-the bathroom is cute and blue in cabinets picks up the flooring. Wallpaper is best to go though since it clashes with flooring. Clean the grout..and ask your landlord to change faucets etc if they're problematic. If they're not but you hate them-well maybe you can split the price.

New paint, shower curtain that you love-and you're good. What's your style preference? I'm crazy about shower curtains so can look them up and suggest for you, and would be my pleasure:)

you do need some "landing strip" as they call it..and I can't see whether youn can fit small dining table in the corner of the kitchen? ..

if you want more suggestions about colors, furnishings, furniture layout and such, I recommend cross posting in Home Decorating forum. They(ok, us. lol) will ask you a bit more about dimensions, layout, preferences in style, budget, needs, etc.

Congratulations on your first renting place, it's exciting..and good luck!

Real life ain’t HGTV. Not everyone lives in perfectly decorated rentals. Especially their first. You are very lucky that you can afford something that has actually functional appliances and no roaches.

Be thankful, and first, do no harm. Renovations are not nearly as easy as they look on TV, and you can ruin this place really rapidly if you start of Willy Billy slapping paint on everything.

Leave it be. Add a portable IKEA something or another to the rooms that you need more storage and call it good. Even painting just walls is a ton more work than you realize. Work that you are not likely to have the skill and follow through to accomplish in a professional manner.

You are already going to lose your security deposit over the floors that you ruined. Don’t make him evict you and sue you too.

Make sure you get written approval for anything you do to the place in advance of actually doing the work. The written approval would be from the landlord and make sure it is very specific. You don't want to lose your deposit or risk a lawsuit by the LL based on a verbal approval by the landlord. I can not emphasize this enough. Verbal approval is not sufficient. Read your lease - it probably has language prohibiting changes and/or improvements without prior written permission. What you consider an improvement the landlord may consider damage no matter how nice he is right now.

As to fixtures - if you do decide to change the hardware on your kitchen cabinets, for example, you can NOT take those with you when you leave. This goes for any fixture that is attached to the property. Naturally, if it's not attached, that is different..

I agree with the others, painting or changing out blinds and adding window treatments is about as far as I would go with a rental. Save your money for your own place where you can do the improvements you envision.

..looking at the bathroom again-actually you know what? even if your landlord is fine with you stripping the wallpaper-leave it..tedious job..it's not it that clashes horribly, that this peachy pinkish door that threw me off-and you're repainting anyway, right? that door would benefit from being white or something I think..I think also whoever painted the space made a rookie mistake and chose paint by looking at it in a can..these peachy pinks happen when a person sees a perfect yummy cream, without trying it first in a space..:) saw it already several times..frankly once made this mistake myself when painting for the first time in my life..:)

(sometimes you want peachy pink, nothing wrong with it if it was chosen deliberately. here it looks like it just happened by chance)

As a past landlord, I was quite happy to severely reduce rent for a renter who wanted to re do the kitchen floor. The job was done well, and we were both satisfied.

On the other paw, I definitely would not go out if my way to Reno a rental. Since you have already started on carpet removal, that task will have to be completed - I hope the landlord is either paying for supplies or deducting rent. But if you haven't previously discussed that matter with him, now is not the time to bring it up. But do so for any further modifications to his structure that you plan to make!!!!!

Painting those kitchen cabs will not turn out well - Not a good material for taking on paint. Change knobs and pulls, but save the old ones to put back on when/before you leave. (Unless he's reimbursed you for their cost.)

Don't even consider moving the stove. That involves major electrical work. (Or gas line work, not sure on this tiny phone if thats gas or electric) If it has got to move, that task should be entirely on the owner's actions and desire. Yours is fine where located, although an adjoining prep area would be nice... is there enough space between range and fridge for a small table? Can't tell from here.

With landlord approval, removing blinds should be fine. Find a great shower curtain, and if you take on any painting, start small.

Wallpaper removal is a horrid task... I did it once, with help from friends. Never again.

I agree w those warning you against free improvements for the landlord. That said:

It is an exciting thing to have a space to put your mark on. You have an early 70s vibe here, and I hope you are planning to rock that. Your kitchen could use a small cabinet added next to the stove, and if you are handy, banquette seating. Both those things fit the era, the space, and are something you could re use, if built with that idea in mind. Natural shades to replace the mini blinds and a lighter, less orange colour for the walls will refresh the area nicely. Save the rest of your enthusiasm for accessories and fabric for the banquette.

The bathroom tile needs a good scrub, and that is it. If you paint things white in there, the floor sticks out more, and the paper will look filthier, so again, look to your accessories to make sense of what you've got.

In the living room you have room for a normal seating arrangement of sofa and chairs. If you need massive seating, look at a sectional rather than trying to add a loveseat.

Hope that is of some help, and good luck w your new place.

And by the way, unless you put the patches on the wall, the landlord is required to paint in many locales, so maybe look into picking out the colours, and letting him do his thing?