Demo - Week 1, Friday

And it begins!

Before Photos!

 Demo starts today so it's time for some before photos! I apologize for the quality of the pics, I'm not the photographer in the family...Zoe also came to help so she made a few appearances in the pictures. Enjoy now because it will never look the same again.

Front of House (it's a shame it's so cute!) - We plan to add a central front walkway and build the second story out over the porch, columns will be updated to hold the heavier 2nd story, roofline will change completely and the main level door & window placement will stay the same. New siding to replace the vinyl and of course a change of color!

Back of House/Yard - On the right side, there will be french doors from the kitchen to the back yard with a covered deck instead of the 3 windows there, other window placements will be similar. The biggest change will be the second story!

Driveway Side of House/Exterior Basement Access - Outside accesses will be removed & filled and the bump-out mud porch will go away to allow 2 cars to fit in the driveway. Windows will also line this corner of the house to bring lots of natural light into the kitchen.

Back Yard from the Driveway (and Zoe playing ball) - We plan to have my papa design us a lovely (with simple upkeep) landscape back here. Top priorities are masking the neighbors cement wall garage, removing the sandbox & wood chip area, expanding the grass play space for Zoe, and bringing cohesion to the 4 different types of fencing. 

Side View of the Garage/Salon - Not sure if we are going to keep these windows, but the garage will be gutted to hold 2 cars, resided, roofed to match the house and get a new double door.

Interior Front door (white on the inside, purple on the outside...) - Front door will be replaced, ceilings raised, floors refinished, this space is getting a full face lift! 

Living Room (from dining room, front door on the right) - Arched room divider will go away and be replaced with small side built-ins to define the two spaces, give storage and open up the ceiling space. This room is also gaining about 4 ft to the left, the wall is being removed, a stairway will go to the left of the fireplace and it will get a coat closet on the left side just behind where the arch currently is.

Living Room - Window placemnents will stay the same and the wall to the left will go away. The staircase is moving to left of the fireplace and will be open with a mid-way landing.

Living Room Fireplace - We are refinishing the built-ins (they were salvaged from a remodel and are original to the house behind ours), replacing  the mis-matched hearth stone and sprucing it all up! I hope to find a creative way to hide a TV above the fireplace...

Dining Room (from living room) - The wall on the right is going to be opened up with a larger entry into the kitchen (where the white door is now). I plan to reuse the chandelier somewhere else in the house and centralize a new light fixture here that is more craftsman looking. I think it could be really amazing in my walk-in closet or the basement guest bedroom.

Dining Room Built-Ins - These will be refinished too. The stained glass here and in the living room built-ins will be updated to be matching. I hope to find some vintage glass that will fit both spaces.

Entry to Kitchen (from dining room) - This wall will be opened with a doorless entry to the kitchen.

Kitchen - This will be the biggest change (besides moving the stairwell) on the main level. Currently long and skinny, it will over double in width and take on the space from the existing bedroom nextdoor. All will be gutted :)

Kitchen Ceiling - Horrible box lights. Soon to be never seen againone.

Kitchen Exterior Access/Mud-Porch Access - Going away, exterior access will be relocated to the back of the kitchen and with french doors leading to the back yard.

Kitchen to Main Hallway - This wall will be gone and the kitchen will go to the white door.

Main Hallway - Current stairwell is to the right, two bedrooms on the left and the main bath at the end.

Hallway Light Fixture - Very cute, I will reuse this in the new house somewhere!

Main Bedroom Light - There are 2 of these, one in each bedroom. I am going to refinish them and use them in the new upstairs bedrooms.

First Main Bedroom - This will be the other half of the kitchen.

First Main Bedroom w/Light

Second Main Floor Bedroom - This will be the main floor bedroom/office.

Second Main Floor Bedroom w/Closet - This will be the main floor bedroom/office.

End of Hallway/Second Bedroom & Bathroom Entries 

Main Floor Bathroom - This will be down sized to a 1/2 bath to allow for the stairwell and larger living room. All surfaces will be replaced. The sink faucet and medicine cabinet are nice original details so I hope to reuse them.

Central Stairwell to Upper Story - This will be torn out and replaced with a side stairwell with mid-way landing.

Upstairs Master - This entire upper story will be torn off. The walls will be be built straight up on the sides and out over the front porch so the upper square footage will actually be larger than the main floor and basement. The ceilings will also be bumped to 9'. Instead of one open room, there will be 2 bedrooms, main bath, hall linen closet, and master suite with bedroom, walk-in closet, dressing area and full bath with shower and soaking tub. I am MOST excited for this part of the house :)

Upstairs Bath Area - Yup. The checkers are where the toilet, shower and sink used to be, the gray carpet is where the bed was. A VERY open floor plan.

Stairway - Zoe going down :)

Stairway to Basement off Main Hallway - This will be relocated as well.

Basement Stairway

Basement Laundry Room

More Laundry Room - I have big plans for this space :)

Basement - Creepy basement no more! We are finishing the whole thing complete with entertainment space, wet bar, bedroom, full bath, laundry room, and storage room for Riley's toys.  We are also lowering the floor to take the barely 7' ceilings and make them a comfortable 8'6". This change has a major impact on the budget, but we feel it will be totally worth it in the end. We want it to be comfortable for tall people, namely Riley, and a place our guests will like to hang out in.

Great news!

Oliver got the permits to start the house project today! We're sending over our down payment and demo starts this week! I've never been so exited to see something get destroyed :)

Before pictures to come...

Waiting game

Well, unfortunately October 15th came and went with no demo to the house. Oliver is pushing as hard as he can, but the permit process is taking longer than expected. No surprise there because I have heard many horror stories about Portland permits taking months to get. Despite the warnings, we were hopeful and now we're a little disappointed.

I hope the rain can hold off a little longer...It would be great to get this thing roofed by mid-December. This winter is going to be tough with Zoe in apartment mode. Should be an adventure for sure!

Contract Signed

Well it's officially a done deal! We signed the contract with Oliver and we're scheduled to start October 15th.

In the contract, included is the list of all the materials, finishes & fixtures (and their budgets) that need to be picked out. Exciting and nerve wracking at the same time...There are a LOT of details to think about! Also listed are the places he shops at. I have to say Oliver has good taste, I really like the places he listed to buy from! A few are ones I know and love, like Rejunvenation; a few are new, like SchoolHouse Electric and Pental Showroom. This is going to be fun :)