They just don't make 'em like they used to

One of our favorite things about old houses that you just don't see on new ones is porches big enough to actually spend some time on.  We are very excited about drinking coffee in the morning and nightcaps in the evening on the porch when the house is finished.  The porch is by no means complete, but I thought you might enjoy the substantial progress.

BEFORE
The porch was ridiculously uneven before we reframed it. 

Ah, sight of new wood that runs in straight lines.

How beautiful is that!
(For those of you with a discerning eye, the brick support in the left hand corner is being redone soon!)

The Work Can Begin

We have been told all along that nothing can really happen on the inside of the house until there is a new roof, which makes sense considering how bad the old roof looked.  No sub contractor wants to put new trim/dry wall/electrical in until they know rain won't destroy it!

Like the plumbing shots, these new roof pics may not appear as exciting as they are important.

Royal Flush

Let me first say that I have broken the cardinal rule of blogging: allowing more than 1 week to pass without update.  I ask your forgiveness.

Now, on to the updates.

The pictures below are probably the least aesthetically pleasing you will see on here, but mean more than any others.  Please find below a few snapshots of the completely replaced plumbing system in our home!

New plumbing throughout!

Not that you could tell from this picture, but this is the drain running from our new master bath shower.

Plumbing to the sink in what we call "Hattie's Bathroom"

I'm not sure I will be able to explain this very well, but in the upper right-hand corner of this picture you can see the outlet where the shower head will be.  In the bottom left-hand corner you can see the connect for the temperature adjustment on the shower head.  I assumed it was going to be directly below the shower head, but our GC politely reminded me that Keri would not be happy to be doused in cold water every time she turned the shower on...

Again, hard to tell form the picture, but this will be the pot filler above the stove.  It's a bit of a walk around the island to the stove, so I figured I would score some points with Keri by having this added.  Last minute addition, not a good idea for the budget...

Just right of the window you can see the water lines in the utility room for the washing machine.

Up next, new roof!

New Bones

Before all the fun stuff like dry wall and trim can go in, the house needed a new set of bones.  While the 101-year-old framing performed well in spite of its age, we knew that a significant portion of the framing would be replaced as part of our project.  The pictures don't quite do the importance of this improvement justice!

New headers on the doorways.

We reframed the entire wall between the kitchen and dining room.

Completely new support and subfloor in the laundry room.

View from master bedroom into master bathroom.

It's hard to tell from this pic, but the master closet is on the left and straight ahead is the area where the toilet will be located.  The framing to the toilet area is extra wide because we are installing a pocket door. 

Here is a straight shot at the entrance into the master closet.

This is a view from where the toilet will be toward the shower, which is on the right at the end of this short hallway.

New framing for the walls around Hattie's bathroom.  You can also see the new tub!

Couldn't resist throwing a picture of sweet Hattie in here!