The Great Love Shack Adventure

When the newlywed niece was offered the chance to manage the bank in her home town, she was tempted. Not only is she a farm girl at heart, but the rural cost of living was a strong incentive. Then her father sweetened the pot by offering an old farmhouse to nest on the cheap as well…

They took the bait.

Now, the niece is a finance major who apparently inherited the family tightwad gene. Since the entire purpose of moving back to the farm was to save money, they were determined to do it by themselves and pay with cash as they did so.

I’m even more pleased with that process than I am the finished product, by the way…

Tackling the farm house was no small task.

Living in it while tackling is

an adventure.

We’re not quite sure of the age or original design of the house. It’s old enough to have a dirt floor in the fireplace and no insulation in some outer walls. It has been modernized enough to have a heat pump and a mishmash of oddball cosmetic changes, each indicative of the era in which they were done.

And each needing to be undone

before they could be redone.

Vintage dishware and linens are lovely.

Vintage cabinets and paneling…

 notsomuch.

The paneling was everywhere

so the groom put down the bride

and picked up the crow bar.

That part seemed to make him very happy.

That’s not white paint there, folks.

It’s birch paneled pretender from the 1960s.

He removed it.

And discovered another layer of paneling.

A lesser man might have given up,

 but he kept demolishing until he found the bare wood.

It might have been  nice if that lower wall, the outside of the orignal house, had gone all of the way around the breakfast room.

It didn't.

However, that oddball ruffled soffit did. 

It bordered the entire kitchen and eating area.

It had to go,

especially the superfluous dangler

between the rooms.

It was just about to come down when the new husband headed to California for a month of training.

Not to worry... 

Her grandmother, the Duchess

 donned safety goggles and shower cap

and picked up the Sawzall

to make the ruffled eyesore a bad memory.

I would have snapped a picture but I was threatened. Plus, I was too busy being a human support beam to pick up a shiny red Kodak.

What a difference it made.

They added bead board panels to the lower half of the eating area. Then, her husband cut leftover bead board and attached it to the back of every cabinet for a clean, uniform look. For whatever reason, that’s one of my favorite parts.

They left the white countertops as is for now

 since they didn’t clash at all,

 but they added a pressed tin backsplash behind them. 

I think it adds a perfect farmhouse look.

They painted and glazed the cabinets

for a fun, youthful, look.

They laid a new floor.

And changed the hardware.

And the lighting.

A little sewing for the curtains and table runner.

And there ya go.

A newly nested kitchen.

Before…

 

And After

 

The lighting is pretty bad in these shots.

 

 

I didn't realize it until the 30 country mile commute home...

 

 

They used that existing nook to

display glasses.

 

 

Here's a view with a peek

into the living room in progress...

 

With her permission, I plan to yak all about that in the future.

And maybe the little guest room...

And her awesome master bedroom.

And a few other nested spaces with it.

 

Some friends have asked them if it’s all worth it.

Let’s see…

A nest of their own.

Without a debt…

With this view

You can be the judge

****
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Metamorphosis Monday