A Work in Progress Down by the River

For this weeks blog I thought I would post some images from one of the projects I have been working on for the past couple of months. It's not done yet as the pictures will show. I'd say we'll be at it for another month and a bit more for the new furniture.

Before I start I want to thank the gals over at Desire to Inspire blog for mentioning Moving Designz in their blog entry today. I was so excited to see they had checked out both my site and blog and highlighted them both, Thank You, it was a great start to a great day. On the weekends I like spending a few hours reading blogs from Canada and around the world, they keep me inspired. If you like reading blogs and want some inspiration this is one of my favorites. Check it out ... http://www.desiretoinspire.blogspot.com/

On to my latest project... this house is located in Stanley Bridge. A very popular area full of very nice cottages, homes and vacation properties. The house is undergoing a major overhaul. I usually go out to the house to check on the week's progress on Fridays, sometimes during the week if I am needed to make any on site decisions. I wasn't able to get out yesterday so I drove out this morning.

The house has undergone an amazing transformation from the first time I was in it with the building team. We've done some major structural work, tearing down walls to open up the main floor, gutting 3 bathrooms and a new addition was added to the main floor living room creating a great room. Carpets have been pulled up, hardwood flooring is in the process of going in, tiling has been replaced, new windows and doors added, and new exterior siding. We also installed new potlights throughout the main floor and to complement these all new lights fixtures will be added. At a later date I will be posting the before and after pictures but for right now let's have a look at a project in progress.

This is the view of the river this morning. As you can see it's still pretty frozen over, no sail or speed boats to be seen. Spring is so so late this year. In the summer this is definitely the place to get away but right now it's looking a little bleak. Ahh but it is a beautiful sunny day today!

Entering the house from the side door this is the breakfast room. The blue film on the floor is protecting the newly laid engineered flooring. The cabinet door fronts and bar sink should be installed within the next few days. This space was totally reconfigured with the addition of the patio doors, a new closet, new larger windows and the new cabinets.

Looking to the left as you enter you can see all the way to the livingroom now. Originally there was a separate walled diningroom just beyond the kitchen island which totally closed off the space, now opened up you can see from one end of this floor to the other. We used BM Philadelphia Cream in these rooms to keep it light and airy.

Here I've just stepped into the kitchen area. In the kitchen we used the existing layout and since the cabinets were in pretty good shape we only needed to do a cosmetic makeover. (good for budget!). We painted the once dark oak cabinets in BM Cloud White CC40, added a crown molding detail at the top and changed the countertops to a pale green slate. New brushed metal hardware and lighting will totally update this kitchen. I want to add a glass backsplash but I still have some convincing to do. I've chosen oil brushed bronze lighting fixtures for the entire home.

Going a little further into the space is the newly revamped entry. The entry tiles have been changed (again hidden under protective film). We're changing out the stair treads to a dark stained oak to match the flooring. The staircase spindles and newel posts which were golden oak are being repainted to Cloud White and will be reinstalled once the treads have gone down.

This is the main living room, now the "great room" with a 12' by 18' addition . On this fireplace wall we removed dark pine paneling which was on an angle to either side of what was once a faux stone chimney with grey stones and black grout. We'll be retiling with a modern stone tile and adding a simple wood mantle next week. I gave this room a pale bluey green colour which I can't quite remember today. I'll post it after I check the file. The furnishings will be in tones of caramel, pale beiges, with accents of green, blues and yellows. Fresh, pretty!

This is the view of the extension in the great room. While it may not look it, this room is as my son would say gi-normous now. Plenty of space for relaxing and entertaining family and friends.


Let's have a peek upstairs.



The man's room/office. New built in shelving, extra large windows and though you can't see it, to the left is an entire wall of built in cabinetry. The colour is a bit off in this photograph so it's hard to tell but the walls are BM Hazy Skies and the cabinets are BM Fairview Taupe. That big log on the floor is the carpet which will be used in all the rooms on the entire upper floor...except the bathrooms which of course I would never put carpet in!



This is the main bathroom and as you can see it still needs some work. The old taupey coloured fixtures have been replaced with white, the bathtub/shower unit is brand new as is the vanity and floor tiles. Still to come we will be adding beadboard wainscotting to cover the dated wall tiles and new lighting. We also changed all the door hardware to iron black.




The next room on our tour is the master suite. New carpet, windows and wall colour. We used BM Hazy Skies in here which creates a nice flow and neutral background.

This room is the ensuite to the master bedroom. The entry door will be a French door with etched glass to keep it bright and airly. This was 2 separate spaces, one had a small vanity only and the other had the toilet and shower. We removed the wall to make it one larger open space. The floor has been retiled, a new larger vanity added. The new medicine cabinet and lighting still need to be installed. In this room and in all the bathrooms we'll be using chrome lighting and cabinet hardware. Shiny and clean.

This is the new shower. The old one had a major water problem with leakage through the tiles. Just to the left you can see some new built in shelves. I usually like doing tile showers but since this is a summer home we've gone for low maintenance. We stole a little space from the master bedroom closet on the other side of the wall to create this additional storage.

So, that is the progress to date on this house. It's coming along quite nicely. I didn't post any of the downstairs pictures since this is getting kind of long but I will when it is complete. Since I had my camera I took some pictures of other beautiful homes in the area. I could have taken more but I was rushed to get back to town.

I have to comment on this house. While the others are all very nice this has to be (is) one of my favorite houses on PEI. My... what if house :) My... if I win the lottery house :) My... if I work very very hard someday house :) Isn't it stunning?

I wish I would have had more time this morning to take a few more shots because there are plenty of eye candy houses on the river. I have another project, just starting in Stanley Bridge, this time a new build. I'll keep you posted...

Thanks for reading. Have a great weekend!

Susan