A beautiful transformation!

We live in a sweet little cape cod. We completely gutted and remodeled our home from top to bottom. It was such a dramatic change that we were the talk of the neighborhood for quite some time. ...


The Carpenter even overheard a couple talking about our home waiting in a grocery store line one day. Cars would pass by and people would holler out.. great job! It was slightly thrilling and very rewarding to say the least. And yes it was a beastly amount of hard work, long hours and discomfort as we moved in to a section that was finished and lived in the home during the balance of the remodeling process.

That was the late 1990s.

I'm more then ready to do it again. I'm ready. The Carpenter is not. My dream is to buy a home and transform it into a craftsman bungalow. This would be my last home project. But the chances of it happening are pretty slim. I have a better chance of doing some craftsman updates to our cape and hopefully also enlarging the kitchen and adding a screened porch. That is my fairly "realistic" dream. Just because you are married to a carpenter doesn't mean you can snap your fingers and get a new kitchen or cozy screened porch. It takes a carpenter's down time, money to buy the materials and most of all energy at the end of the day when he's used most of his waking hours building other people's dreams. But this girl can dream!

I jumped right into writing this post when I opened an enewsletter from Houzz.com. You have to go to this link and see this spectacular remodel!! http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/21029594/list/Houzz-Tour--Turning-a----50s-Ranch-Into-a-Craftsman-Bungalow. This is my dream project. For myself. Or you. http://applewoodremodelers.com/services/

Starting with the exterior, the architect was smart. Kept the original footprint of the house with the exception of the family room addition off the back. Maintained original rooflines (from what I can see) with the exception of the second floor front dormer that features a steeper pitch and bracket details to give it a real craftsman look. Kept the brick but painted it, added craftsman windows and even a craftsman roof detail over the existing garage door which was updated too.

The interior of this home is spectacular. Starting with the kitchen which features stainless steel penny round backsplash, larger subway tile, painted cabinets, a dark walnut contrasting island, and sleek contemporary hardware. The walls wear a soft gray. In fact this color appears to be used in other rooms in the house which creates a sense of visual unity. The dining room balances out the soft gray palette cozy in a rich eggplant! Exactly perfect. Bravo to the interior designer!

Strong craftsman trim details complete the interior. And the icing on the cake? An outside deck fireplace! How wonderful is that?! 

My passion is "reinventing" a home.. kind of like reinventing yourself when you feel the need for a change. An older home is good, much life was lived, memories created.. but now the reinvented home is ready for it's second act, an enhanced efficient version of itself. 

I'm going to bookmark this project. Let me know if you love this project too!

~ the Artist