Saturday, July 4, 2009

demolition

The demolition at our farmhouse is fully under-way. Greg hired some workers to help take off molding, rip up carpet, and take out the cabinets. Originally, we were going to donate the fixtures to Re-Store (a Habitat for Humanity organization), but since so many of the workers wanted them, we decided to let them have it, after all, they probably needed it more than someone who could buy it at Re-Store. I think we'll still have a stove, oven and dishwasher (circa 1992) to donate, but my guess is no one will want it.

Okay, now for the photos of the destruction process. I'll have a few more to post later this week. The framer's are there now and have knocked out some walls and it's looking a lot more open, which I love! Until now, I haven't been that excited about the whole process, but now that progress is being made, it's definitely getting more fun.

These are of our two upstairs baths. We're keeping the tubs and toilets. According to my dad, "They just don't make toilets like they used to."

You never know what you're gonna find when you start ripping things out.


This is the master bath. It was arranged rather strangely. Where you see the black marks on the wall, that was where the vanity and sinks sat. And, there was carpet beneath that area....make-up and toothpaste-stained carpet. Then, by the window, was the toilet. Yes, you could actually sit on the pot and look out the front of the house at the same time. Yikes!

Needless to say, we're rearranging this area.

Remember me saying that we were going to rip out that wall to the left of the fireplace and expose the brick? Doesn't it look better and more open already? I'm so excited.....well, I was excited until I learned that the drywall on the back of the chimney was stuck directly on, and because of the drywall held in the moisture, we have mold. It's easy to fix since it's located only on the chimney, and I'm so thankful we decided to rip that up.
Here's the laundry-room. We took these shelves down and they're going to work perfectly in the barn for Greg's shop area.
Still in the laundry-room, this door is being taken out and the room expanded to the corner of the house (you can see it through the glass). Then, the washer/dryer will sit next to the little closet that houses the water heater.
I don't think I mentioned the staircase earlier, but the railings are about 8-9 inches apart, meaning small dogs and children can easily slip right through. We're going to have to take out the railing and replace it to pass inspection.
Here's the kitchen sans cabinets. We're adding lots of windows in here along this wall.
And, the stove will sit in this area (below). This is the area that backs up to the fireplace.
And, here's the half-bath without the cabinet. I like it better already.
And, my favorite discovery. Once the house was removed from this upstairs bedroom, the room seems so much larger. Love that!

7 comments:

lisa truesdell said...

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah. possibilities. =) i so wish i had the patience to reno a house like that!! having 3 kids kind of did my patience in. ;)

mademoisellechitchat said...

Best wishes with your remodeling.

Thanks for commenting about my 40 D malfunction. I had the highlight function (over/under exposure) enabled. ;)

Houston said...

Wow, you guys are really rockin' with the demo! I can't wait to see the end results!

Christine said...

WOW! you guys are making a lot of headway! can't wait to see more updates! my husband and I are building a house and I find construction/renovation jobs very interesting right now :) thanks for sharing!

casey boyd said...

Wow April!! That is looking amazing! lots of work has been done and I see a fresh slate in sight for you:) Look forward to more updates.

sylvie said...

WOW! Major renovations underway, I can't wait to see the evolution of this, I'm sure it will be amazing, but I can see there is a lot of work involved. I hope everything goes as planned and that you do not encounter too many surprises. ;o)

*reyanna* said...

I love that you're bringing us along for the ride. :D Your blog is my favorite because of this very thing. :) Can't wait to see more! You guys are doing an AWESOME job! Thank you SO much for sharing. :)