At 116 years young this 2000+ square foot brick house has 3 bedrooms, one and a half bathrooms, original hardwood floors throughout and a detached two car garage with a loft space above. Granted the inside of this house needs work (of course that is why I like it so much) but the bones and structure are absolutely perfect.
The porch leads you to one of two front doors. The first in to the dining room and the second in to the sitting room (original kitchen). The original wood columns need some TLC as do the doors but that can be done on weekends as a summer project. The dining room has the original Chrystal chandelier, dark wood paneling and original 12″ baseboards. It simply requires some cosmetic updates – quarter round, paint, curtains and a new light fixture to bring it in to this century.
Off of the dining room to the left is a large formal living room complete with bay windows. More wood paneling, outlets in the floors and missing quarter round to complete the look. Again another simple cosmetic redo – paint, trim, curtains and some minor electrical work. And yes, I negotiated the massive mirror in the living room to stay with the house (Thanks Dianne).
Through the dining room you enter a small sitting room and a half bathroom. This area serves no purpose with the house being so large that I’ve decided to integrate the current kitchen and sitting room in to one very large eat in kitchen. The half bathroom is a great size. The vanity is dark and feels a bit bulky so a new slender version would look nice. Adding a new floor, wainscoting and maybe some wall paper will help bring the charm in to this little room.
The sitting room leads you in to the kitchen that is overwhelmed by appliances. The kitchen is 11′ x 10′ and has the washer, dryer, fridge and stove in it. There are two huge windows that you can barely see as the fridge sits in between them blocking the light. Since there is a large room off of the kitchen I’ve decided to make that a mud/laundry room which will open up the space to move the fridge to the appropriate place and allow room for a pantry revealing the windows and making the space more functional. The wall behind the stove will come down to open up the current space to add an additional 8 feet making the kitchen 19′ x 10′. I will use 12+ feet of wall for cabinets, stove and sink and make a cubby for the microwave under the counter (over the air return).
Heading up the stairs is a large landing with more wood paneling, missing quarter round and an old broken light fixture. Also at the top of the stairs a door to a private balcony with a swinging gate so I can move my larger pieces of furniture in (something you don’t think of when you buy an old house). The 3 bedrooms are large and all have closets that can be considered walk-in. Two of the three rooms require paint, light fixtures, some maintenance on the original closet doors and some new hardware. The master bedroom is in a bit worse shape – the bay window area needs a lot of work as the wall paper has been peeled off in some areas and in other areas it is simply just falling off the walls. The closet space will be converted in to a walk-in with proper shelving and rods. And the closet door will be put on a reverse swing (currently opens inward taking up all the space).
The full bathroom completes the upstairs. It has a tub/shower combo, newer toilet and a double sink. This room will simply need a light fixture.
The detached two car garage is made of concrete block on a concrete slab. It has two rooms inside and the ceiling has been insulated. The two garage doors will need to be replaced next summer and a set of stairs added to get up to the loft space. This will be a great space once complete.
The closing date on this beauty is November 1st, 2019. I cannot wait to get my hands on it. I have plans to do one larger project this fall (sewer pipe replacement) and to paint all the dark wood paneling by Christmas. And in the new year put together my plans for the kitchen renovation (to be done in the fall 2020?). This home will be a labour of love once again.
I hope you all follow my journey on bringing back this 116 year old home to it’s former glory.
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My Country Farmhouse 