Update: Builder to Custom

I hope you don't mind crappy iPhone photos, because on a jobsite, that's about as good as it gets! I managed to snap a few pictures of some of the recent progress that's been going on and I'm happy to say that a lot happened last week. Hooray!

Gosh I wish this photo was better -- hindsight is 20/20. You can see that the cabinets are in and that the statuary marble is up, but not grouted and the newly milled shiplap is installed on the back wall. We're breaking up the wainscotting that is everywhere so that the bathroom has a breather. Plus, wait until the mirrors are hung and the three sconces are up -- so excited to see it painted and installed.

The new wall that faces the keeping room off the kitchen. Remember what it looked like before? Such a huge transformation already. Shiplap has gone up above the custom fireplace and it also marries with shiplap that backs all of the built-ins.

And last, but certainly not least, a humble pic of what will be a not-so-humble kitchen. The new chandelier arrives any day that will go above the island and the cabinetry will be finishing up next week while the painters also get started (it's going to be a crazy week!). The second row of cabinets help fill the 15' ceilings and Thassos marble is waiting to be grouted. I'm so excited about this kitchen. The faucets went in on Thursday and seeing them sparkling against that Calcutta made me want to tear up! Is that sad? I can be totally unmoved by the saddest episode of Oprah, but give me a newly installed Perrin & Rowe faucet and I'll choke up! I guess it's something only a certain group of us would understand...?

Onwards to a busy week. Thanks for bearing with me on the lack of posts. I have been burning the midnight oil since the new year (a classic example, simultaneously ordering at the drive through while on the phone with marble yards -- it was confusing for all parties, trust me!) but it will mean lots more updates of various projects and some good stuff coming up.

Have a good weekend!

So Long Faux River Rock!!!

It's a big week in these parts, well actually, a few big weeks! And for my clients, a few big weeks that are going to feel very long while they are living out of boxes and cooking with a microwave. But they say good things come to those who wait, and baby, this is a GREAT thing. Remember the house I posted about last week when I mentioned the builder to custom remodel? Well the cabinets arrived this week from Pennsylvania and demo started on the kitchen and attached sitting room. Just to give you an idea of what it was like before:

Great appliances were about the only thing the builder had splurged on so they are being re-used in the new kitchen. Other than that, low-quality cabinets in mid-tone wood and pre-fab granite. (Forgive the photo, we're feeling a little shy, aka, we did not know that photo was being taken!)

The beautiful media wall o' boxes and the three little pigs chimney. Why the builder thought it was a good idea to make a grid system, regardless of opposing drywall confounds me. Also, my client could literally FIT in these if she wanted to because they are SO deep! Who wants cubbies that deep at 14' high!?

And now, in progress after today:

Popping off the rock - I wish I had a picture of it with nothing, it's amazing the difference it makes, even at this stage and a few moments after this was taken, the top boxes were drywalled over and later the fireplace is being reshaped.

The wall where the range used to be. In the new kitchen, this wall is shortened and holds the bulk of the appliances - fridge, double ovens and microwave.

The biggest transformation: We ripped out the wall that used to separate the butler's pantry from the kitchen. The new plan opens up the space and gives the room a huge run of counters and it's now a wrap-around kitchen -- no hidden areas that don't get used and her desk area is actually a part of the space. Not to mention direct access to the dining room and another bonus is that it makes the soon-to-be-installed grasscloth visible from the kitchen. Gorgeous!

I'll continue to keep you posted. I also have a few more pictures of before and afters in this home and I can't wait to share more. It's truly a great example of what can happen to these "big box" homes when you have great clients and the opportunity to make it happen.

Circa 1998 - 2002, Part 2

After an exhaustive four years of renovation, the "worst house I'd ever seen" was now quite livable. In fact, it caught the eye of the nice people at Better Homes and Gardens and was featured in their October, 2002 issue.

We chose to renovate and decorate in an eclectic cottage style as it worked with our minimal budget and the style of the house. I'm not one for houses decorated in literal period style, so no Craftsman furniture for us! We collected and reused materials before it was easy and fashionable. We spent many weekends sifting through junkyards and antique shops for hardware, lighting and furniture.

The outside of our first home. Wish we could have repainted it, but it wasn't in the budget. You can get a little glimpse of the steep stairs up to the house. It was a workout just to get to the front door!

The finished dining room. The antique chest has moved from room to room and house to house.

The other side of the dining room that leads into the kitchen.

The finished living room. Small but comfortable.

Our inexpensive but highly functional kitchen. We could only afford Ikea cabinets and they turned out to be a great value for the price. The wine rack was something we added when we miscalculated the space in the kitchen. It turned out to be a great feature for all those late night projects.

Our master bathroom. This original space was scary with a capital S. It was a small closet bedroom at best. We needed another bathroom in the house and this was the only space where we could add one.

Because it was a dormer, the ceiling height was limited. To visually open the space we fashioned a shower curtain rod out of wire and attached it to the built in storage unit. I loved this room as it was very functional yet warm and cozy.

The office space at the top of the stairs. If you remember from the before pictures, this is where the fireplace stood. We had to use every ounce of space in this house as there wasn't a lot of storage. The built in bookcases and file drawers became a life saver.

What you can't see is the hallway leading to our master bedroom and our actual master. To keep the small space visually open we didn't have any doors except for the bathroom. Once you came up the stairs it was one big long room. Again, because space was limited we had to be creative about closets and storage. We used the eaves of the attic for 4 custom height french door closets.

This was the sunporch out to the patio. We added all the beadboard, repaired the windows and added lighting. When we bought the house this was the scariest lime green room I'd ever seen. The paint was almost neon.

This house was an incredible project and learning experience. When I look back I'm not sure how we survived it!

I hope you enjoyed the pictures of our first home. Later I will show you the before and after pictures of our next renovation project.