A Year Later...We're Still At It
Just a few days short of a full year since my last post and I've have finally gotten around to getting some information up. While I'm sure pictures are what you crave, that's beyond my capability at the moment so this update will have to suffice for now.
Last July I had just accepted a job with the University of Michigan and begun preparing to move. I have now been in Ann Arbor for almost a year. Professionally it was definitely the right move and if you've ever been to Ann Arbor, I'm sure you'll agree it's a great town. Great music, art, food and of course cool houses that need work:) I don't want to get ahead of myself though, we've still got this one to finish up!
So, the answer is yes, we're still at it on the Zeller House. Between my move and Ryan's constant stream of work, it's tough to fit in time to finish the house. Even in this economy Ryan has been very busy and we're counting on that for just a little longer so we can scrape the last bit of funds together to finish things off. I am also contributing to the house fund from afar, because at this point we are going to be bringing in some outside help here and there since Ryan is so busy with work and I'm not even in the same state.
This is not to say that Ryan hasn't gotten quite a bit of work done this year. As for the exterior, it is almost all painted save the side wall that is only feet from the side wall of our neighbor's house. There are a few more repairs to do on the brick before it gets painted. So the house is looking very sharp with a grey/green base and shades of purple on the trim, which will also eventually go on the two deck doors on the modern addition. As of the last few weeks, all the gutters have been replaced. This week the electrical line that runs to the back of the house is going to be moved to a different section so it's safer and more pleasing to the eye. We still have some railings to add to the deck and some repairs to do. I have to give a bad review to the deck product we used. It has not proven to be very durable and has warped in some places, so we need to do some repairs. We are planning to do some landscaping work within the month. We'll do some basic native shrubs directly out front. As for the thin strip between the sidewalk and street, we are going to follow the lead of the houses to our left on 4th Street and do a brick pattern as well as plant a tree. How much we will actually do in the backyard is yet to be determined. We are thinking we may clean things up significantly, but simply with some pavers around the deck and major weeding and pruning all over. As for "the pond" we may even have it taken out and just fill in the grass.
Downstairs is done except for paint and a few built-ins. Ryan had a chance to trim it out and prime it this winter. He added a tile backsplash in the kitchen. Some of the beautiful clear class tile was extra courtesy of a job a few years back in Philly and we supplemented with more tile from the small company we bought the bathroom tile from. The same tile adds a backsplash to the downstairs half bath. That bathroom also has a small sink which is undermounted onto a huge shelf-like piece of wood salvaged from the house that wraps around and creates both a counter and a shelf. I have to say it's a damn cool bathroom! Ryan also repointed the living room fireplace and we are probably just going to leave it as is. If a buyer wants either wood-burning or gas, we'll do it for them, but we don't want to make that choice for them. The built-ins I'm talking about are in the living room. There is a sort of bench-seat area over where the basement stairs are as well as the area under the stairs to the second floor. The carpenter who did our floors is going to make the bench seat with storage underneath and put in a bookshelf under the stairs.
The second floor is where the work really needs to happen. It's a matter of getting in the floors so that Ryan can do the trim. We've also learned a bit about glass tiling. We thought we did a pretty good job, but we've found some problems in the bathroom that we did. Hard to know whether it's our fault or the quality of the tile, but probably a combination of the two. We've decided to have a professional tiler do the mater bath. The two front bedrooms still need closet doors as well.
It seems like a lot. In some ways it is, in some ways it isn't. None of this will really take that long to do, but we're just at the point where we're not going the route of the loan, just chipping away at it as we can with money we're actually making:) The project itself is not all that stressful. Thinking back to the day I came home from work and opened the front door to find Ryan looking up at me from the basement and the inside of the roof looking down at me with no first, second or third floors was a heck of a lot more stressful. What is hard at this point is that I'm in Michigan and Ryan's still in PA. What's amazing and nice is that neither of us hate the house or are really sick of it. I miss it terribly, just being in it, and Ryan is already sad to think about leaving it. I guess that's when you know you've done good work. For some people, home is not about the structure, it's about the family inside. It's certainly about family for us, but I think it's also about the structure. Three years ago, the Zeller House was not a place that felt good, but it's really become a house that you want to be in, that makes you feel good. The space is light and positive and family and friends enjoy being in it and although it might sound crazy, I believe old houses have a sort of soul and I think that after a long while, the house itself is happy again.
Last July I had just accepted a job with the University of Michigan and begun preparing to move. I have now been in Ann Arbor for almost a year. Professionally it was definitely the right move and if you've ever been to Ann Arbor, I'm sure you'll agree it's a great town. Great music, art, food and of course cool houses that need work:) I don't want to get ahead of myself though, we've still got this one to finish up!
So, the answer is yes, we're still at it on the Zeller House. Between my move and Ryan's constant stream of work, it's tough to fit in time to finish the house. Even in this economy Ryan has been very busy and we're counting on that for just a little longer so we can scrape the last bit of funds together to finish things off. I am also contributing to the house fund from afar, because at this point we are going to be bringing in some outside help here and there since Ryan is so busy with work and I'm not even in the same state.
This is not to say that Ryan hasn't gotten quite a bit of work done this year. As for the exterior, it is almost all painted save the side wall that is only feet from the side wall of our neighbor's house. There are a few more repairs to do on the brick before it gets painted. So the house is looking very sharp with a grey/green base and shades of purple on the trim, which will also eventually go on the two deck doors on the modern addition. As of the last few weeks, all the gutters have been replaced. This week the electrical line that runs to the back of the house is going to be moved to a different section so it's safer and more pleasing to the eye. We still have some railings to add to the deck and some repairs to do. I have to give a bad review to the deck product we used. It has not proven to be very durable and has warped in some places, so we need to do some repairs. We are planning to do some landscaping work within the month. We'll do some basic native shrubs directly out front. As for the thin strip between the sidewalk and street, we are going to follow the lead of the houses to our left on 4th Street and do a brick pattern as well as plant a tree. How much we will actually do in the backyard is yet to be determined. We are thinking we may clean things up significantly, but simply with some pavers around the deck and major weeding and pruning all over. As for "the pond" we may even have it taken out and just fill in the grass.
Downstairs is done except for paint and a few built-ins. Ryan had a chance to trim it out and prime it this winter. He added a tile backsplash in the kitchen. Some of the beautiful clear class tile was extra courtesy of a job a few years back in Philly and we supplemented with more tile from the small company we bought the bathroom tile from. The same tile adds a backsplash to the downstairs half bath. That bathroom also has a small sink which is undermounted onto a huge shelf-like piece of wood salvaged from the house that wraps around and creates both a counter and a shelf. I have to say it's a damn cool bathroom! Ryan also repointed the living room fireplace and we are probably just going to leave it as is. If a buyer wants either wood-burning or gas, we'll do it for them, but we don't want to make that choice for them. The built-ins I'm talking about are in the living room. There is a sort of bench-seat area over where the basement stairs are as well as the area under the stairs to the second floor. The carpenter who did our floors is going to make the bench seat with storage underneath and put in a bookshelf under the stairs.
The second floor is where the work really needs to happen. It's a matter of getting in the floors so that Ryan can do the trim. We've also learned a bit about glass tiling. We thought we did a pretty good job, but we've found some problems in the bathroom that we did. Hard to know whether it's our fault or the quality of the tile, but probably a combination of the two. We've decided to have a professional tiler do the mater bath. The two front bedrooms still need closet doors as well.
It seems like a lot. In some ways it is, in some ways it isn't. None of this will really take that long to do, but we're just at the point where we're not going the route of the loan, just chipping away at it as we can with money we're actually making:) The project itself is not all that stressful. Thinking back to the day I came home from work and opened the front door to find Ryan looking up at me from the basement and the inside of the roof looking down at me with no first, second or third floors was a heck of a lot more stressful. What is hard at this point is that I'm in Michigan and Ryan's still in PA. What's amazing and nice is that neither of us hate the house or are really sick of it. I miss it terribly, just being in it, and Ryan is already sad to think about leaving it. I guess that's when you know you've done good work. For some people, home is not about the structure, it's about the family inside. It's certainly about family for us, but I think it's also about the structure. Three years ago, the Zeller House was not a place that felt good, but it's really become a house that you want to be in, that makes you feel good. The space is light and positive and family and friends enjoy being in it and although it might sound crazy, I believe old houses have a sort of soul and I think that after a long while, the house itself is happy again.
posted by Kate at 7/16/2009 07:47:00 PM
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