Project Update: Week 2 & 3


I'm losing track of time. I think we might technically have wrapped week 3? Yes, I'm going with that.

Week 1 = Demo started on October 6 ... but was supposed to start that Monday
Week 2 = More demo
Week 3 = Demo finished and leveling began

In the last two weeks, we went from a house that looked "dated" but strong and sturdy... to a house that had no walls. And as a result of the no walls, you could see so much of the history of the house but also the weaknesses. This is definitely a cottage house. People used what they had to build in the 1910s. Nobody went to Lowes or Hingham Lumber Yard and then had a pallet of wood delivered.

Demo

So the demo. Like I've said before, this is not like it happens on HGTV - or it is but it's what happens when all the camera crews go home for the day. The demo was incredibly messy. Yes, of course it is going to be not clean and organized like an operating room. The contributing factors are: old insulation, plaster, spiderwebs, etc.

Towards the end of week 3, the exterior chimney also came down. I always knew this one was coming down and had no emotional attachment to any part of it. Not the bricks, nothing. It has been part of the designs from the beginning to knock this down but I was surprised at the difference it makes in the exterior of the house. It's like a scar has been removed.

The only things still standing at this point are staying. We've got the original staircase, the wood floors, and the antique closet on the 2nd floor. There were some interesting old layouts and doorways revealed during demo.... but that deserves a whole post.

Decisions

Everyone keeps telling me that this project is pretty much being able to make a million decisions... and then to make one hundred more. But even beyond that, you need to make them timely and sometimes without complete information.

So here's a quick summary of the decisions that were made in the last couple weeks:

  • Picked and ordered the windows // So expensive.
  • Picked the french door mullion pattern // This was far more complicated than I anticipated and honestly, just ended up letting Jim the contractor decide. I absolutely care a lot about windows but trust Jim's educated opinion.
  • Got zoning board approval to lift and move the house to the right // I've gone back and forth a little bit on whether this was theoretically worth all the additional effort and cost.... and it absolutely is. 
  • Decided to knock out the bay window // Read the post for more info 
  • Decided to knock down the primary wood-burning fireplace // Absolutely deserves it's own post. But, essentially decided that while I love this fireplace emotionally it is best for the long-term health of the house to knock it down and move it over.

Coming Soon? Getting started on the kitchen design and finally picking the front/back door style.
 

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