I promised an update, so here it is! Better late than never AND the house is done and another family is enjoying the heck out of it!
The last blog from 4 years ago (oops, a lot has been going on) showed the beginning of this bungalow project and begged the question: what were they thinking?!?! Apparently we were thinking miracles could happen for free and magic space could appear out of nowhere. We asked "Is it the Right Space?" and "Does our STUFF fit?" After meeting with engineers and looking at costs, the answer to both questions was NO and NO. So we finished it as it was for someone else. Making what existed work for modern living proved challenging, but successful.
A guy at Home Depot that I was getting a cabinet bid from told me that NO ONE WANTS A WHITE KITCHEN. I looked at him and then bought a WHITE KITCHEN from IKEA, who I guess understands that EVERYONE loves a white kitchen. Seriously, IKEA essentially has free design services, kitchen discount sales regularly, great pricing for the look, and partners that will come and install it. After all that, IKEA was half the price of the bids that I got for other competitors and they have the cool inserts that people actually want. AND IT WAS WHITE!!!!!
Funny story: when the "kitchen" was being gutted and the dead cockroaches were shoveled out, we noticed the ceiling was really low and we were opening up the whole side of the house--you know, open concept--so we start digging into the layers. We found at least 2 drop ceilings and then an entire vaulted ceiling underneath. One of the best things to make a small space feel bigger, is to have high ceilings.
And speaking of tiny spaces, when you only have one small bathroom--MAKE IT FABULOUS!! (my condolences to the swans and nasty ruffle).
Originally, there was a tiny hall that went to the back bedroom and the even tinier bathroom that we removed to add space to the bathroom, which is also WHITE and from IKEA. If you can't tell, I really love IKEA for specific things, like bathroom and kitchen cabinets.
Front bedroom with original doors and trim, but the hardwood floors had to be replaced throughout. We used an engineered hardwood that turned out lovely.
Back bedroom made for a princess!
The original windows were cleaned up and reglazed, but this detail was really pretty.
There you have it! This project took longer than expected, cost more than we thought, and taught us many expensive lessons. Pretty much like any renovation. But it did not break us! We went from a little 1000 sq ft bungalow to a 3000 sq ft, 3 story, pre-gutted abandoned 1908 stucco party. Because it was the right space AND our stuff fit! Stay tuned...