Jeff and I bought this house eleven years ago when we moved from Boston’s South End. We had a 2 year old, and a not-so-big budget, but we wanted a house in a town that had easy access to the city and good schools. We also loved the idea of an old house (at least 100 years old) — and a “fixer-upper”. Not that we had a clue how to do any fixing upping ourselves, or realistically, what it might cost to hire someone. But we found this place For Sale By Owner, and dove in. To say this place needed some work is an understatment. It was in a time warp. Complete with tiffany blue bathroom fixtures, head to toe knotty pine paneling, no light switches on the second floor, and a giant TV antenna on the roof.
Eleven years later, it’s finally done. Well, as “done” as it’s going to get. I have so many before and after’s to show, it would be a ridiculously long blog post. So, since this is my business website, today I’m starting with my new office — our former sunporch. Over the next week or two, I’ll try to share some of the rest of the progress on this place — because aside from my kids and this business, getting this house to where it is today, is one of my biggest accomplishments. You kind of won’t believe it’s the same place so stay tuned for more!
Meanwhile, here is my new workspace — Huge thanks to Kevin & Paul from Kevin Murphy Construction and our awesome architect, and old-house guru, Jane Griswold Radocchia for all of their hard work and guidance on this project!
Before you look at the rest, here’s what it looked like when we bought the place (note water stains on ceiling from leaky roof — gah!). The windows had to be cranked open with a screwdriver (not that we could get all of them opened, and the porch was completely unheated). Oh, right, and the walls were eaten by termites. Once we moved in we painted everything white and replaced the pink carpeting(!) with wood floors. Can you say “Band-Aid”!?
So much better now, don’t you think!? This year we tore out everything but the roof. The walls, ceiling, floor, and windows are all new. It’s a pretty delightful place to work! I get to look out at the birds and chipmunks and squirrels hanging out in my yard and in the AVIS land across the street.
And the best part is that in addition to being able to edit and do computer work here (thanks to some black out curtains), I can also do headshots and simple baby sessions! It gets great natural light.
Keep your eyes out for more blog posts (or maybe one big one to come) with some of the other changes to this place. Here’s a quick peek at the outside for now:
