Final week, Matt and I quietly handed a milestone in our dwelling. Ten years! It’s exhausting to consider that we’ve been right here a complete decade, and even more durable to consider that I’ve been engaged on this home for that lengthy, and I’m nonetheless not completed! 😀
Why has it taken me so lengthy? Properly, the home in determined want of a full down-to-the-studs renovation. There’s not a single room that hasn’t been torn all the way down to studs and ceiling joists, and a few of have even been torn all the way down to flooring joists. Each room has been rewired, and has gotten new insulation, new drywall, and new home windows.
I’ve had assist alongside the best way, but when I needed to estimate, I’d guess that I’ve finished about 85% of the work on my own with my very own two fingers. I’ve not solely finished demolition, rebuilding, a number of the drywall, refinishing flooring, putting in home windows, and all of that type of work myself, however I’ve additionally adorned every room, together with portray, stitching, upholstering, constructing furnishings, making paintings, and so on. In different phrases, I’ve taken the final ten years turning a really tough canvas into an exquisite (to me) dwelling that fits my adorning and design style, and works functionally for my wheelchair-bound husband with M.S.
It has been fairly the journey, with loads of blood, sweat and tears alongside the best way. I’ve had my share of trial and error, outright failures, but in addition loads of victories. And in hindsight, I can let you know that it’s been effectively well worth the effort.
After which there’s the training alongside the best way…OH MY GOODNESS, the training! Once I look again to the place I used to be once we purchased this home, I can’t assist however to chortle. I used to be so excited to have my very personal home that I may DIY my manner by way of, and on the similar time, I used to be so unbelievably naive. I had completely no thought what I used to be getting myself into, or what I used to be committing myself to. Ignorance really was bliss. Had I recognized that ten years later, I’d nonetheless be working my manner by way of these rooms, I truthfully don’t know if I might have taken on the problem. So in a manner, I’m grateful for my ignorance again then! With out it, I could not have my lovely (to me) dwelling right this moment, and all the rewards of figuring out that it’s a results of my work with my very own fingers (with the assistance of many alongside the best way).
So let’s check out how far the home has come since we purchased it in August of 2013.
The primary time I noticed the home, the entrance porch alone was nearly sufficient to make me flip away — the previous concrete porch, the 2 entrance doorways, the rotting wooden assist posts, the previous home windows that wouldn’t open, and the vinyl siding. It was nearly an excessive amount of. However I used to be decided to show it right into a welcoming entrance porch.
Certainly one of my largest disappointments was that this home didn’t have a separate entryway. I had actually wished a separate entryway, so I attempted my finest to create the texture of an entryway within the lengthy lounge.
From the primary time I noticed it, I knew the lounge wanted a fire, so I constructed a faux one between the 2 facet home windows. And whereas it took me a number of tries to get this room proper, I lastly did it.
The music room was meant to be a eating room, however having a desk and chairs on this room would have been a hindrance for Matt in his wheelchair. So I made a decision to show this room right into a music room in order that the center visitors space may very well be left open.
The hallway initially had a really slender cased opening, and never one, however two closets in it. I eliminated each, widened the cased opening, and constructed a brand new cupboard.
The hallway toilet is as soon as once more getting just a little facelift, however the main rework was finished years in the past. It was the second room I transformed on this home, after the kitchen.
The visitor bed room remains to be getting used as our fundamental bed room till we construct our addition. With a view to accomplish my imaginative and prescient for this room, I had an exterior door eliminated, a window eliminated, after which I constructed two new closets.
The second bed room was initially wooden every part. Wooden ceiling, wooden partitions, wooden flooring. I made a decision to show this into a house fitness center, utterly sans wooden.
The unique main bedroom was utterly repurposed and is now our grasp toilet, full with an enormous curbless bathe that’s good for Matt.
The kitchen was the primary room I transformed on this home, and it was like leaping with each toes into the deep finish of the pool. I had by no means finished something like this earlier than, and I needed to study in a rush and stretch my DIY expertise additional than they’d ever been stretched earlier than.
The room subsequent to the kitchen was initially one huge, open room. I turned the entrance a part of the room right into a breakfast room (which is at the moment and quickly getting used as a sitting room till we construct our addition).
I walled off a 12′ x 7′ part of that room on the again and turned it right into a walk-in pantry. This was my first time to construct cupboards utterly from scratch.
And eventually, our unique storage underwent most likely probably the most dramatic change of any room in the home. What was a darkish, soiled storage (pictured beneath after the storage doorways had been eliminated) is now a piece in progress, however is popping into the prettiest studio ever (in my humble opinion 😀 ).
There was a lot extra — far more than I may ever put into one single weblog publish — that has transpired over the past ten years. What a decade it has been! And I’ll simply maintain plugging away on the home till it’s completed, which can most likely be by no means. Are houses actually ever “completed“? 😀 I feel our hallway toilet, now on its third makeover, is a fairly good indication that our dwelling won’t ever really be completed. It can will at all times be evolving. I’m, in spite of everything, hooked on adorning. 😀 The title of my weblog is what you name reality in promoting, my buddies!
Addicted 2 Adorning is the place I share my DIY and adorning journey as I rework and adorn the 1948 fixer higher that my husband, Matt, and I purchased in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do bodily work, so I do the vast majority of the work on the home on my own. You may study extra about me right here.