Wrapping up Demo!

So much accomplished again in the past week.  We've got the kitchen looking like there was never a pantry there, and all the flooring in the house is gone! 

Well, the ugly awful stuff that was covering up hardwood and marble tile, that is.

Emily came over last week and helped me rip up the kitchen floor.  We are two dangerous blondes when armed with shovels and utility knives.  The three layers of linoleum plus peel and stick tile were no match.  I'm going to patch the floor where the wall was with flooring that would be hidden under the cabinets anyway, and then refinish the whole lot.  

The trim we salvaged is now back on the door into the side staircase, and the wall is all patched up.

Peel and Stick in the bathroom met its demise.  Hammer and spackle knife took it up easily.  I had to Goo-Gone the marble hex tile that was underneath to remove the ridiculously sticky residue.  Like stick your jeans to the floor ridiculous.  Why they covered the marble tile, I will never know.  It's in great shape.  It and the bathtub will be the only original things in here when we're all done.

One of my personal favorites has been this plumbing wall.  1/4inch plywood is not actually appropriate backer board as it ROTS.  And the vent only vents into the wall of the closet, not to the outside, as it is supposed to.  

That smells niiiice.

Kitchen ceiling.  Wall?  What wall?

Stealing space from a funky nook in a bedroom closet gives me the space I need for a linen cabinet in the bathroom.

Started to rip apart a bedroom window.  Because I don't have enough other projects going on right now.  Eventually I have to restore all of them.  I vacuumed off the lock on this one.  Whoops.

So the rest of the bathroom demo and the cabinets in the kitchen should be all gone by the end of this week.  I'm leaving in the vanity in the bathroom until I get to the Ikea in Boston in 3 weeks to get a new sink.  So that I have a functional bathroom for the Halloween party I'm throwing.  I don't even have to decorate to get the haunted look! It's so perfect...

Ordered the kitchen cabinets, countertops, and new washer and dryer this week.  Where I'm going to put it all until I get the floors refinished, I don't know.  I could put it in the attic if the dang squirrel removal people would ever call me back!!! Argh.  

First Demo Milestones Passed

We got tons accomplished this past week.  

Mom and I focused on rug/pad/staple removal (I think my hand is going to be permanently shaped into a little staple pulling claw). But it's all done! almost all done.  Realized this morning I forgot to do the coat closet. Damn-it-to-hell!

Then we took out our frustrations on the pantry walls.  We finished totally taking them down today.  This included having to chip out and even off the header for the long wall, which was a half inch lower than the ceiling height. I feared for my life after that was discovered.  But we powered through it and hasn't killed me yet.  It's a win-win, both for me I think.

Also discovered we have the original hard wood floor under all that linoleum in the kitchen.  Not sure of the condition, but if it's salvageable, I'll refinish it too.  Hopefully saving money on not needing to tile the floor!

We've saved all the molding and the lumber from these walls to use to frame out the larger opening to the dining room.  The ironing board cabinet was also removed intact to be converted to a large medicine cabinet for the bathroom.  Why buy new stuff when you can save money by reusing things you already have in your house?

Floor refinishing is scheduled for early November with my real estate agent Heather's husband's family business.  He's third generation, so he definitely knows what he's doing.  I'm confident the floors are going to look amazing.  Can't wait!

Ordered most of the lighting this weekend.  It's all Murray Feiss Parker Place Collection in Dark Bronze.

New dining room sconces

Have my eyes on Woodcraft cabinets from www.unfinished-kitchen-cabinets.net .  As the name implies, they come unfinished, so I can paint or stain them myself.  This way I can postpone that decision without holding anything up! Brilliant. They're made in Pennsylvania, so they're local-ish.  Still looking for capital district cabinet makers too.

Have estimates coming for the squirrel removal out of my attic and new wood storm windows so the wind doesn't blow through the house.  So much to do before winter comes!

Renovation Begins!

Have owned the house for 7 days now, and the second floor is being torn to bits.  I love it! This project would take 100 times longer without my friends helping.  

See the album to the right for some "before" pics.

 The bathroom with old mistmatched beige/brown tile and medicine cabinet removed. Popping tile off the wall didn't take that long, seeing as they had just been glued onto the previous wall treatment.  New smaller toilet, and sink/vanity  plus beadboard paneling are being planned.  Also awful peel and stick tile covering original tile will get ripped up.  Hopefully the tile is in ok shape!

Upper kitchen cabinets gone, base cabinets will follow soon.  Have to fix all the windows and slowly replace the ropes with chains.  Mostly removing tons of old paint and re-glazing a couple windows. 

Pantry shelves gone, after a good ole fashioned smashing by bff Kyle.  Wall to the left is going to be taken down to create a bigger kitchen.  Beautiful (Ha!) vinyl flooring to be destroyed as well!

Sun porch with carpet and pad removed by my mother.  Floors will need to be refinished throughout, but will be awesome when they are done.

Passed Inspection!

So the last hurdles have been cleared in the past couple weeks - both the inspection and appraisal went well.  Apparently all that crossing of fingers actually worked, woohoo!  Loan approval documents should be on their way in a couple days.  Can't wait to sign away my life.  Closing in 3 weeks, and then, let the renovations begin! Beige carpet, your days are numbered...

And I'm Back

So it's been a couple months since the last deal fell through during which I've been traipsing around Albany looking at houses and putting in offers.  Well, one of them was finally accepted yesterday!  It's on Mercer St, around the block from the house I lost.  Everyone said things happened for a reason, blah, blah, blah - but impatient ole me was not hearing it. At all.  So it makes me almost reluctant to say that I like this house so much better.  It's twice the size and not much more money.  Big enough so now I'll have a guest room that you all can stay in.  No promises on actually having a bed in there for a while, so don't throw away the air mattress just yet.  


Inspection is next week and hopefully if all goes well (not a guarantee!) I should be closing late September.

Blogged too soon

Update: Lost the house due to a low bank appraisal. Back to looking...

Holy Moly! I'm buying a house!

Here's the set-up. 
  
Three weeks before the homebuyer credit ran out, I was convinced to look into buying/investing, seeing as my lease would soon be up and mortgage rates were low. What the hell, I thought.  I guess you're supposed to plan and save for this sort of thing, but flying by the seat of your pants is so much more fun! 


Fast forward through 2 hectic weeks of looking at a dozen multi-family properties with my awesome realtor, Heather Hansen of Prudential Manor Homes, and I see the listing for this property.  I viewed it a day later and I put an offer on it that afternoon. With the house under contract, I set about getting it inspected, but not before I had surgery to remove my pesky gallbladder. (Fabulous timing, as usual) Five days after surgery, I followed around my inspector as he pointed out everything wrong with the house (alot!) as my mom followed me around, furiously scribbling notes and trying to make sure I didn't pass out.  I took pictures and tried to look alert. After three more weeks and much back and forth, the sellers actually fixed all the major items noted on the inspection.  Memorial Day was the bank inspection and it seems that we are on target for a mid June closing.


The property is in the St. Rose area of Albany.  Built as a one family in 1890, it's an (almost) American Foursquare style.  Converted in the 1950s to a 3 unit, it has 2 studio apartments downstairs and a two bedroom apartment upstairs, where I intend to live.  Besides appliances, nothing has been updated since the conversion, which would scare a normal person, but makes me excited, and a bit touched in the head.  I love redesigning spaces to be the most efficient possible, all while spending as little as possible, because frankly, that's all I have!


This blog is my attempt to catalog all those efforts for my friends to laugh over.  Sketches, pictures, and stories to follow in the coming months!