I definitely owe everyone an update of the renovation projects!  We’ve been busy with multiple tasks, but we also took some time off to spend with family over Thanksgiving.  Oh, did I mention that we hosted Thanksgiving for all the family – both my side and Jonathan’s –  at the house during all of this?  Yes, we are psychotic.  We also took this past Friday off to go to Williamsburg for a full gathering of Jonathan’s family to celebrate his Grandmother’s 100th birthday!  Jonathan’s Gram is quite a remarkable lady, and a Pearl Harbor survivor too, so there was no way we were missing that!

Okay, so what has happened since the last update?  All the radiators have been serviced and the new boiler is up and running like a champ!   So toasty warm!  Jonathan, and our contractor, Matt, finished up the porch repairs and moved on to the porch roof.  The old metal roof came off, a new sub-roof was laid, and the roofing contractor came in and installed our new, custom, standing seam metal roof.  All the guttering was re-routed as well, and it all looks terrific!  We are so very happy to know that all the guttering has been corrected so there will be no more water damage to the porch.

We were hoping to have the Shore Room completed a little quicker, but after all the detail work we put in so far, we decided now was also the time to refinish the floors in that room, just to cap everything off.  We always knew we wanted to do that someday, as there is a spot where a stair used to be that is discolored.  Even though it wasn’t originally in our plan to do it now, we decided it was really just prudent to add it in.  So, hopefully the refinishing company will be in next week to start the process.  It will take about 5 days total, including the drying time.  We also need to work on the custom headboard for the room.  Trust me, when you all see the photos of the finished room, it will be worth the wait!  I think it is going to be just stunning!

In the meantime, I’ve also moved on to the painting/updating projects for the Traveler’s Retreat.  The wallpaper in the bathroom and the single accent wall in the main room is down.  Removing wall paper is always a process!  We have a little wall patching to do and then the painting can begin.  We will also be installing new lighting fixtures in the bathroom, but our chosen style is on back order until January, so that will be a quick project for next month.

We’ve also begun the process of insulating our back room entrance to the cellar.  It was always a very cold little room in winter, and it’s where we keep our servers, so that was not very pleasant for the equipment.  Because of some exploratory work Jonathan had done last year, we believed the current walls had newspaper in them for their “insulation.”  Since we are going to be basically walling in the old walls, Jonathan decided to take a closer look, and make a couple of larger test holes in the room to take a peek.  Lo and behold, there were plenty of old newspapers, dating back to 1928!  We tried to remove and save a few pieces, but due to the heat and cold over the years, the paper was extremely fragile and all but crumbled as we touched it.  We decided it was better left where it was, to stay part of the history of the house.  So, the newspaper insulation stays, and our current will go on top, and someday, maybe somebody else will find it again!

Finally, today Jonathan and the contractor started with the removal and restructuring of the back entry floor.  This area is also going to become the new laundry room, and the floor had been plywood sheets screwed down on top of hardwood.  We also knew that the floor underneath felt “soft” and after getting up the plywood and the old hardwood (not original to the house, we think) we discovered that the joists were on 32″ centers – much too far apart to properly support the floor boards, especially considering we are going to be adding the weight of a washer and dryer.  So, additional joists were added in and the floor was leveled today.  Tomorrow the insulation and sub-flooring should go back in.  We have yet to decide what our new finished floor will be, but we think we will go with hardwood again.  We had hoped to re-use the old hardwood, especially if it was original to the house, but it was not in as good of shape as we had hoped, plus, it is our suspicion that it may not be part of the original construction anyway.

There’s still more to come as we prepare for the laundry room transfer and finish up the rest of the details for the guest rooms.  Be sure to check back in again soon!

-Rachael

We have been moving along at warp speed!  In the last 3 days we have had a lot of work done!  The old oil tanks have been replaced in the basement, the old boiler is out and the new one is currently being installed, the masonry work on the foundation is complete, painting has begun in the Shore Room, the porch repair has started, and the electrician has been working on the new ceiling fan installation and the new lighting in the laundry room.  Whew!  And we keep going…

Everything is progressing nicely though, and for now (knock on wood), we still seem to be mostly on schedule.  By early next week I should be able to share the photos of the updated Shore Room with you.  I am very excited for that!  For now, here’s another group of photos of all the fun going on around here:

We’ve had a very busy first day and a half here.  We jumped right into the renovations by attacking the Shore Room.  We’ve been wanted to give this room a little TLC for a while now, and boy is she getting the treatment.

Jonathan started by removing the moldings from the window, as they could hold no more paint and needed to be stripped down.  The window sills were also pretty caked with paint layers, so we stripped them back to the original wood.  It’s amazing to see the history of the house in paint layers!  I’ve been busy removing wall paper.  The accent wall – where the bed is – had wall paper.  That all came down and the wall got a thorough cleaning.

Jonathan has also been busy repairing plaster cracks – mostly in the corners of the room.  The top molding came down and will be replaced, as some of it had shifted over the years and was not lining up properly.  The toe kick, also caked with paint layers and pulling away from the wall in places, was removed and new toe kick will take its place.  Additionally, there were some less-than-sturdy shelves in the closet, and those have come out and we will be installing a new closet system.

Coming up, we will also be installing a new ceiling fan and relocating it to the center of the room.  It’s off-center now, and that has always driven Jonathan crazy!  The electrician comes in later this to assist with that.

Pretty soon we’ll be able to start with the painting!  We’ve got some nice colors picked out and I can’t wait to get going with that!  We also hope to do a custom headboard, so that will be a fun project to share with you all.

Here are some photos for you all to see of the progress/mess we have made so far!  I am looking forward to when we can reconstruct the room and I can share the before and after photos!

There are lots more projects on the horizon, so there will be more updates soon!

Oh my.  Where has the time gone?  It’s been a busy and wonderful year here and we are getting ready for many exciting things as we wind down this year and prepare for the new one.

We are about to enter a phase that we have taken to calling “The House’s Six Weeks at The Spa.”  You see, in 2014 we will enter the house’s 130th birthday year, and to keep the lady looking good and operating smoothly we are going to take on some renovation and update projects.  Some will be fun and glamorous (yes, there is a custom built headboard for one of the bedrooms in the future) and others will just be necessary (new boiler, anyone?).  But we are looking forward to all of them even though we have an aggressive schedule and I am sure it will be an intense few weeks.  I can’t wait to see how it all comes to fruition.  And, call me weird, but I think the house is looking forward to it too.  In the last year and a half here, I really think the house has come to accept us and sees us as her caretakers and not just her inhabitants.  It is a responsibility we do not take lightly.  Yes, I refer to the house as “her” like she has a personality.  Well, I think she does.  She’s a happy house and we want to keep it that way, and so, the construction work begins.  Hopefully, one day, long down the road, her next inhabitants will feel the same way we do.  And even if they don’t agree with our design sensibilities, they can make their own changes but see the work we put in was done with care and integrity.

So, officially, the work begins on the 18th, but Jonathan couldn’t resist getting a little bit of a head start this past weekend.  He dug a trench for and installed  tubing to re-route some guttering on the front of the house.  One of the projects we will be taking on includes some porch repairs and a new front porch roof.  The porch and porch roof woes, we feel, can be directly attributed to the fact that most of the guttering from the front of the house leads directly onto the teeny front porch roof.  During a rain storm that front gutter is just overwhelmed and it’s a bit like Niagara Falls at the front of the house.  Our aim is to get all the water further away from the house and not lead it all directly to the front porch roof.  That way, our repairs will last.  And hopefully we will breathe easier during the Spring rains!

So, I’m categorizing the porch repair as both glamorous and necessary – a new, shiny metal roof will be glamorous and making sure the porch is safe and secure is necessary.

I’m hoping to post lots of updates as we go along!  It’s going to be a crazy ride!

Beginning the six weeks of updates and renovations – Jonathan installs tubing to re-route guttering.

The first weekend of December was a busy one here in Berryville!  For starters, the parking meters in town take a Holiday break and businesses and individuals are encouraged to sign up for and participate in the Holiday Parking Meter Decoration Contest.  We, of course, decided to try our hand at this.  Our theme may not have been traditional, but it fit with our sense of humor:

Parking Meter Decorating Contest in Berryville, VA. “Christmas Story” leg lamp, as submitted by Waypoint House B+B!

The winners will be announced on December 14, and we’re hoping we win a major award!  Sorry, I HAD to say that!

On Friday night, Berryville lit the town Christmas Tree, and the next day was the Berryville annual Christmas Parade!

Berryville Christmas Tree

Berryville Christmas Parade 2012

We’ve been doing some decorating here at Waypoint House as well in preparation for the Holidays.  Our window candles glow every night of the year, but now the front porch has been made even more festive with the addition of garland and lights.  We’ve also brought in the Christmas Tree and the Front Parlor looks spectacular!

Waypoint House Christmas Tree, 2012

That’s all for now, but I’m sure we’ll be posting more in the coming weeks!

-Rachael