The long-awaited house remodel is finally underway. It’s amazing to think that this was a project we wanted to do from when we bought the house (eight years ago) and seriously started talking about a year and a half ago and all of a sudden it’s here. It’s actually rather shocking; I spent so long not allowing myself to believe it was really going to happen because I didn’t want to be disappointed that the fact that it IS happening sort of caught me off guard.
We’ve had a busy last few days moving out of the upstairs. One very good thing that has come of this is that it forced us to really purge a lot of stuff that we had been hanging onto for no reason. The el cheapo armoire that I bought at the home improvement store, assembled without making sure anything was square and refinished (using a tutorial from Martha … it was a disaster) is gone. None of the drawers fit so they were always just sort of jammed in there at odd angles. What else went? The disgusting drapes, a bunch of old bedding (random sheets that had no partners) that I was apparently saving to cover plants in case of frost, about 20 pairs of shorts that had long been “outgrown,” several bikinis (oh please … if, by some miracle I ever end up fitting in a bikini again, I think I’ll celebrate by buying one made in this decade), a lot of underwear and all kinds of other junk.
I really didn’t know what to expect when I came home from work today. It was shocking. Well, let’s just let the pictures tell the story.
Here’s what the house looked like this morning (ignore the stuff on the patio; we’re not going for trailer park chic … just stuff destined for a Dumpster).
This is what our bedroom looked like before.
And here’s what it looked like this afternoon. This is taken from the middle of the other bedroom (the wall between the two has been removed). The brick structure you’re seeing is the original chimney for the house, which is abandoned and hiding in the walls. We (and by “we” I mean not at all me) have to remove it all the way to the basement for the renovation. It is actually made of Cream City brick and I wish I had known that was the case because I would have either thought of something to do with it or found someone to reclaim it. It’s a treasure, really, and it makes me sick to think of it ending up in a landfill when it’s so special. I have to talk to the contractor tomorrow morning about finding a home for it. Of course I’d love to make a little money to offset the cost of this crazy project, but more than that I know someone wants it. Maybe the local Habitat for Humanity resale store wants it.
One Response
Doing the remodel only eight years after moving in is pretty good. We are finally doing the room that you enter first in our house, the one we said had to be done immediately when we moved in 16 years ago. You learn to live with a lot of stuff you don't like while you save money and work on more necessary projects — like bathrooms!
I am going to really enjoy watching this project of yours!