Ground Breaking

Hurray!  Work has begun (actually these are from a couple of weeks ago - I just fail at updating).  

I have always heard - and know from experience - that things get worse before they get better, but seeing the house like this can really test personal fortitude.  Basically we are looking at the addition (that will become a den and bathroom) and how it connects into the kitchen and master bedroom.  Without walls it looks huge!

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Getting Started

We finally got to work on the new house last weekend - YAY!!

All the doors that are going to be moved were taken down (and all of the crystal door knob were removed and put into safe hiding from renovation dangers).

Then we started in on the walls that will be removed.  Thankfully we thought to check in the attic just to make sure these weren't load bearing - because they are.  One is holding up the ceiling in the kitchen and part of the back roof.  Awesome!  The back roof is coming off anyway to allow for the addition, and I guess the framers will just have to redo the kitchen ceiling too.

We did get the plaster and lathe off of these walls though.  That's the hardest part about taking out a plaster wall - the wood will be down in no time (after something is done so the ceiling doesn't fall in).

Another (not-so) awesome surprise:

Knob and tube wiring.  This is the original 1920's kind.  I think it was very progressive for the time; now it is know to burn down houses.  It cemented my suspicion that we were going to need to rewire the entire house (as opposed to just adding new lights and outlets where needed).

On a positive note though I had a really good surprise.  The attic is in pretty good condition - the ceiling is really high and there is already sub flooring.  It's not going to be finished space but it will be great storage (something there never really seems to be enough of).

All in all - a productive weekend.

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The Game Plan

We've been working over this past month with Kromberg Wall architects on the design for the new house. In a lot of ways I hate this part of the process.  I did so much thinking and planning and analyzing and over analyzing the layout before we bought the house (basically in a need to determine if it was worth buying).  About a month ago I handed my hand drawn sketch to the architect for them to draw up the actual blue-prints.  And then we waited...

They brought up a lot of detail issues I hadn't even thought about.  Then a few weeks later we got the layout:

I showed to to my mom.  Her reaction: "That's it?  That's the whole house?"  Yes Mom, it is. 

 It's 1900 square feet as a reference.  The tops the front.  The unmarked rooms are the living room and dining room to the left, and two bedrooms to the right.  In the end it will have three bedrooms and three bathrooms, and most of the original layout and character aspects of the home will still be intact.  With the addition of a huge master bathroom and kitchen - woo hoo!

I can't wait to get started on the actual construction!

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We Did it Again!

That's right we bought another dump!  I'm pretty excited about it too.

It's another 1920's bungalow, with great bungalow features.  Like the front porch - it's granite with neat trim details around the ceiling.

And the front door with beveled glass.

And the shelving that flanks the brick fireplace.

Some of the house isn't too bad as it is.

The original windows are mostly intact and the brass dining room chandelier is going to be great with a couple coats of spray paint (I'm considering something bright and bold - like green - I may be too chicken though).

The butler's pantry is also in pretty good shape, with the original glass and hardware.

Imagine the hardware stripped and the back painted a robin's egg blue, with silver and white dishes in front.  It makes me giddy to just think about it.

It's a good thing too, because that giddiness distracts me from this kitchen.

There are few redeeming qualities about this space - it will be gutted.

Oh, the back door is neat though.

I think it may become the bathroom door - with a frosted glass window.  I really want French doors back here to look into the yard:

It has 3 pretty standard bedrooms and this one bathroom:

... which has some salvageable pieces: the built-in medicine cabinet and the cast-iron bathtub are in great shape.  And the floor tile has a neat pattern.  It does still need a sink, toilet and wall tile though.

So that's pretty much it.  I'm so excited to chronicle this project as we go so stay tuned...

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