We bought it now we broke it
We have purchased our first home. It's a cute little brick ranch in the next town over. Sure, there were a few things we didn't love, such as the knotty pine paneling in the living room, dining room and hallway, but there were also things we totally loved, such as the two acres it sits on. The day we bought it we discoverd beautiful hardwood floors under the carpets and knew we wanted to expose and refinish them. Since we wouldn't have to buy new flooring, we decided to go ahead and rip out the paneling and put up sheetrock.
And so the demolition began...
Some people love knotty pine, and we're not judging. It's just not for us. We're dark wood people. Anything lighter than cherry is too light.
So here's my dining room mid-destruction...
And to think people covered up that floor with carpet! Finding them under there and in such good shape was an unexpected gift. There's a few places where there is old termite damage (no active infestations, thankfully), but on the whole, for being fifty-five years old, our little house is in great shape, sturdy as a rock. Of course, it being brick helps that, but it was constructed very well with brick pillars in the crawl space also.
So this is what it looks like now:
The whole middle section of the house that had the paneling is stripped to the studs, as you can see. The bedrooms and kitchen were all sheetrocked already, so we're just going to paint the walls. The whole house, including the bathroom, has the same 3/4 inch thick oak flooring (let's hear it for sturdy 1950's construction materials!). So we've stripped them all, including the three(!) layers of linoleum over the wood in the kitchen.
At this point the hubby is about halfway done re-wiring the place, since nothing in the house was grounded. But next up we hang sheetrock, then we rent one of those giant sanders and sand the floors, after that it's time to paint the sheetrock, then last, but not least, we restain the floors mahogany.
For the moment, though, at least we can still enjoy the backyard.
That is seriously my backyard. All the way back to the treeline. SRSLY. I think I may have to get a goat to help us keep the grass down.
And so the demolition began...
Some people love knotty pine, and we're not judging. It's just not for us. We're dark wood people. Anything lighter than cherry is too light.
So here's my dining room mid-destruction...
And to think people covered up that floor with carpet! Finding them under there and in such good shape was an unexpected gift. There's a few places where there is old termite damage (no active infestations, thankfully), but on the whole, for being fifty-five years old, our little house is in great shape, sturdy as a rock. Of course, it being brick helps that, but it was constructed very well with brick pillars in the crawl space also.
So this is what it looks like now:
The whole middle section of the house that had the paneling is stripped to the studs, as you can see. The bedrooms and kitchen were all sheetrocked already, so we're just going to paint the walls. The whole house, including the bathroom, has the same 3/4 inch thick oak flooring (let's hear it for sturdy 1950's construction materials!). So we've stripped them all, including the three(!) layers of linoleum over the wood in the kitchen.
At this point the hubby is about halfway done re-wiring the place, since nothing in the house was grounded. But next up we hang sheetrock, then we rent one of those giant sanders and sand the floors, after that it's time to paint the sheetrock, then last, but not least, we restain the floors mahogany.
For the moment, though, at least we can still enjoy the backyard.
That is seriously my backyard. All the way back to the treeline. SRSLY. I think I may have to get a goat to help us keep the grass down.
posted by Connoisseur of Human Folly | 5:51 AM
2 Comments:
Oh the back yard envy I have! That is beautiful!!
I'm also jealous of your sturdy construction. My house feels like it would blow over in a stiff wind - post-WWII quickie suburbs, I guess.
Soooo jealous! Good luck on the construction. I'm not sure we have the guts (or the talent) to do that kind of stuff. Let me know when you're ready for visitors! We'd love to come see it. How far are you from my mom's house?
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