J'adore New Doors!

We are officially in the final stretch. In fact, the tile saw, the compressor, and other large (and noisy) construction equipment has been removed from the premises and it's just detail work from here on out (for this project at least). Can I get an amen?!

One of the last things on our checklist, as you might recall, was new doors. Not just new front doors, but a new back door, side door, and garage door entry too. Here's how they looked before:

Appealing, right? Did I mention that you could see daylight through the gaps between the doors and the walls? What about the need for a draft guard? Yeeesh.

I'm happy to report that they're all looking better now that they have been removed. Perhaps the biggest transformation has been the front door, though- take a look!

With details like the ones below, the front of the house is nearly perfect. Can't wait to post a picture of the finished facade.

Welcome home!

Curb appeal

Alright, I promised you some before and after shots!

When we bought Tara nearly two years ago, it looked like this:

As of about 5 minutes ago, it looks like this:

Yes, it's the same house. The shutters went on today and if you've been following this blog for the past few months, that leaves only three (major) things left to do: gutters, tile, and doors. There's always something to do around here, but we're almost done with this huge chunk of renovation, and I'm ready to sit back and enjoy it!

The shutters have made a substantial impact, but unfortunately they seem to highlight our need for new front doors.

Luckily we have two pine doors in our garage waiting to be painted Rustic Red, and those will take place of the *ahem* special barred glass doors and the doors behind them that sport those lovely octagonal windows.

Personally, I can't wait to get those on, but doors are last on the list according to our contractor. So, I'm forced to sit back and wait. In the meantime, I have my large pots already filled with seasonal color and a Tennessee state flag just waiting to be on display once this front porch is finished.

Slowly but Surely

That's the theme of Renovating Tara right now. Things are moving at a snail's pace, but I promise they're moving! I've got a rhyme repeating in my head to keep me sane:

Tile
Gutters
Doors
Shutters

That's all our contractor has left...but it's taking ages! Yes, I want every detail perfect, but I want it now! (Frankly, I don't think that's too much to ask...)

Until there's more to take pictures of- enjoy!

At least Rhett is able to celebrate what's been done so far!

A new hue

The painting has begun, which means the countdown to the completion of this huge renovation phase has begun too. After another week of painting (trim and detail work), our friends will begin to lay tile, put up screen, and replace the garage doors. All the other doors to the house will be replaced, too (including those truly unsightly iron doors on the front) and shutters will finish our new exterior.

And no, I haven't forgotten about the before and after pictures- I hope to get to them this weekend. For now, enjoy our new hue!

Scotty begins to spray the primer over our brick. Some shades of brick are lovely, but Tara was not so fortunate. No problem to paint, though!

Won't the azaleas just pop against this greige?! I can hardly wait for next Spring! Be sure to notice our happy yellow lab in the left side of the above picture...

Hopefully with this picture you can compare the old brick on the right with the new color on the left! Oh goodness you'll just have to come visit...it looks so much better in person!

The new paint color looks great with our new roof!

It's starting to come along on the backside of the house, too. What fun to anticipate what is coming next!

Roof!

You know how all you want to do when you watch an episode of Golden Girls is eat cheesecake? (Don't pretend that's just me.) All looking at these pictures makes me want to create some comparisons- who's up for some before and after pictures? Stay tuned!

Making All Things New

Happy Easter from Tara!

Easter is my favorite holiday and traditionally a celebration of Christ making all things new. We certainly are experts here at Tara with renewing things, aren't we? So, what better thing to do today than to get a whole new roof!

The boys showed up (remember our trusty pals Freddie and Cesar? They brought friends!) about 7am. Welcome happy morning, indeed! By the time we arrived home from church, they had torn the old roof off and put down tar paper. Unfortunately, my mind was busy with Easter baskets and deviled eggs, and I neglected to take pictures of the progress until about 4pm...

As my 7 year-old said, "Those men are working hard!"

Oooh it looks good already!



But oh the trash to clean up!

While they may have gotten an early start, as I type this it is nearing 8pm and they're still hard at work. As Rhett surveyed the progress earlier this evening, he decided he'd better pitch it- and it seems they needed him!

Rhett and Freddie strike a pose...

And now it's too dark outside to get a picture of the finished product, but just wait. Tomorrow, friends!

Happy, happy Easter!

BONUS!

I love a good bonus, don't you? Even if I don't need anything, Clinique Bonus Time always necessitates a trip to the makeup counter. Getting a "bonus" is a surefire way to get my attention.

Tara is getting her bonus this week in the form of a bonus room over our garage. Tara's existing attic is downright huge, running the length of the house. With a little creativity, you could easily set up a game of touch football up there. Okay, it would have to be touch football for vertically challenged individuals because of the way the roof slopes, but you get the idea.

Rhett decided it would be easy to take half of the gigantic attic and make a family/bonus room. Why not? And so the roof comes off.

Darling Rhett tore up the old subfloor and put down some studier stuff. Once that was done, our trusty pals Freddy and Ceasar came to take care of the rest.

Off came the shingles, and then off came the beams! Nothing like a HUGE hole in your roof.

Hi Ceasar!

This was taken from the bonus room, looking into the rest of the attic. We'll put a lovely door here and finish walling it off.

Hello again, from our friendly helpers.

And more progress...

If you look closely at that last picture, you might just get a sneak peak of the colors we're thinking for the body of the house, the trim, and the doors. Lord willing, this little ranch of ours is going to look worlds different in about a month. Stay tuned!

In the end, of course we all have our ideas of what the bonus room should be. Rhett wants an office. I want a yoga sanctuary. The oldest wants a music room for her drum set (drum set not included...yet). Our baby probably just wants there to be snacks. So we'll see what this turns out to be. For now, however, there's nothing like a bonus.