Category: projects

You guys- I am SO excited to be typing this post. This means that a house is finally FINISHED AND SOLD (well almost sold anyway). This house was actually a pretty quick project. After a lot of REALLY BIG projects lately, it was nice to find this house. It was mostly cosmetic and an “easy” flip compared to all the others we have going on right now. We bought this house at the sheriff sale a few months back. We got it finished, put it on the market and got an offer from the FIRST person that looked at it. The sale is currently pending- so hopefully all goes well and it closes in the next few weeks. Now, the fun part- here are some before and after pictures…

 

BEFORE

AFTER

It wasn’t a huge transformation on the exterior. We took out the concrete driveway because it was severely cracked and torn up. We replaced the front door and added the porch railing. Unfortunately it has been terribly cold in Bloomington, IN recently so we haven’t been able to power wash yet or do any landscaping. It is not the exterior I would have loved for it to be, but when you’re flipping in the middle of winter it makes exterior work difficult.

BEFORE

 

AFTER

Walk in to new carpet, new paint and CLEAN!!

BEFORE

 

AFTER

The whole main level got new laminate flooring and paint. We added a custom ethanol burning ventless fireplace in the living room and I LOVE IT!

 

BEFORE

AFTER

The kitchen might be the best transformation. This kitchen is HUGE. All new cabinets, stainless appliances, sink and faucet and granite countertops.

BEFORE

AFTER

The way the floors flow throughout the whole main level make this area feel even bigger. It is a great open floor plan that is perfect for entertaining. All new light fixtures throughout the home as well.

BEFORE

AFTER

Nice, new, fresh and clean hallway leading to the 3 bedrooms/2 bathrooms on the main level.

 

BEFORE

AFTER

New toilet, vanity, faucet, mirror, light fixture and flooring.

BEFORE

AFTER

New paint, carpet and light fixture have brightened up this spacious master bedroom overlooking the backyard.

BEFORE

AFTER

This master bath got a fresh makeover with a new toilet, vanity, faucet, mirror, light fixture and flooring as well.

BEFORE

AFTER

All bedrooms got new carpet, paint and light fixtures. There was A LOT of stuff in this house that had to be cleaned out before the renovation even began.

BEFORE

AFTER

This cleaned up basement family room is going to make a great place to hang out!

BEFORE

AFTER

This downstairs half bathroom was YUCKY to say the least. Complete overhaul in here.

BEFORE

AFTER

This basement office/4th bedroom got a good cleaning and overhaul as well. It has a large closet great for storage.

BEFORE

AFTER

This laundry/utility room was creepy and gross before. Now it is clean and bright and a place where laundry might actually get done!

 

Also, my husband wanted me to make sure to let you all know that this was HIS house. He wanted this one. He picked out all the materials and did the design. He is pretty proud of himself, especially since we have gotten such great feedback from everyone that has looked at it. We continue to have showings on the house even though it is pending. Looks like he has finally learned something…after all the years of watching me! 🙂

We have a couple of other houses that should be finished soon…so hopefully I will be back sooner rather than later.

 

 

So, it’s been a bit silent around here lately. I apologize for the absence. Things have been extremely hectic lately and I haven’t taken the time to sit down and update the blog! Since my last post we have bought a few more houses and our spec home is well under way. I can’t wait to show you the pictures of that–which are coming soon! But first, let’s talk about Chester Drive. We bought this house sight un-seen while on vacation in Florida. Yes- FAMILY vacation….and next thing I know my husband is saying he is buying a house. So much for relaxation and getting away for a week! 🙂 The house hunting never stops. Ever.

Anyway, our offer was accepted. When we got back to town we went to take a look. I’m sure my husband could feel the daggers being shot through his back!! It needed A LOT of work. A lot, a lot. I’ve never seen a basement as horrible as this one. We knew it would be a huge project, but often times those are the best! Here we go with the before pictures…

Look at that beautiful mess. It will get all new siding, windows, roof, gutters, doors and front porch!!! It’s going to be a huge transformation both inside and OUT!

The living room. Those hardwood floors ARE beautiful!! Luckily we get to salvage these!

Then there’s the kitchen. Not so beautiful. This will be a huge overhaul with all new cabinets, counters, appliances and a brand new breakfast bar!

The only bathroom in the house. It’s a tiny thing. We will be adding another full bathroom in the basement.

Then there is the creepy basement. I hate creepy basements. Well, once we’re finished it’s going to be bright and open and feel 100 times bigger; somewhere the family WANTS to hang out. It will have a “master suite” with bedroom and attached bathroom. Also, a laundry and utility room with tons of storage space and a nice sized family room.

Like I said, this has been a big project. I can’t wait for you to see the finished project. I don’t think you’ll ever know it was the same house! Stay tuned!

 

Well, we finally got it done. We had a buyer for this house before we ever listed it. They were out of town buyers who had never seen the house in person before. We worked up until the VERY last minute to get this thing finished before closing so it would be perfect for the new owner. It’s always a bit nerve-racking when you sell a house to buyers who have never had an in-person viewing, but they LOVED it. What do you think?

 

EXTERIOR:

View as you walk in the front door:

 

KITCHEN:

If you remember- the kitchen WAS in the basement. We moved it upstairs where a bedroom used to be.

LIVING ROOM:

 

STAIRCASE:

The spiral staircase was replaced with a normal staircase. We did a half wall and a beautiful light fixture that really opened everything up!

 

NEW STAIRCASE:

HALL BATHROOM:

We didn’t have a lot of space to work with, but we got the vanity, toilet and tub all in one space, compared to the awkward 2 room area it was in before.

 

BEDROOM #1:

 

BEDROOM #2

We took part of this bedroom to make the kitchen/dining area and then used the other part for this bedroom.

 

MASTER BEDROOM:

 

MASTER BATHROOM:

There wasn’t a master bathroom before. However, there was this oddly shaped purple room off the hallway next to what is now the master bedroom. I’m not sure what they used it for?? A nursery? Office? Anyway- it is now this GORGEOUS master bathroom. The pictures don’t do it justice. (My husband took these “after” pictures for me, so I have to work with what I’ve got!)

 

FAMILY ROOM (BASEMENT)

 

LAUNDRY ROOM

We removed the exterior door to the backyard that was in the laundry room. It went to a concrete staircase that you walked up to get to the backyard. We decided it was worth it to remove the door and make more wall space to make the laundry room more functional. We also moved the door to the garage into the laundry room so we could re-arrange the half bathroom in the basement.

HALF BATHROOM

This is a project that we’ve been working on for several months- several months longer than anticipated. We have definitely had some BIG bumps in the road along the way, but it was all WORTH IT.

Josh didn’t want to buy this house, but I talked him into it. I could see the vision from the beginning and wanted to turn it into reality. With all the issues that came up along the way he kept telling me how much he hated this house. But, we kept going, found the BEST contractor to finish the job, and now it’s one of his favorites we’ve ever done.

You guys, this turned out AWESOME!! I am so excited to show you the before and after photos.

This house sits on about 1 acre on the outskirts of Bloomington, toward Ellettsville. Close to west side amenities, but with a country, quiet setting.

EXTERIOR

ENTRY

LIVING ROOM

KITCHEN

UPPER LEVEL BATHROOM

MASTER BEDROOM

 

ORIGINAL HALF BATH- LOWER LEVEL

This house did not have a “master bedroom” when we bought it. There was a half bathroom on the lower level, but it was not attached to a bedroom and as you can tell from the picture above- it was tiny. During the renovation we created a master bedroom on the lower level- expanding the half bath to a full bath and attaching it to the lower level bedroom.

NEW MASTER BATHROOM

 

LOWER LEVEL FAMILY ROOM

 

LAUNDRY ROOM

 

REAR EXTERIOR

Here are the other “before” pictures of Cedar Drive.

The view walking in the front door. No flooring and a big ugly wall. This is the living room.

 

Another view of the living room.

 

Top of the stairs….the spiral staircase that is.

 

First bedroom. Technically the “master bedroom” as there is an attached bathroom (which is also the hall bathroom).

 

 

The hall bath was very awkward. You walked into the area with the sink from the “master bedroom” and then into the room with the toilet and bathtub, which walked out into the hallway.

 

Here is the 2nd bedroom.

 

This is the 3rd bedroom.

 

And this is the “den/study” or whatever you want to call it. A pretty small little room- not sure what it was used for.

This finishes off the main floor. Wait, is that right? You’re probably thinking that I can’t be right. We are missing something, aren’t we? THE KITCHEN!! Nope, I am not missing anything. It is IN THE BASEMENT! We will get there.

So the main floor had a living room, 3 bedrooms, 1 den/study and 1 bathroom. On to the basement…

 

This was the view walking into the basement from the exterior door that we will be removing. See that lovely spiral staircase??

 

And here it is…the kitchen!

 

And a full room view. Family room/kitchen.

 

We can’t forget the basement bathroom. A tiny little thing.

 

And finishing off the basement is the laundry room. Take note of that exterior door and blank wall. I have a feeling it’s going to look a bit different when we are done!

So there you have it. The “before” pictures of this house. “After” photos will be coming soon and I don’t think you are even going to recognize the place!