2017 Year End Review & 2018 Outlook

Happy New Year!!!! I know I need to post Bruce's "before and after" blog but I can't NOT do a New Years post...It's my FAVORITE time of year! I literally have the goofiest smile on my face right now while I'm typing- I'm just giddy about the fresh start this year and every new year brings. Right now, where I stand, the possibilities are endless and I haven't done anything to mess it up... so far.

So anyway, I thought it would be fun to review last year's Goals and Resolutions to see how I did. But first, in keeping with last year's tradition, I wanted to do another "favorites section" to highlight our 2017 projects. BUT this year, instead of me picking my favorites, I would LOVE to hear from you! So with the help of our resident techy, Colby of Colby's Creations, we have set up a quick survey after each category for you to select your favorite.... please and thank you.

We completed 3 homes in 2017.

846 Donaghey

1917 Caldwell

1406 Bruce

What was your....

Favorite Exterior

A) Donaghey

B) Caldwell

C) Bruce

Favorite Kitchen

A) Donaghey

B) Caldwell

C) Bruce

Favorite Master Suite

A) Donaghey

B) Caldwell

C) Bruce

Favorite Story

A) Donaghey- The Irish Sheepfarm with English and French Roots

B) Caldwell- The English Manor/Downton Abbey

C) Bruce- Balanced Bohemian

Man, just looking thru those pictures I'm reminded of all the people who skillfully worked their trade to make each home come together. Seriously, couldn't have happened without them. 

And now I will honestly evaluate how I did on the 6 Rehome/Storybook Goals/Resolutions I set for myself this time last year:

2017 Goals and Resolutions End of the Year Evaluation

1) I will make AT LEAST minimum wage on all projects.  

Evaluation: ummmmm no. Financially it was not a good storybook year. HOWEVER, while I may have not collected minimum wage (or any wage) in 2017, I am proud to say we did hire our first official Storybook Employee, Cole, and managed to provide a weekly paycheck to this fella for the last 7 months. 

2) Live out James 1:2-4

Consider it pure joy whenever you face trials of many kinds, 

because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  

Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and 

complete, not lacking anything.

Evaluation: Not so much. Oh, I started out strong, but guys, I'm not going to lie, Caldwell nearly did me in. Every day was a new trial with that project and the financial burden nearly crippled me. Hindsight, I was able to look back and see how God carried us thru the valley and had us in his grip all along BUT I can hardly call my reaction or attitude toward this trial "pure joy." 

3)  Update rehome FB/blog weekly.  

Evaluation: Fail again. I am the slowest writer in the world, so blog posts take me FOREVER to write. Proof of point- I started this post on January 1st. HOWEVER, in my defense, we are no longer rehome....so this resolution is null and void and can't be held against me. 

4) Re logo rehome! 

Evaluation: Hot diggity! I did this one! We have been operating as Storybook Homes since last March. 

5) Get on Instagram.  

Evaluation: Guys, I tried. I really did. I just don't get it. I'm not giving up, but I've got to get a tutor or at least see if there is an "Instagram for Dummies" book. Those hashtags just stress me out.

6) Complete 5 homes! 

Evaluation: Personally I think the Caldwell Manor should have counted as at least 3 homes so I think I should get partial credit for this one.


So 1.5ish out of 6 goals met. Hmmm, not the greatest But hey, I proved I could meet one goal and surely the experiences I had in 2017 will help me meet ALL my goals and resolutions for 2018. So in addition to the 42 personal resolutions (down from 56 last year) I have set for myself here are the goals and resolutions I have for Storybook Homes in 2018 (1-5 are repeats from last year's failures with some small changes):

2018 Storybook Homes Goals and Resolutions

1. Make a PROFIT or keep the property as a rental. We have always had the backup plan to rent if we are unable to sell but this year Rory and I have decided that if I overspend to the point I can't get a paycheck we will just keep the house as a rental. So if you are looking for a high-end custom rental with a story- this just might be your year!

2. Live out James 1: 2-4! Or at least try to make it thru 1 project without crying.

3. Update Storybook Homes FB weekly. I might not blog weekly but surely I could snap a picture and post it on Facebook weekly. I'd love to think I would get back to posting about Rory and I's WWYWW (Work with Yo Woman Wednesday) projects.... yes I should do that. Of course this week he is going hunting on Wednesday.... but next week...

4. Instagram. Yes! I'm going to do it. I might not do it correctly but I'm going to do it. #try, #justdoit, #whatintheworldarethesehashtagsfor

5. Complete at LEAST 5 homes. I'd really like to start working on more than 1 home at a time and complete each home within a 3-4 month period.

6. Launch a new Storybook Homes website. We think we have found a sweet family to adopt Sister (our current home) and therefore will be moving sometime this year. Since this blog, Two Story Sister, was originally started to chronical our own home renovations (before I highjacked it for Storybook Homes) it just makes sense to reformat once we leave Sister behind. I'd LOVE to leave the blogger format and have a more professional looking website that has links to our FB and Zillow..... but who am I kidding, I can't even figure out Instagram.

7. Hire a jack-of-all-trades handyman. I think one of the reasons we can not seem to turn a profit in this business is because I'm not handy and Rory has a full-time job so we have to sub out EVERYTHING. If we had our very own handyman I think it could potentially save us money and a ton of headaches. Someone who has knowledge of most construction trades would be the dream BUT I would settle for a carpenter who could frame and trim and be an overall problem solver.

8. Take a two-week break in the summer and at Christmas to spend quality time with my family. One thing the story of Bruce taught me was the importance of balancing out work and play time. I am a workaholic. I LOVE what I do and because of that, I have a hard time turning off my work brain when I'm home with the family. It was sooo nice finishing up our Bruce Street project just in time for Christmas last year so I could be fully present with my family during the holiday break. I'd love to think I could time our projects to allow for another break during my boys summer break.

So there they are. I'm ready! Bring on 2018!!!

The Story of Bruce

Well, friends, we are just hours away from sticking a storybook sign in the yard at our Bruce Street Project so that means it's time to tell you it's story. But before I do, I have to admit that this project came dangerously close to being storyless. Let me explain.

Usually, something will catch my eye and start the narrative rolling in my head the first time I visit a new project site. This narrative will then form the story and foundation from which the entire project is built. But for some reason, no matter how many times I visited 1406 Bruce Street, I could not find the story hidden within its walls- the house just refused to speak to me. Now normally I would have taken this lack of inspiration as a sign that this house was just not meant to be storybooked; but I gotta be honest with ya, after our last 3 projects I was craving an easier renovation and this little house was clean, solidly well-built and ON A SLAB! PTL! So I convinced myself that if the house refused to tell me it's story I could simply make up a story and retrofit the house to fit my tale. Seemed like a reasonable plan to me!

So I told myself a classic farmhouse story. Afterall, I wanted an easy flip, and farmhouse design is the style that comes most naturally to me. I drew up a plan that included all the classic farmhouse elements: shiplap, farmhouse sink, galvanized buckets and chicken wire. But despite having all the right ingredients I just couldn't seem to bring the farm to Bruce Street. The whole design just felt forced. I feared the end product would not pass for a real farmhouse but rather it would look like the house was playing farmhouse dress-up. So I scratched the story. I ended up trying out two other storylines on the house before I concluded this subtle change in strategy just wasn't going to work. 

By this point, the clock had started ticking on our construction loan and I knew I couldn't afford to keep the project on idle so I decided I would just have to attempt my very first story-free renovation. I reluctantly drew up plans that ticked off all the necessary boxes to result in a nicely updated flip house that surely someone would appreciate and set Cole to work on it's demolition. And then something happened..... the house decided to talk. It was like the first wack of the sledgehammer woke the house up!

Here's what happened: I had just walked up to the house to check on Cole's demo progress when these metal posts caught my eye.

Now, I had passed by these posts at least 50 times over the past month and the only thought I had EVER had in regards to them had been "these posts have got to go." But for some reason, on that first day of demolition, these 63 year old metal posts decided to speak up and I was able to see them with fresh eyes. For the first time, I pictured the posts renovated rather than ripped out or covered up; and all of the sudden, I found my design inspiration. I realized the only thing that dated these 60s style posts were the swirly designs in the middle of them. Without the swirlies, the posts could actually read quite industrial modern. And then, just as that thought crossed my mind, the windows decided they were ready to break their silence too. 

Now, unlike the metal posts, I had ALWAYS loved these windows. From the first time I met this house I had been enchanted with the fact that they cranked out verses rolled up.

In fact, I  had even tried out a Snow White storyline on the house because I could soooo picture the Disney princess throwing open those windows every morning for a chat or a song with the neighborhood woodland creatures. 

But again, it was my story, not the house's, so I just couldn't make it work.

But now I noticed these fabulous windows were not only unique in how they opened but also in that they were made of steel. A fact that totally meshed with the industrial vibe my newly envisioned posts were emitting. 

Once I finally made it inside to check on Cole other aspects of the house were ready to speak up and the entire story just seemed to fall into place. This house may have been slow to share its story but once it did, it held nothing back.

I've got to tell ya, I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the protagonist of this story over the past 3 months. My time with Bruce not only inspired renovations within the house but also within myself. In fact, "be more like Bruce" is totally going on my 2018 New Years Resolution list. I bet once you meet him, you'll want to be more like Bruce too. 

And now the story of Bruce.......................

You know how some dog owners resemble their dogs?

Well, in that same way, 1406 Bruce Street has an uncanny resemblance to its owner, Bruce. (Yep, that's right, Bruce is not only the name of the street but also the homeowner- How Crazy is that?!?!) That being said, I feel like once I introduce you to Bruce the owner you will have a good idea of what to expect from the finished project on Bruce Street. 

My first impression of Bruce was that he was the most laid back, carefree human on the planet. He just had this Bohemian Vibe about him.

SIDEBAR: I should clarify that when I refer to Bruce as "Bohemian," It is totally just my interpretation of Bohemian. Prior to writing this post, I didn't even know what the true definition of Bohemian was or how real designers define BoHo Style. To me, it just represented a carefree, laidback, unpretentious style with a side of funkiness and a Jamaican accent. So when I sat down to write this story, I was super pumped to find that Google's definition of Bohemian Style was pretty much spot on to my interpretation.  Here is a direct quote from Google:

Bohemian decorating is for those who want their homes full of life, culture, and interesting items for all the world to see. It flies in the face of modern sensibilities and embraces the carefree, the relaxed and the unusual.

Boom! Now, I'm not exactly sure where the Jamaican accent comes in, but for some reason, this house has always spoken to me with a cadence resembling that of the Jamaican bobsled team on Disney's "Cool Runnings" 

I really can't explain it. Jamaican influences don't even show up in the design of the house. The only other hint of Jamaican in the story is that I'm pretty sure if Bruce had not suffered from early balding, he would have had dreadlocks like the guy on the far left. But I digress... Back to the story. End Sidebar.

Bruce's door is always open. And there is always a fresh pot of coffee brewing for when his friends and neighbors drop by- and drop by they do. I don't think I have ever been to Bruce's house when he  was home alone. The place almost feels like a coffee house. People just walk in without knocking, pour themselves a cup of coffee and plop down on his vintage leather couch like they own the place. Or you might look over and find a couple of neighbors sitting around the kitchen table playing cards or dominos while Bruce is on the floor coloring with his favorite 6-year-old neighbor. That's just Bruce. He has never met a stranger and everyone is welcome and feels welcome in his home. You can't help but feel content with the world when your inside those walls. 

Fun Story: He let that 6-year-old neighbor pick his cabinet color. He asked her to pick out her favorite crayon, and then he took it to the local paint store to be color matched. His friends thought he was crazy, but paint colors are just not something he sweats. He told his friends he could always paint over them but nothing could replace the memory of the look on his little friends face when she walked in and saw her favorite color on display in such a grand way. Personally, I LOVE his cabinets and think it fits his personality perfectly. 

Bruce does own a TV but I have never seen it on. He would much rather be visiting with his friends. He is ultra intentional in his relationships. No matter if you have known him for years or just met him, you'll think Bruce is your best friend. You will never see his phone out while you are at his house and he doesn't believe in texting. Bruce seems to do more listening than talking but when he does speak his words carry a lot of weight. It's almost like he speaks in proverbs. It's weird, his words never seem very profound in the moment but, more often than not, I find myself thinking about something he has said long after I've left his home. 

For example, Bruce seems to always be operating at 110% and yet despite that extra 10% his life appears to be incredibly balanced. When I asked Bruce about this enviable trait he simply responded he decided a long time ago to heed the advice of his grandmother and "live life by the 8s." After he saw the confused look on my face, he explained that he was taught to dedicate 8 hours of his day to work, 8 hours to play, and 8 hours to rest. As someone who struggles to find any semblance of balance in her life, I found I could not get this simple recipe for life out of my head. I mean my current lifestyle looks more like 15/2/7 on a good day, so how could I possibly be productive if I  cut my work time down to 8 hours a day! And yet it seemed to be working for Bruce. I decided I needed to see how the full picture played out in Bruce's life, so I followed him to work one day- Oh yes I did!

When I arrived at Bruce's place of employement I found out that he works as a number cruncher in the administration office of a commercial welding company. Yep, let that sink in. A NUMBER CRUNCHER! You could have knocked me over with a feather! I had never given much thought to what Bruce might do for a living but NEVER, in a million years, would I have guessed I would find him sitting in a cubicle crunching numbers for 8 hours a day, but that is exactly what he was doing. 

While Bruce worked, I thought it would be fun to interview a few of his coworkers to find out what they thought of Bruce. Here is how this went down:

Me: Hi, My name is Niki and I'm working on a project for one of your coworkers, Bruce. I was hoping you could tell me a little about him.

Coworker 1: Bruce? I don't know any Bruce.

Coworker 2 (to coworker 1): You know Bruce. Bruce, in cubicle 3.

Coworker 1: Oh yeah.... Bruce. Yeah, he's a nice enough guy but kind of a recluse, if you know what I mean.

Me: No, actually this is quite surprising to me, what do you mean?

Coworker 1: Well, the guy lives in his cubicle. He is always the first one in the office and never leaves a minute before 5pm.

Coworker 2: Yeah, a bunch of us number crunchers will go out for lunch, but when we ask Bruce if he wants to join us he always declines. He says he is just going to eat a sandwich at his desk.

Coworker 1: I will say, at least once a week he does ask me if I want to come over to his house to hang out after work. But I've never gone.

Coworker 2: Yeah, he has asked me too. But, I got to be honest, I can't imagine Bruce's house would be any fun.

Coworker 1: Yeah, (chuckling) I bet we would just sit around discussing our favorite number or for a really wild night we might have a Soduko challenge. 

Coworker 2: Ha! That's a good one! Yeah, ummm no thank you..... Oh shoot, here he comes now. Let's get back to work.

Bruce: Hey, Niki, I see you were talking to the gang. (Gone is the Jamaican accent. So Strange.)

Me: Yeah Bruce, it was a very interesting conversation. They told me you hardly ever leave your desk. I gotta admit I never would have pictured you working behind a secluded cubicle. I would have thought you worked in a more social environment, like maybe as a barista or even a disk jockey. But a Number Cruncher?!?! 

Bruce: Ha that's funny. I know a lot of people would hate sitting behind a desk crunching numbers all day but I have always liked numbers. Don't get me wrong, I would love a job that allowed me to drink coffee all day long and visit with interesting people but this is the job I have so I choose to make the most of it.

Me: You CHOOSE to make the most of it? (there he goes making me think again)

Bruce: Yeah, the way I see it, it is this first 8 hours I spend each day at work that allows me the ability to afford the next two 8's in my day, so I choose to be grateful instead of miserable. Plus my parents drilled Colossians 3:23 in my head when I was old enough to get my first job. "In all the work you are given, do the best you can. Work as though you are working for the Lord, not any earthly master" So while I'm on the clock I give my best, I challenge myself to be the best number cruncher I can be.

Me: But why do you not go to Lunch with your coworkers?

Bruce: Oh that, well, first of all, I just really enjoy sandwiches. But secondly, I have noticed a lot of times my coworkers are late getting back from lunch so they end up staying late at the end of the day to finish up their work. I'm not willing to do that. I want to make sure my job is complete by 5pm each day so I can start the next 1/3 of my day. But I do hate that I am missing out on getting-to-know my coworkers, so I frequently ask the gang over to my house after work, but no one has ever been able to make it. I also make sure to get to work at least 30 min early every day to allow time to visit with my coworkers before I officially start my work day; unfortunately, most of the other number crunchers don't arrive until 8:30 or a little after. But that's ok because it has given me an opportunity to get to know the fellas working in the factory. Man those guys have interesting stories! And It is incredible what they can do with metal. They have even taught me some basic welding skills. In fact, the guys have helped me with a few projects around my house- like that metal grid in my master shower you love, and the table base on my dining room table- me and the guys made those.

Me: Oh Wow! very impressive Bruce. Well, I know you have got to get back to those numbers so I'll see you back at your house after 5.

Bruce: Sounds good. Oh and Niki?

Me: Yeah.

Bruce: You are not invited to watch my last 8 hours of my day (he says with a chuckle) so I'll just tell you what that looks like. I'm in bed every night by 12am. I sleep hard... like drool EVERYWHERE, it ain't pretty. Then I'm up every morning at 6am. I spend 45 min to an hour in prayer and reading my Bible and another 45 min to an hour exercising. I consider my quiet time and exercise rest because they help to refresh my body and soul. 

Me. Speechless.

end scene

Well, what did you think about that?!?! Personally, I'm in awe. What a great strategy for life. I truly feel like Bruce has figured out the secret to living the most meaningful, full life. I'm just sad my time at Bruce street is coming to an end. I feel like there is so much more I could learn from this Bohemian. 

There is so much more I'd like to tell you about Bruce, but you will have an opportunity to meet him for yourself this weekend. He is graciously opening up his home this Sunday, December 17th, from 2-4pm for all those who want to stop by. I guarantee he'll have some fresh coffee waiting for you. Hope to see you there!

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Black Friday

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. I am so thankful for all of you and your continued support of this little adventure Rory and I are on. But today is black Friday, a day that Mom and I religiously celebrate with gusto from 6p to about 6a or whenever I poop out- my Mom can shop circles around me and always outlasts me. But this year Black Friday means something different to me. Today is the day our beloved Floor guy, Marcos, is moving.

We are so happy for him because his move will reunite him with his family, but are sooooo sad for us. Marcos has been with us from the very beginning and is a founding member of the dream team. Let me tell ya, it is sooo hard to find people in this business on whom you can completely trust and depend- so when you do, you hold on to them tight and treasure them. Marcos is one such treasure. Not only did he do a fantastic job with all types of flooring and tile jobs, his prices were fair, and he stood by his promised timeline- that is gold in this business folks. And I gotta admit, I'm not the easiest person to work with- I'm PICKY and particular, but Marcos always made sure I was 100% satisfied before he left a job. And if that wasn't enough to make him awesome, as a parting gift to me he even taught me how to tile a backsplash.

Not gonna lie, I'm pretty proud of that tile wall, but it did NOT make me want to quit my day job. Looks like I'll be on the hunt for a new floor/tile guy. I almost feel sorry for the next guy.... Marcos will be a hard act to follow.

Marcos, best wishes Buddy! You will be greatly missed. Hug your sweet wife and kids for me and enjoy your new life on the orchard.

- Niki and Rory

Bruce Style

We are really really close to wrapping up our Bruce St project. So close, in fact, that I think it's time to give you a little clue into the design story of the house.  You ready?!?! HE (normally my projects are shes but this one is a definite he) has industrial bones with a Bohemian personality. How fun is that! Yep, I totally want to be friends with the protagonist of this story, he's just the coolest. I can't wait to introduce you to him in just a few days.

The industrial side of this home will first be evident from the curb and is subtly carried throughout the inside. We love industrial, in fact, it is Rory's favorite style but I gotta tell ya it is the Bohemian side of this home that has captured my heart. I mean, you just try not to be in a good mood when you see it. Even if you don't like it, I still think it will make you smile. 

You know what makes me smile? My WWYWWW (Work With Yo Wittle Woman Wednesday) project with my Dad- gosh I love that he is always willing to come to town to help me.  Bruce's Father/Daughter project brought the first Bohemian touches to the project and it came, once again, in the form of a feature wall. Here's the before:

And here's Dad hard at work, and me hardly working taking his picture.

This was what the wall looked like when Dad left:

All together it took us about 16-17 hours over a two day period.  Take a second to think about that... how much would that have cost if I had to pay someone to do it???? I'm not sure, but I'm quite confident it would be outside our budget. Consider that wall our gift to the new homeowner. Anyways... most of me loved the finished product, but I could not get a peace about the diamonds- they haunted me, I literally had a nightmare about them. So the next day, after dad went home, I removed the diamonds and Rory helped me renovate the design. 

 I kinda dig the wood on white look BUT that is not its final destiny. Can't wait to show you.

Bruce Demolation

Demo at Bruce Street was relatively easy. In fact, we had most of the demo wrapped up before we finished the Caldwell project. Some areas required very little demolition but the kitchen and bathroom received complete gut jobs.

This house is on a slab which in some regards is refreshing BUT it did make running new plumbing lines a bit more challenging.  Because I wanted to relocate the kitchen sink we had to jackhammer the concrete foundation to connect the new line to the old sewer line.

We also brought plumbing to the old bowling alley to give this house a proper master suite, thus taking this 1 bathroom home to a 2 full bath house.

After the demo was complete we brought in the framers to

1) attach the existing carport laundry area to the house to create a laundry/mud/office space.

2.) Framed in the old kitchen window and gave the window above the existing bathtub a new home in the office nook.

3) Ran some beams to open up the kitchen to the Living/Dining room.

Here's a side-by-side before and after view of the space so you can get better perspective:

4) Framed in the new master bathroom and closet.

Kickin myself right now for forgetting to take pictures of the framed in new master bathroom.

After framing was complete our electrician and plumber went to work followed by drywall. And then the real fun began.....

Meet Bruce

Gosh, it's been awhile. Sorry about that. Since we are all friends here, I feel I should let you in on a secret that will help explain my often long gaps of time between posts. Here it is..... renovating homes is tough. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love it and feel so blessed to get to do it, but man oh man some days I just want to throw in the towel or at least hide under the covers for a bit.

You know that costly renovation surprise that happens in EVERY episode of EVERY show on HGTV- that's no exaggeration folks. Every day presents unforeseen challenges EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. (Can I get an AMEN from anyone who has ever lived through a home renovation.) Anyways... there comes a point in every project where the challenges pile up quicker than I can find solutions and I go into a deep dark funk. During those times I just can't bring myself to write. Partly because I can't write happy things when I'm feeling so down and I want this blog to be happy (cuz the one story that no one wants to read is a sob story- am I right?!?!) And partly because many times my project blues are due to a subcontractor or company; and while I might really, REALLY, want to get on here and BLAST them and tell you to NEVER EVER do business with this person/company I try to write by the ol' adage "if you can't say something nice don't say anything at all"- thus I stay off the blog. But the main reason I don't write during, or about, the yucky side of this business is that nearly every day I have someone tell me they would love to do what I am doing, so I just think it would be insensitive of me to use this blog space to complain about something that I am daily reminded how fortunate I am to get to do. So for these reasons the blog gets neglected.

Luckily, it is during my dark days that Rory shines. After so many days of listening to me cry he always steps in and slays the construction dragons and rescues me from my pit to get our project back on track- thus freeing me to write again. And now you know. 

But enough about that! The good news is thanks to my extra long writing hiatus you won't have to wait too long between this post, where I introduce our next project in it's "before" state, to the final reveal and it's accompanying story!!! I'm talking less than 4 weeks away people! Oh my! That barely gives you any time to get to know this house.... I better jump right in with the introductions.

Meet 1406 Bruce.

Pre-reno Stats: 

1400ish sq feet

3 bed

1 bath

As you can see, she's somewhat of a Plain Jane. Not too bad.... just not too good either. Just a nice, old, respectable, ordinary house.  This theme continues on the inside:

Living Room

View from the other side of the room:

Kitchen:

Well the orange was special.

Here is the 1 bathroom:

And the 3 bedrooms:

The 3rd bedroom was kinda like a bowling alley. Very long.

Hall

And last, back out the kitchen door to the carport and laundry room.

The property also has a little shed in the backyard. Don't get too excited, not much is going to happen out there.... but still nice to have.  

So there you have it. 

I gotta tell ya, because she was so void of character I had a hard time landing on a story. In fact, I went thru 3 different stories before landing on the final story that is dictating the design. In the end, it was the latch steel windows and the iron columns that set the final story in motion.

You scared?!?!?!