That's A Wrap

When we moved to South Carolina in November we went in on a joint venture with my Dad rehabbing a foreclosed house.  The kids and I were brought home to a house I had never laid eyes on.  A leap of faith in Steve, for sure.  Especially when we pulled into the drive and saw the likes of the picture below.  We've now lived here for about six months, we've worked endless nights and weekends, and in the end, I'm proud of what we have to show for it.  What I love most about before and after pictures is they skip ahead of the dust, dirt, and drama to show the beautiful end result.  Check 'em out.

You can barely see the house through the Jumanji forest. 

Once the trees cleared they exposed a house lacking any curb appeal.  A painting was definitely in order.

We had a rough time assuming ownership of this house.  Buying HUD foreclosures isn't for the faint of heart.  This is us moving out after we had already moved in.  Don't ask.  It's a story that still makes me fill with tears.

The skip ahead.  A breathtaking improvement, right?  It remains a very simple house, but with grass, small landscaping, paint, flowers, and a lovely wreath it looks inviting instead of frightening.  

                                                                 A view from the back.

Wallpaper filled every. single. room. in this country home.  Along with god-awful chandeliers that consisted of heart stamped metal.  

I love this screened in back porch.  Steve took down the rusted old screen and re-wrapped the porch.  The kids and I enjoyed throwing the football through the openings while Daddy worked. 

Steve picked out the colors in the house.  I especially love the yellow one for this room.  To me, it's the perfect shade of yellow.  

The master bedroom is huge and fills with morning light.  True to the time it was built the master bathroom leaves a lot to be desired. Given the opportunity I'd take about half this space and give it over the the ensuite. 

The entryway. 

                                   Formal living room or informal toy room as we are using it.

 The kitchen.  The heart of any house.  When we arrived to this house this was the first room we walked into, Gavin looked around and said, "Daddy, why our kitchen broken?"

A broken kitchen, indeed.

This was how we ate  until our kind neighbors took pity on us and offered their card table.  Rehabbing really makes you appreciate the simple things in life.  Sinks, stove, a toilet, or even just a table. 

We are living high on the hog here with a table and microwave.   Move over Martha Stewart!

Kitchen before pictures.  Trust me, the blurry picture made this look better then it did in person.

 

I know, right?!  It looks amazingly different!  I LOVE this space. 

Steve and I both were super excited for our Craig's List find of this stove.  It's a beast and has definitely taken some getting used to.

The back splash was probably my favorite project. It was like Tetris fitting the glass tile together. I think the end product marries old and new perfectly.  

Steve built the shelves under the counter tops to house the microwave, toaster oven, and Kitchen aide mixer.  My friend and realtor, Holly Roberts, stresses the importance of keeping your counter tops clutter-free.  I was never happier to see these shelves come together and get that stuff put away. 

Steve hand scrapped the checkerboard off the floors and then refinished to a rustic look.  

We really debated as to what color to paint the kitchen.  It was by far the toughest decision and the toughest job to do.  The walls are rough cedar and were incredibly difficult to paint.  We spent about three weekends working on it together.  We stayed entertained with the Oxygen network playing re-runs of The Notebook.  Steve was over it by about hour one of that movie.  As for me, I can never get enough of Noah.

 

The fireplace had about twenty years of soot plastered to it.  A Comet paste and good scrubbing restored it new. 

 

The little pond in the backyard is a favorite for our kids.  We had to drain and dredge the bottom cleaning out years of leaves and rocks.  We wanted to put some fish in it, but our neighbors warned us we would just be feeding the hawks.  We opted for some nice lily pads instead. 

All of the work on this country home brings us to this.  We finished up the work on the house just in time to feel the call to return back home to Texas.  It's where we feel we are needed and need to be.  Steve, the man who wears many hats, wants to try his hand at selling the house by owner.   He loves the art of negotiation.

Who knows where the Bergmans will rest their heads next.  Another rehab or move-in ready?  Every time we've done this I swear I'm never doing it again. However, the salesman in Steve seems to be able to convince me of just about anything. 

Onto our next adventure.