I just returned from a 7-day trip to the east coast.  5 flights, 3 hotels, 2 different rental cars and lots of driving and a wide variety of activities. There is quite a bit to share with you so please forgive the longer post.

Monday, I flew into Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C. and stayed at The Hive Hotel, which is walking distance to the George Washington University campus, where my son has been staying for the summer during his internship.

This is a very cool boutique hotel, based on a beehive concept. Mixing smart design with the unexpected, The Hive unites modern innovation with historic character.

With its prime location, Hotel Hive guests can buzz about the city and return to a unique and innovative hotel experience. Their efficient rooms provide guests with everything they need and nothing they don’t.  The rooms range from 125–250 square foot hives are anything but ordinary and are perfect for one or two guests.

They serve a limited menu at their bar and rooftop deck~~excellent pizzas and a fun cocktail menu.  This place is “buzzing” after work hours and on weekends.

The staff is young and upbeat and their customer service is superb.  I would definitely stay here again.

The next day, I attending a military interment service at Arlington National Cemetery for my dear friend, Bob Garrett. The service was done with all the precision, respect and honor that the military represents. I didn’t realize Arlington has 30 burial services each day.

The reception following the ceremony was at the Officers Club where old friends shared their favorite stories about Bob. It was a fitting send off to a dear friend. I was especially glad that my son and my brother, Mike were able to attend. Arlington is a somber reminder of all the brave men and women who have served and fought for our freedom.

Tuesday night, I connected with a long-time friend and business associate, Bob Pikora.  We met for hors d’oeurves and drinks at the stunning restored post office on Pennsylvania Avenue. The Old Post Office, the city’s original postal center, has endured a series of uses throughout the years. Opened in 1899, it included a Clock Tower, which at 315 feet, remains the second tallest building in the city and provides panoramic views of Washington, D.C.

In 2013, the building had a $200 million dollar restoration and is now Trump International Hotel.  As one who loves historical buildings, this one is an architectural Romanesque Revival gem. Hard to believe this was once slated for demolition.  We sat at the outdoor cafe on this beautiful evening, had wonderful conversation and delicious bites.

On Wednesday afternoon, I flew up to Connecticut for a very quick trip to take my Aunt Gail out for her 97th birthday.  Yes, 97!!! The last remaining member of my father’s siblings, Gail is sharp as a tack, lives alone, still drives and has a very busy life.  We had an enjoyable lunch at the Norwich Inn and I am always in awe of her good health, quick wit and sharp memory.

While there, I stayed at my sister, Susie and her husband, Ned’s home in Old Saybrook, CT, which is right on the water. Lucky me!

The weather was absolutely perfect-in the 70s, low humidity and slight ocean breezes.  Having my cup of coffee in the morning and overlooking this view at low tide, was balm for the soul.

Even though I was there for less than 2 days, I was able to get in a few invigorating walks, where again, I coveted those flowers that cannot grow in Phoenix.  This seashore community has very attractive homes and beautiful landscapes.

The weather was perfect for boating. Here are some pictures from our dinner boat ride from Old Saybrook, CT to Stonington Borough, CT.

Just before I left on Friday to fly back to Washington, D.C.,  I met my siblings and their spouses at Abbott’s Lobster in the Rough in Noank, CT for their famous lobster rolls and seafood.

I landed late in the afternoon in D.C. in time to go out to dinner with my son and celebrate the last day of his summer internship.  He is a big foodie so he chose The Dabney for dinner.  The evening was overcast and drizzling and the atmosphere at The Dabney was perfect~~with its open hearth cooking.

As quoted from their website, “At The Dabney, we source our food from the Mid-Atlantic’s finest farms and purveyors. The centerpiece of our open kitchen is a wood-burning hearth that allows us to showcase the region’s versatility while staying true to its classic cooking methods.” It was truly a culinary experience and such fun to share it with my son.

The next morning we drove from DC to Charlottesville, VA to begin the move-in to his new college room, which is in a 1919 brick 2-story house.  Naturally, the t.v. went up first!

For the next 3 days, we cleaned and scrubbed, assembled furniture, hung window coverings, and got his room in tip-top shape for the start of school next week. Here’s the finished product!

It was a VERY busy and productive week and it’s good to be back home.  All 3 children are now settled into school and we are back to some semblance of a schedule again.

Hope this finds you happy and healthy and enjoying the balance of the summer.

After 8 months of extensive renovation, we are proud to show you the results of the 1922 restoration in one of Phoenix’s most lovely neighborhoods.  This Jeffersonian grand dame is worthy of all the time, money and energy it took to make this restoration a reality.

If you would like to see previous posts on this, please click here and here.  For some reason, this renovation consumed more energy than I imagined.  I’ve been contemplating as to why that is so and I’ve come to the conclusion that this house elicited many emotions for me.

First of all, I find it troubling that someone could let this architectural gem deteriorate so greatly.  When it was being built in the early 1920s, it is evident that great care and pride went into every detail.  It is obvious that many people have loved this house over the decades. Yet the last 20 years it sat empty and neglected, sad and lonely.

When you let something like this go, the steep slope of decline happens rather quickly.  My heart actually hurt when I first walked into the house.  I could envision what it was like in its prime~~a home filled with laughter, activity, parties, and celebrations.  But when I purchased it in August 2016, it was filled with debris~~depressed and abandoned.

The Exterior

The home was covered in aluminum siding and the only activity involved pigeons who had taken it over as their residence.  If you look closely, the aluminum siding is falling off and I held my breath hoping the original clapboard siding is underneath.  We stripped all the aluminum siding off (and recycled it). A local company was able to replicate any missing or damaged clapboard.

With a fresh coat of paint, a newly rebuilt front terrace and overhang, new roof, light fixtures and all new landscaping, the house is now back to its former glory.  How fun that my neighbor, David Stanton, is kind parked his antique car in front for these photos.

The Entry

The entry was painted a hideous pink and the gold plaster curlicues were glued to EVERYTHING.  The entry light had plastic, fake crystals, the balustrades were painted gold (more gold!)  and the hardwood railing was painted white.

All the original floors are preserved and refinished~~they are gorgeous!

The Living Room

Upon entering the house, the living room is to the left.  With gold-flocked wallpaper and what appears to be 2 mantles (?), the original hardwood floors are in tact and the room is a very good size.  Thankfully the original chandeliers and plaster medallions are still there.

All the windows needed repair as did the many cracks in the plaster walls.  We removed the baseboard heating system, as well as the wallpaper. Though you cannot see it in this picture, the electrical conduit to the chandeliers was just tacked onto the walls.

Now you can see the gorgeous bones of this room. The ceiling rosettes, crystal chandeliers, beautiful woodwork and original hardwood floors make this room an elegant space.

The Dining Room

To the right of the entry is the Dining Room.  The walls were wallpapered and then painted over, so we removed everything down to the plaster. Yes, behind the piano, that is an exterior window that was used as a bookshelf.  Go figure.

Both the dining room and living room have beautiful French doors that open up to the front terrace.

Here is the dining room after from 2 different angles. What was once a storage area, is now a closet for china, silver, linen and crystal.  Though you can’t see it well in this photo, the concrete floor is hand-painted.  See a previous post regarding that project!

Picture a meal here with all the French doors open to the outside. The original chandelier was missing but I am able to find another crystal one that fits the period of the house.

The Butler’s Pantry

From the entry there is now a Butler’s Pantry where parts of the original kitchen were located.  The plastic door to the left is the former laundry room.  This is now a completely new powder room with a pocket door added for privacy.

Here we have gutted the room back to the walls.  The door in the distance is the entrance to the basement.

This sweet butler’s pantry has oak countertops, crystal pulls and knobs on the custom cabinetry and a skirted sink.

The Kitchen

The kitchen was a massive undertaking.  It spanned two rooms with the sink, dishwasher and refrigerator in one room with the stove in another.  However, there is a lovely, large, brick fireplace which apparently was at one time, used for cooking.

This is now what I am calling the “kitchen cozy”.  A perfect place to sit in a very comfortable chair to read the paper or have your coffee.

There was a tacky addition to the back of the house that needed to be removed.  After structurally supporting the exterior of the house with a beam, we rebuilt the addition and took this opportunity to add a second story which becomes the master suite.

The new flooring is now level with the kitchen and all the air conditioning vents have been submerged in the subfloor. This addition, on the first floor is now the open kitchen/family room.

Great care is taken to put all the first floor air-conditioning ducting in the floors. Insulation helps with sound and keeping the house cool in the hot Phoenix summers.

The family room after.

This is the view from one end of the kitchen to the family room.

The Hall Bathroom

Upstairs, the hall bath was quite a site!  Again, lots of gold on the walls and the ceiling!

Notice the small brass cranks on the window trim. These cranks allow you to open and close the exterior shutters from the inside.

All the bedrooms are off this wonderful upstairs hall.  You can see the hall bath in the background with its original beaded curtain.

With a fresh coat of paint and refinished floors, it looks so clean and elegant.  The light fixture has silk shades and this is a Ballard Designs purchase.

The Bedrooms

The southwest bedroom had the funky bathroom in one corner without any walls. Gotta love the very disgusting fuzzy, pink toilet seat cover!

When we took out the vanity and we discovered an original window in tact! Hard to believe the faux brick wallpaper was “in” once.

With the addition of walls, this space becomes an actual bathroom.

The Master Bedroom

The master bedroom was rather tiny so we created a new master space with the second story addition. Where you see the closet to your right, we walled off a larger section (over the yellow rug), and created a new master walk-in closet. The window, located in the left of the photo is where the opening becomes the new master bedroom addition. Where the bed is located in the background, becomes the master bath.

We build a small deck outside the bedroom~~where there are city lights to be viewed at night.

Notice the window behind the bed.  This is where the new bathtub is placed.

Demolition and Addition

Some of the greatest building transformation took place outside.  The backyard was crammed with 3 buildings~~all rentals units that were uninhabitable.  We demolished 2 of them and opened up the back yard.  We left one cottage and discovered it had been the original garage.  

However, we couldn’t salvage the barn-style doors as they had been destroyed.  Included in the demolition permit was the removal of the addition off the kitchen which was not built to code.  I don’t have any good pictures of the backyard before, however, here is what the house looks like after everything is gone.

Here you can see the second story demolition of the house and the where the future master suite will be located.

The Guest Cottage

Here is the remaining guest cottage/original garage.

By adding new doors and windows, this original garage becomes a sweet place for guests.

The Garage

There was no garage so we add 2 two car one next to the guest cottage. There is an 2 – car automatic garage door on one side and a single car garage door which opens out to the alley. This way you can pull you car in one side and drive out the other.

The Yard

I’m not a big fan of block walls, however, they do provide privacy and safety. I always like to do something whimsical and unique at each house I renovate and this section of wall seems to be the perfect place.

I picked up this bike on Craig’s List for $20.00, cut the seat in half; removed one pedal and split the handle bars.  The block wall was white and we paint both the wall and the bike a great shade of green/gray from Sherwin Williams.

The “bike art” is now a focal point of the back yard.  Once the trees fill it, you may not see it but it’s a fun surprise.  I wonder what other objects I could use for future wall art projects??

The Details

The French tub was a keeper and it is repurposed as a dog bath in the new laundry room. I had the exterior of the tub (which was gold, no surprise there) professionally coated.

Here are some additional  photos of the exterior.

Since I retained the original windows on the existing house, I add Sunbrella awnings over the windows facing west to reduce the sun exposure.

Finishing this project

This is a great shot showing the original house and the newly added (and structurally correct) 2 story addition.  You may note that 3 windows in the upper story don’t match the rest of the house.  I assume this section may have been an old sleeping porch and then enclosed at some point later.  Nearly all the windows are double hung, but these three are casement windows.

I find it interesting that the shutters are only on the front of the house~~which is historically correct.  The shutters actually serve a purpose since the front is south facing.  The upper shutters close via an interior brass handled crank and the lower, larger shutters actually work and cover the French doors.  Very innovative back in 1922 when air conditioning didn’t exist.

I hope you enjoy the restoration journey of this magnificent home.  My work is done and now it is up to my realtor, Madison Hallock to find the perfect person/family for this house.  You can see more photos and real estate details here.

This project could not have been done with the right people working on it. I am blessed with the absolute best crew, who manage to keep the laughter going even in times of despair. Everyone left a little bit of the heart and soul here and we are so proud to breathe new life into a historical home of this caliber.  

Many thanks to the following people for helping me: some before and after shots by photographer, Adam Peter; after photos by photographer, Jesse Fitton; Lola Castle with Castle Designs for her wonderful staging.  I’ve never used a staging company before and Lola was calm, cool and professional even as I was anxiously hovering over her.  I would definitely use her again!  And a big thank you for all the neighbors who tolerated our presence in their neighborhood.  Their words of support and encouragement are so appreciated and welcomed!

Will I do another?

Everyone keeps asking when I will do another one, but I can honestly say, I’m pooped.  I hope to take the summer to recuperate.  Unlike some profit-driven flippers, I do this out of love and respect for older homes and their architecture.  I take this responsibility seriously and feel that renovating and restoring is a way of care giving.  And if you have ever taken care of someone, you know how rewarding and draining it can be at the same time.  As with most things in life,  I always try to leave the campsite better than I found it.  I think we hit this one out of the park!

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The Willetta project is moving along and I’ve got my fingers crossed that it will be completed by March 25.  Right now, we are putting all the pieces of the puzzle back-the kitchen cabinets, countertops, appliances, tiling, final window and door trim, and final paint.

The last 5% of any renovation/restoration is the most important.  Generally that’s when your work crew is looking to their next job and may be losing interest.  It’s the last chapter that requires the most attention to detail.  Picking the right faucet, cabinet hardware, the door knobs is what I call the house’s jewelry….it’s what people notice.  Even though most of the investment is behind the walls in the form of new electricity, plumbing, HVAC, it’s the details that win over a potential new owner.

The Willetta house had many original details that we have chosen to preserve.  However, much of it was covered in layers upon layers of paint or deterioration.

These solid brass door hinges with the ball pin are very expensive to replace, if you can find them at all.  My husband accepted the task of cleaning all of the hardware from the house.  In our relationship, I’m the more organic one-never wanting to use chemicals and exhausting natural ways to accomplish tasks.

I have an old crock pot I dug out of the basement and read that you can “cook” hardware overnight to loosen the gunked up paint. Note the dents and the rust….after using this for cleaning hardware do not prepare food in it…

I added some dish soap and turned it on high and left it on the counter in the kitchen overnight. Not the best idea because the smell the next morning in the kitchen wasn’t very pleasant-a dusty, stale, old smell.  Just what you’d expect from boiling decades of old paint from hardware.

The paint was loosened up quite a bit, however, my husband thinks that soaking the hardware in the chemicals work better.  He used Klean Strip Stripper for wood, metal and masonry and Brasso Metal Polish.

At least one has choices!

All the interior doors have skeleton keys and mortise locks–of course there are no keys to be found, but the octogonal hardware is so attractive and matches the plate behind the glass door knobs.

I can’t wait to show you the finished house at Willetta~~it is such a gem and worthy of all this tedious work.  Big hugs to Scott for cleaning up the “jewelry”!

At the Willetta restoration, we created a large closet off of the dining room by enclosing a portion of an old adjacent storage area.  The purpose of this room is to become the silver, crystal, linen and china closet.  I’ve always wanted a separate space to store my “stuff”- large trays, candlesticks, tablecloths, dishes, silverware and entertaining items.  This 6′ x 7′ closet will be PERFECT for the new homeowners to do just that.

The challenge is that the floor in the new closet is concrete and is flush with the dining room floor which is hardwood.  Adding new flooring on top of the concrete doesn’t make much sense as it would have create an awkward transition.

What could I do to make the floor feel more formal, like the dining room, without adding tile or more wood? After pondering this for a few days, I asked myself,  “How hard could it be to stencil/paint the concrete floor?”  So I googled “how to paint a concrete floor” and watched the YouTube video by Annie Sloan, entitled How to stencil a concrete floor in 10 easy steps. 

The video is set to catchy music and yes, in 10 easy steps, Annie Sloan creates a beautiful floor.  So easy peasy, right? To make it even more convenient, you can buy the entire stenciling kit from Royal Design Studio Stencils.

The stencil that is used in the video is the Anatolia Wall Stencil.  However, the packaging below shows the stencil using 2 colors only (which in retrospect would have been MUCH easier!).  In the video, there are five different colors. The stencil dimensions are rather large at 21″ x 21″.

Within minutes, I purchase the stencil kit online and figured nothing ventured, nothing gained. Right?

The kit is complete with the stencil, the paint, the brushes and the top clear coat.

I’ve never stenciled anything elaborate before so I didn’t realize you needed special brushes, but thank goodness they came in the kit.  However, there wasn’t any information on what brush to use with what color.  I had 4 colors and 5 brushes.  No problem, as I thought I could wing it.

Starting the Stenciling Process

When the kit arrived a few days later,  I didn’t see any instructions in the box.  So I called Royal Design Studios and asked where I could get a copy of the instructions of the floor that was created in the video.  They told me that there weren’t any written instructions.  Yikes.  So, my smart painter, John, suggested I do screen shots of the video and print them out.

So armed with 20+ pages of instructions and my stencil kit, I began painting the floor over the weekend.

First, I taped off the baseboard (which hasn’t been painted) with painter’s tape and painted the floor Old Ochre Chalk Paint.  The paint is a very warm white and rolled on rather well–velvety in a way.  I used a foam roller as recommended in the video.  The paint dried very quickly, however, I waited until the next morning to do a second coat.

After finding and marking the center line of the room, I placed the first stencil at the doorway and put the right edge of the stencil on the center line.  You can see here that the concrete floor is flush with the dining room hardwood floor.  I used green Frog painter’s tape to secure the stencil and protect any paint from spilling onto the hardwood floor.

Since the paint brush sizes weren’t designated to a specific color, I would use the largest brush on the bigger parts of the stencil and then work my way down.  The first color was Olive~~I’m so glad I printed out the steps as it’s a bit confusing trying to determine what color goes where on the clean stencil.

Next came a color that required blending of a pink and yellow paint–I will refer to it as salmon. The stencil brushes have a blunt cut, so I gently dabbed paint onto the stencil.

At this point, I have completed the olive and salmon paint colors. Notice the paint and the paper towel in the photo below.  It is important to dab off any excess paint on the paper towel before applying to the stencil.

Yellow paint next, then followed by the blue.

The chalk paint dried very quickly so I didn’t need to wait to proceed with the next stencil.  It was relatively easy to line up markers on the edge, re-tape the stencil to the floor, and repeat.

The first few stencils seemed to take an eternity, because I was proceeding cautiously.  With the colors now on the stencil, I didn’t need to refer to the notes anymore so the process went a bit faster. By the end, I was able to complete a tile in 30 minutes. Mid-way through, I washed the stencil off with soap and water, as the dried paint began accumulating.

The center portions of the floor could accommodate the entire stencil, however, when I got close to the baseboards, only a partial stencil would fit.  It was a little tricky because it was hard to keep the stencil in place, even when secured with the tape. This step requires patience.

All in all, I painted this stencil 16 times to cover the 6′ x 7′ space.

With the stencils completed and the paint dry, I now paint the edges with a 2″ border of the olive paint to complete the look.

Finishing the Floor

In order to protect the floor I finished it with 2 coats of the clear floor lacquer provided in the kit.

I am so happy with the results! In retrospect, this was labor intensive and I was so sore from sitting or kneeling on the hard concrete floor for hours on end.  From start to finish, I would say I invested 10-12 hours of labor, not counting the drying time. However, this project was well worth it.

I always love to do something unique and personal to each of the homes I restore/remodel.  This historic Willetta home now has an original piece of art by me. To see more about the Willetta restoration, click here.

Here you can see the proximity of this storage area to the formal dining room. The floor is so pretty you can leave the door open!

I hope you have enjoyed watching the transformation of this special room. If you love Before and Afters or restorations of historical homes, I invite you to browse my website. If you like what you see, please sign up to get my weekly blog posts! You can also find me on Instagram @lifeatbellaterra.

My last remodeling project was probably the one that generated the greatest learning and the most heartache with unexpected challenges.  Before I buy a home, it has to “feel” right.  If you believe that the walls of a home speak to you, then you know what I mean.  I can sense if a home has been filled with love and laughter and I also sense when they don’t.

So when I purchased the Glenn house, I could tell it was well-loved, well-kept, but out-dated.  The house is situated on a small cul-de-sac with 6 other homes.

It had relatively nice curb appeal, except for the entrance.  I felt like yodeling every time I entered the front door.  Not sure why it was so Swiss Family Robinson looking, but it made the front doors look diminutive.  The pendant light is the wrong scale. And look at those skinny posts supporting the massive vaulted ceiling….quite odd.

We removed the skinny posts and beams, and created an arched overhang and added more substantial columns.

The after….new front doors painted black, new light fixtures, and richer paint colors.  I replaced the overgrown ivy with healthier foundation plantings.

The entry had a low hanging soffit, a pony wall with dated wainscoting and my least favorite, tiled flooring throughout the entire house.

We eliminated the soffit because it interrupted the energy when you first walked into the house.  We also removed the short wall, the floor tile, and the wainscoting.

Here is the new entrance with a clean, elegant updated look with energy efficient LED can lights everywhere.

From the entry you walk into a wonderful great room.  At the end is the entrance to the kitchen.  Outside is a small patio area.

We removed all the built-ins and also took down the wall between the great room and kitchen.  My first intentions were to just remove wallpaper and repaint.  However, the house had a funny smell, which we attributed to its age.  However, in removing the kitchen walls we found a huge rodent infestation and the insulation was saturated with urine and feces.  We ended up removing all the walls, spraying everything with bleach and baking soda, redoing the electrical and plumbing and adding new, clean, fresh smelling drywall!!!!

Every single house I have remodeled has this creepy loose insulation in the attic that is filled with dust and dirt.  It’s a nasty job to remove it all and replace with new insulation, but I do it every time because I can’t stand this stuff.

We painted the beams and removed one set of sliding doors and added Anderson casement windows.  The new dark hardwood flooring against the crisp white paint makes for a beautiful contrast.  The stunning new kitchen/great room creates a desirable, contemporary open floor plan.

The large chandeliers are from Ballard Designs.  The pendant lights over the peninsula are from Restoration Hardware.

I don’t know how professional photographers do it, but they make the living spaces look so huge.  This room is actually quite reasonable in size vs. the picture. Kitchen cabinets were custom built. Countertops are white Carrera marble.

The powder room……such a small room, yet functional.

We removed the tile, replaced the fixtures and added this fabulous European wallpaper from Pixers to make the room feel bigger. I love adding a querky touch to each house I remodel.  Light fixture and mirror from Restoration Hardware.

Next to the kitchen, was a den that we walled in and converted to a laundry/mud room.

The cabinets are from IKEA.  Personally, I love their drawer mechanisms and assembly was rather easy.

The master bedroom, like the great room, had lots and lots of built-ins and wallpaper.  We removed them and added a real, larger closet by taking some footage from the enormous master bathroom.

The master bathroom was well-equipped but required significant updating. It had what I call a “George Jetson” ceiling just like the kitchen. I am so happy those are no longer in style.

This is the first time I have used tile that looks like wood and I like the effect against the white walls and custom made vanity.  Countertops are Carrera marble.  Bathtub was ordered from Build.com.

The second bedroom just needed cosmetic work, but the bathroom required a complete overhaul. The hexagon window really date this room which we removed and replaced with an operating one.

Most of the square footage of the house is on one level.  There is a loft bedroom/office, which is rather large.  We closed in the area with the shelving below and added a new, full bathroom.

Love the curtains.  There is no window behind them!!! However, we did add beautiful casement windows to capture the sky and rooftop views.

My sweet husband made the barn doors to cover the short closet/storage area, which is quite deep under the eaves.

Here’s the new bathroom that we added to the upstairs loft bedroom. At completion, this was a 4 bedroom, 3.5 bath home, all newly redone and sold to happy homeowners.

Many thanks to my dear friend, and realtor, Shelley Caniglia, for finding these treasured homes for me to remodel and restore. There are many more pictures to share and if you would like to see the Glenn project in its completion, click here. 

The professional photographs of the finished home were done by Trevor Smith with Tour Factory.  The “during” photos were done by me long before I even considered doing a blog so I will need some latitude on the quality :). Hope you enjoyed the tour of the Glenn house.  Now back to work on the Willetta restoration!

 

 

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