Tales from the Pit

Last I left you, the Donaghey project had two costly hits before the ink on the real estate contract had time to dry leaving our rehome renovators at a stalemate as to what to do with their newest investment. Rory's vote was to get the house in good mechanical order with no decorative frills and then rent her out so that 20 years from now they could recoup their investment. But Niki could not bare the thought of not seeing the renovation thru to it's full potential. So they had to get creative on a solution.

Ok, I'm getting on my own nerves with this 3rd person narrative... leaving it now.  

Here's the dilemma: Real Estate Comps in the area set the max price we can charge for a finished product based on the price per square footage, so just because we spend more doesn't mean we can charge more.  The only way we can increase our price tag, to possibly cover our expenses, is toooooo.........increase the square footage!!  Yep, rehome is adding on!  

New construction is unchartered territory for this rehome gang so we are both excited and terrified of this new adventure.

Rather then trying to squeeze a second bathroom into the current 2 bed/1 bath footprint we are busting out the back wall and giving the new homeowner... a BRAND NEW MASTER SUITE! (please read that last part like it was just announced on the "Price is Right"). That's right, some lucky homeowner is going to get a brand new master bedroom with walk-in closet and a new master bathroom complete with double sink vanity, oversized shower, separate soaker tub, and closed off potty area.  

If you have driven by the property over the last 2 weeks you can see that the addition is well underway but there have been at least 2 months worth of bumps, curveballs, and drama along the way to get us to where we are now. I'm not going to tell you those stores because quite frankly I like to write about happy things not things that make me want to hide in my closet and cry. But I tell you what I'll do for ya... I'll drop a few pictures here for those with morbid inquiring minds just to give you an idea of what might have caused (is causing) my heart palpitations, sleepless nights, and a few new wrinkles.  

How's that for Open Concept?!?

View out to the slab for new addition.

Um, where did the floor go?

Earthy Bedroom

Bathroom

Honestly, although the place looks like it was hit by a bomb, those pictures show real progress.  My framing crew, led by Ron Wood and his posse took me at my word when I told them I wanted every inch of rot replaced and the place standing firm.  I think every floor joist has been replaced and at least a quarter of the walls (think episode of "Good Bones"). They worked for days to get the place level and I feel confident this new foundation will last at least another 100 years.  Even my termite man said he was impressed with the work this crew did.  Now the only reason I am loosing sleep is because I have not received the final bill (cue the emojicon where the face looks terrified).

In the midst of all the chaos we did receive some most excellent news.  We have someone who has expressed a sincere interest in adopting this home upon completion.  I can't tell you what a boost this was to our psyche.  Just about the time I was ready to throw in the towel and admit defeat someone stepped in and unknowingly said "I believe in you, you can do this." Despite the current state of the home, this person has faith that we can turn it into his dream home.  THAT, my friends, is what is getting me out of bed in the mornings and fueling this mission.  We CAN NOT and WILL NOT let him down.  

Happier times ahead...

Meet Donaghey

Hi friends,

First let me just say, Oh my goodness, THANK YOU for coming out to meet "My Girl" at the open house.  Ya'll just made my month.  And you were so kind to my friends at Waterhouse Market and Redeemed Home Goods that they are excited to join me again on our next project- so a big Thank You for that!  I am already working on my farewell Before and After blog to "My Girl" but I wanted to spend this webspace introducing you to our next project- Donaghey aka "Gouffre Financier" (that's French for money pit... read on.)

Ah, Donaghey.  Where to begin.... First, I should tell you Donaghey was my 16th Anniversary gift from Rory this year.  He had a contract on her before he even told me he went to look at her.  I was over the moon.  I mean, if you have lived in Conway anytime over the last 90 years you remember how cute she was before the entrance rotted, the columns crumbled, and the blue veil went up to hide her shame.  

Looking at the outside of this historic home I was expecting to find elaborate moldings, old solid wood doors, and other architectural treasurers on the inside but I gotta tell ya the first time Rory escorted me thru the broken window to give me the grand tour I was, well.... underwhelmed.  Besides beautiful hardwood floors, the inside was void of any old character.  It looked like a do-it-yourselfer got a hold of her and attempted to update but got in over their head (no judgment here, I get it, read on).  Walls had been taken down without proper support, sheet rock was hung but never mudded and stock cabinets were randomly placed in the kitchen and dining room vicinity.  

Living Room

Living Room- note the hung and left drywall.
I do appreciate the attempted arch.

View into Kitchen from Living Room- if you look at the
ceilings you can see that they took out the wall studs
but left the ceiling joist.

Kitchen and Hot Water Heater

View into Living Room from Dining Room

Bedroom 1

Bedroom 2- note tiny closet

Single Bathroom

Side note: Recognize that Clawfoot tub??  It got a facelift and a new address.

I was bummed that the house did not gift us much we could use but at the same time was excited to be essentially working with a blank slate.  My favorite part of any remodel is space planning.  I LOVE reworking floorplans to try to meet the demands and desires of the modern family.  In the month leading up to our closing date, I spent many sleepless nights happily rearranging walls on my graph paper trying to squeeze a second bathroom and bigger closets into this 1268 sq foot home.  I had the floorplan sketched and was ready to roll by the time the papers were signed and the keys were handed over.  And then this happened...

Yep, not even 12 hours after we signed the papers and adopted this home into our rehome family, a ginormous tree dropped a huge limb on our new addition. Sigh. Well let me tell you folks, removing trees are expensive and NOT how I had planned on spending any of my tight budget but whatcha gonna do- I adjusted- Hard hit #1.

Then hard hit #2 occurred, actually it could be more accurately described as a sucker punch. The foundation. We have dealt with faulty foundations in the past, it just comes with the territory when you buy them as old and as run down as we typically do, and our biggest struggle is always finding someone willing to crawl under the homes to work on them.  Soooo this time we decided to hire an official "foundation company." Our quote came back double what we hand anticipated and budgeted but we decided the peace of mind knowing it would be done right by "foundation specialists" was worth the extra cost.  Big Mistake.  In the end they handed us a bill that was for more than our original quote and the job was not even done to a standard that would pass a termite inspection.  Ya'll I'm not going to lie, it got pretty intense.  I hate drama and I don't deal well with conflict so the ensuing "discussions" between our company and theirs over the completion of the job nearly did me in.  To make a long story short(er), they ended up coming back 4 more times before we finally decided to cut our losses, move on, and chalk it up to yet another learning experience.  At the end of this ordeal we were left with a sub par foundation that would require more work and money, huge craters in our beautiful hardwoods (see pics below), and a hopeless budget that would leave no room for the fun extras we like to bring to our rehomes.  sigh.

So with Niki unwilling to compromise on the design of the house and Rory unwilling to let the couple commit financial suicide, what ever will our rehome renovators do?!?! Tune in next time to find out... (or drive by Donaghey to see for yourself).

Sorry to leave you on a cliffhanger like that, but I thought that was enough drama for the Internet today ..... well that, and I need to go make dinner.  

OPEN HOUSE

Man oh Man! you guys know how to make a girl feel good.  Since we are all friends here, can I just admit that I stalk my own Facebook page after I make an entry.  I totally judge the success of a project NOT on if it sells, but on the number of Facebook likes and comments it receives. Yep, of the 14,029 page clicks the zillow listing has currently generated, I'm betting at least 12,050 of them were mine checking in to see if I had any new comments or likes. So anyways, thank you for clicking, liking, commenting, and/or sharing- it truly makes my day!

You know what else I love?!?!  Showing off the crazy talent of my staging crew AND eating snacks!!  If that sounds like fun to you too, you should come see us at this Sunday's Furniture, Art, and Accessory Open House from 2-4pm.

Yes the house is sold (well almost) but there are still lots of goodies available for you to enjoy in your own home:

Waterhouse Market TV stand/table and accessories & Re*deemed Home Goods "pumpkins"

WHM Vintage Map & Restoration Hardware Couch (matching chair available)

The Painted Stache lockers

I'd love to walk you thru "my girl" and tell you stories about her renovation.  Plus Waterhouse Market and Re*deemed Home Goods will be on site to discuss any ideas you have for custom art or furnishings for your own home.  

WHM Full Size Bed and Doll Dress Art

WHM Desk and Chair

WHM Doll Dress Art

Now, not everything you see in these pictures is for sale.  For example, I pretty much emptied out my kitchen to stage the coffee nook.  And some items have already been purchased by the new home owner.  But many of the items that have been sold can be recreated to fit your needs or I can tell you where I bought my personal accessories so you can snag one for yourself.

RHG Chalkboard art, everything else Niki's Kitchen

TPS farmhouse table, WHM chairs

AND If you're interested in your own rehome, the open house would be a great time for us to visit about upcoming projects.  The fun has already begun at our Donaghey project and I couldn't be more  excited about the plans for it's transformation.  

WHM Butterfly Cabinet

RHG "my girl"

RHG "be still" & TPS Barndoor

WHM dresser and accessories

WHM full/queen bed and chair

Did someone say snacks?!?!  Yes, that's right, I'll have the coffee ready and some treats on hand to make your shopping experience all the sweeter. Jennifer Foster, of Sugar Dough Sweet Shoppe, is going to whip up something special just for our event.  I hate to do this to you, but drool over these pics for just a second to see a sampling of Jennifer's work.  

Oh my! I know, that was cruel, but just 4 more days until you can get one for yourself.

And speaking of sweet; how sweet is this?!?! Deidra Pierce of Deidra's Neighborhood Florist and Gifts in Quitman volunteered to bring fresh flowers to "my girl" just to make our first Furniture, Art, and Accessory Open House extra special.  Can you believe that?!?! I took a peek at Deidra's facebook page and let me tell ya, she is the real deal.  She does everything from elaborate weddings to simple bouquets.   

I am truly humbled and grateful that she would choose to use her gifts to bless our event. "My girl" is going to look and smell so pretty!

So stop on by and check her out:

Sunday, October 30th

2pm-4pm

 532 Ash Street, Conway

WHM bench, TPS porch swing 

Reveal Day!

Today is the day! REVEAL DAY!! At 2pm this afternoon (13 hours from the time I am writing this blog) I will be showing Ms. C. the completed Ash Street rehome and quite possibly her future home.  I could not be more excited... I'm talking Christmas Day level excitement here folks.  I was really tempted to ask Ms. C. to wear a blindfold to the reveal for a more dramatic unveiling but so far I have refrained.  

I can not wait to show ya'll before and after pictures of this rehome but I am going to hold off posting any pictures of the house until after Ms. C. sees it.  But I did want to take just a little blog space to thank my staging team.  I had already told you about Donna from WaterHouse Market joining me on this rehome, and boy, she did not disappoint. Not only did she bring some fabulous furniture pieces but also a ton of unique and fun accessories to complement the design of the home. She and her design assistant, Emily, worked tirelessly all afternoon helping me put the finishing touches on this rehome and I could not be more grateful.  

But the real reason I wanted to write a blog at 1 am in the morning, when I still have 2 more pillows to sew and an address plaque to make before going to bed, is to introduce the other starring member of my staging dream team- Mrs. Sarah Henry of Re deemed Home Goods. Ya'll, she is a real live ARTIST! and I somehow convinced her to do some custom art pieces just for this rehome!! You are going to die when you see what she did- SOOOO precious! But, of course, I can't show you now because then what would be the purpose of the blindfold that I have not 100% ruled out.  So instead I'm just going to drop a sampling of her work on this blog so you can get a taste of how good she is while I tell you a little more about Sarah and Re deemed Home Goods.

I have only personally known Sarah for a couple of months but I have been an admirer of her work for several years.  Sarah and her family recently moved to Conway from Little Rock when her husband became the new associate pastor at 2nd Baptist Church.  My friend Stacy, who has 2 beautiful custom RHG pieces in her home introduced me to Sarah shortly after their move.  

When I got the idea that custom art would be a fun touch to add to this rehome, I was too nervous to ask Sarah myself, mainly because I knew she was super sweet and probably too nice to tell me no and I didn't want to put her on the spot; so I asked Stacy to feel her out to see if she might be interested.  

Well, obviously from the subject matter of this post you have successfully deducted that her answer was positive. So with the go-ahead from Stacy, I got greedy and asked for not 1, not 2, but 3 custom RHG pieces!

I gave her a quick walk thru of the house a couple of weeks ago to give her an idea of the color and design esthetic of the home and made 1 wording request but otherwise gave her free reign on what to create.  I knew I had a friend for life when she asked if she could dig thru our lumber pile to find some reclaimed pieces to use as her canvas for the project.

Ya'll can I just tell you, she NAILED IT! She brought the art to the rehome today and it exceeded my expectations and set the mood of the entire home.  I dare you not to smile when you see it!  I think I'll keep a key to this rehome and just let myself in when I'm having a bad day to cheer myself up (jk Ms C., winky face). AND not only did she bring me my 3 requested pieces she threw in a 4th little cutie just for fun.

Aaaand if that was not enough I also roped her into doing some unbelievable chalkboard writing/art for me.  Oh my, it just might be my favorite thing of all!  

 She did all this to help make this rehome extra special after only meeting me just 2 short months ago!  And if that wasn't sweet enough, tonight she brought me coffee and helped me iron and hang curtains until after 10pm.

It was during our working time I got to learn more about Sarah and her heart behind Re deemed Home Goods.  Not only does she create unique, handcrafted pieces from reclaimed and new material for her clients, she also contributes a portion of each purchase to help organizations who fight for justice for women and children both locally and globally.  

Basically, Sarah is one of the coolest person's I have ever met! And while some might believe God brought the Henrys to Conway to serve Second Baptist Church, I can't help but believe HIS real mission was to bring Sarah and RHG into my life!

If you like what you are seeing here, you can also shop Re deemed Home Goods at the Kitchen Store here in Conway and at Reinvented Vintage in Little Rock.  Also, assuming Ms C does not want to purchase all of the furniture, accessories, and art of this fully staged and ready to reveal rehome then you will have the opportunity to shop the goodies next Sunday, October 30th, from 1-4 pm at the Ash Street rehome.  And if Ms C. decides that Ash is not the home for her, then next Sunday would also be a great time to tour the home for yourself!  Just sayin....

Ok this girl is tired.  I think I'm going to have to give up on the pillows and hit the sack.  I hope this post made sense, all the words started running together.  Thank goodness for the pretty pictures.  Less than 11.5 hours to go.....