Thursday, August 9, 2018

The Big Reveal: Part 1

Well, it is, at last, the big  day to reveal and weave the tale of this summer's projects. I have been updating all along, so forgive any of these photos that are duplicates. I think if you want to grab a refreshing glass of iced tea or cola, you will enjoy this little look at the summer reno...  This is only part 1.... It was such a mess....


Birth of a notion: 

Conditions of the floor and walls created the need for action. Did it dictate we do it all, all at once? Umm. No. No, it didn't.




My son interjected the idea of truly changing the footprint of the kitchen, knocking out a stairway and merging the small porch with the tiny kitchen. I loved the idea of a bigger kitchen and no stairway to a basement with snakes.  A friend casually asked if we had started yet... as if... it might really happen. I found a reasonable carpenter who was ready to begin in six days. 



The project was to install new floors in landing, bathroom, laundry room, bedroom (created from a dining room), kitchen-porch combined, and to refinish the hardwood in living room. It included demo and reconfiguring the kitchen, stairwell, pantry, porch. We were painting the kitchen, living room, and bedroom. We also installed a new farm sink, repurposed maple Ethan Allen cabinets, and added countertops.

There. I am exhausted to just name it all, let alone all the decluttering, moving, and reorganizing, the weeks of living in approximately zero space. But at last we are as finished as we could ever be.... for now.


To those who have loved vsiting here with us and with Mom and Dad, we are happy to update their beautiful home and create a place to thrive. Some of their treasures have been sold, donated, and sent into the universe for others to love. Not one thing we have changed could bring back one single golden afternoon with all of us together. We cannot and would never take one thing from them. However, if I can say one thing about my parents, they truly LIVED and made good choices for themselves and their family. We decided to try to do the same.




The Project Begins:








A Final Look!


We began this renovation on the sunny morning of June 25th. My son and I had spent days pulling things out and emptying three rooms and the bathroom. First they laid tile in the laundry room. landing, and bathroom. We began the seemingly never-ending process of moving, shuffling stuff from one area to another.

 Then the exciting demo day.







You can see into the basement and the attic!





A small change of plans (and budget) as we opted to install support jacks throughout the main structure of the basement. This took two days.





 Insert brown recluse spider bite!  (I will spare you the picture of my wrist!) It got worse and worse and required a trip to the doctor and some antibiotics.




Add in a good two days for the wiring. Some of that we have tabled for our electrician.


Then the carpenter took a vacation for a week! Catfish Noodling in Oklahoma!




Back to work. The paint I chose for the kithen was Starry Night. I chose it from this.




Oh, my goodness! Screech. The wallpaper buckled and necessitated a good day of steam and a few coats of wall putty....   And I hastily changed colors. It was not good in this room.




It didn't feel right. Too much of a good thing! It is usually pretty dramatic if the paint matches the blue masking tape!

I will catch ya later.... Believe me. It is looking different!






Whimsy and Hugs!

1 comment:

linda said...

Wow.
Lots of work but it will all be worth it.

Linda