Okay, so I went over to our house today after work. Not having a major sinus headache sure helped a lot!
I needed to take a picture of the water meter for our Realtor, and I also just wanted to spend some time absorbing the house and take some pictures!
One thing I figured out, was that the one closet which I had thought I'd use as a pantry (but would need some renovation to do so) wasn't my only option! The closet that is near the entry of the kitchen would work way better! I'll need to get some pull out shelving, etc., but it's going to make a fantastic pantry! The broom closet/small pantry will still be good for some of the larger items/cleaning supplies.
I also made my decision about which room would be my office and which one will be the bedroom. (The one with the hanging lamp is to be the bedroom. The other room is slightly larger, and will become my office/workout room/guest room.)
The room with the fireplace will be our living room, as well as the cat's playroom. We'll be putting their cat trees, along with lots of cat safe shelving on the walls and under the windows. I'll probably also put my electric keyboard in there.
The basement (which has its own kitchen and bathroom) will be mostly DHs "mancave." The workshop (where you can see the iBeams and sump pump) will be where fish and other animals abide, as well as where DH can work on his electronics. There is tons of storage space in the basement. Which DH will most likely fill with his home/car stereo collections easily.
(Upstairs is mostly "mine" to do with as I please.)
The previous homeowners who built the place definitely made some creative designs and "finishes" in the closets, etc. (As in, the closets aren't really truly finished. Still, they work.)
Some of the pictures may look a little weird due to my experimenting with the panoramic feature.
DH says he feels like the place is dated and needs some modernization. I'm not totally sure what he means - maybe the partition thing in the entryway? Could that somehow be updated to look more "modern"?
Officially, the house has two bedrooms and one bathroom. 1362 sq ft. Realistically it has three bedrooms, a family room, a living room, two kitchens, two bathrooms, a huge laundry room/area, and a workshop.
So ... here's a link to lots of pictures!
https://www.amazon.com/clouddrive/share/nWK8NAX8sLwXKyVhCgyBjzAvN4YQITQyPBmzDUgT2El?v=grid&ref_=cd_ph_share_link_copy
Inside the House :)
May 18th, 2016 at 02:29 am
May 18th, 2016 at 07:34 am 1463553274
I hope you'll welcome outsider thoughts and ideas that are none of our business. Your 1st steps of course is space designation as you've already outlined. Terrific that you have all major appliances, fridge, stove, DW, W/D. Do they configure more or less as a work 'triangle' ? The laundry area configuration is unusual, is there a reason the washer is so far to the right from the water hook-up? Since meals are prepared daily , electric outlets, switch plate etc? My fav trick is to create dimensions of bed for bedrm for example, with cheap, easily removed masking tape to ensure easy access, no doors in the way and electric outlet where needed for example. Much easier than trying to move a bed or a dresser/bureau.
I believe it's best to leave decor issues until you are comfortable with natural lighting and placement. I suggest using existing shelving or temporary unit before spending large sums on a pantry. I'll try a link...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F844SYdYydg [Jen talks a lot but she gets things done for modest cost and effort]
May 18th, 2016 at 12:16 pm 1463570191
May 18th, 2016 at 01:34 pm 1463574873
I already brought a few things over last night.
We have a packet of warranties/user guides for just about everything in the house that the sellers left for us.
It's possible the basement space was used for a rental or a mother-in-law apartment. Potentially, we could rent it out - but that would probably only be if something happened where one of us couldn't work and needed the income.
I have no idea about why the washer is where it is.
I'm not planning on spending huge sums on the pantry. The shelves/space is *very* deep, so to make it usable, some kind of pull out shelving would help.
CCF - I like it too, but that was one thing that came to mind when DH mentioned feeling like he took a step back twenty or thirty years when walking in. Getting rid of the wallpaper in the upstairs bathroom and downstairs kitchen might help too.
May 18th, 2016 at 02:01 pm 1463576481
May 18th, 2016 at 03:03 pm 1463580182
If you are still working with the RE agent, do the former owners have paperwork that makes the basement space permit/approval for rental? Every community has it's own set of rules, grandfathered approvals and recently CJ had to pay a fee for a non conforming bthrm...way after the fact!
May 18th, 2016 at 03:17 pm 1463581061
May 18th, 2016 at 05:39 pm 1463589571
Joan - that's a good point - privacy and wind block!
May 18th, 2016 at 10:58 pm 1463608724
May 19th, 2016 at 01:18 pm 1463660333