Merry Christmas!

'Twas the day before Christmas, and all through the house,
All the creatures were stirring, especially my spouse.

With days off from school, he is especially busy.
A soon trip to China has us all in a tizzy.

Drywall, trim, and stockings are all being hung.
All the while, Christmas songs are being sung.

As we draw close to bidding the year adieu,
We send Merriest Christmas wishes from the Old Brick House to you!

The Heat Is On!

Many of you have noticed and wondered about what's going on in our yard.  I don't blame you; it looks like we've had moles on steroids wreaking havoc on our lawn. The aftermath  has left us with a muddy mess.  It hasn't been lovely, I must say, but the results are proving to be worth it.

When we bought this house, we knew heating it would cost a small fortune.  We had to think of ways to save and make the heating bill work in our budget.    Many things like insulating walls, a new roof, spray foam insulation in the attic, resealing the windows, and insulated window treatments will all be helpful, but an energy-saving heating system is a must.  After talking with some colleagues who have studied many different heating systems, Jack decided to install a geothermal heating and cooling system.   A geothermal system uses heat that is stored naturally in the earth, condenses it, and uses it to heat and cool the house.

Installing a geothermal system is very labor-intensive.  My father-in-law graciously gave of his time and skills to help us install the pipes.  They have to be buried six feet deep, and we had over 3,000 feet of pipe to install.  Several friends came to help with the monumental task. It took more than two weeks of intense work days to put it in place. The stress from it made it feel like roof week all over again.

After it was installed and the ditches were covered, we had to fill the lines to test it.  To our disappointment, the pressure gauge dropped. We thought could only mean one thing: it was leaking.  Our hearts sank. We were tired, and the days were only getting colder.

After a few days we noticed that the pressure had stabilized.  We figured out that it could only regulate after adjusting to different temperatures and when the air cleared from the lines.  Finally the day came when we turned the system on.  We had heat!  Glorious!

Since then, we have been quite cozy.  We have actually had to turn our thermostat down several times to get to a comfortable temperature.  We are very happy with the results so far.

A rainy October makes for a muddy mess

Home Sweet Mud Pit

Thankfulness

There are many things about our home that remind me of my childhood.  You see, I grew up in a home very different yet very similar to the old brick house.  The woodwork, the built-in cabinets, the tall ceilings and windows, and even the bricks that were made by the same factory all are similar and bring back memories of years ago.

The W.B. Daily building stood where Reed's Market now exists.  It was built around the turn of the century, just like our home. On the bottom floor was a grocery store that was owned and managed by my parents.  The second story of the building was an office/storage space, and the third floor was our home.  It was an apartment, but a large one.  I have so many good childhood memories of living there.  Even though it seems odd to live above a business, it was really quite convenient, especially if you needed milk early in the morning or were lacking ingredients for dinner.  As a bonus, I could see my dad whenever I wanted to, even while he was working. 

1982.  It's hard to see the built-in cabinets because they are painted, but the hardware and design is almost identical to our cabinets pictured below.  That's me on the right stuffing my face with cake.  Not much has changed :)

Another bonus of living above the store and spending time there was that I was able to be acquainted with the members of our community at a young age.  I never quite realized how amazing these people were until November 1994, when my family lost it's home and business all in one day.  It seemed ironic that it was the day that we were celebrating Thanksgiving, but in hindsight it awakened us to a sense of thankfulness.  We were all okay, we had a warm house to stay in, and even though we lost so much, we gained a lot too.  We witnessed first hand the kindness of the people in our community.  Churches, organizations, and individuals  came forward and gave generously.  

Since I have started this blog, I am humbled by the amount of readers there are.  I am so encouraged by every one of you.   If I can use my little platform to honor Christ and help others, then my writing is worthwhile.  

This morning, a local family lost their home and belongings to a fire.  Robert and Candy (Brower) Howell have experienced a lot of loss in the last few years, and I would love for our community to gather together and shower them with love.  If we all give a  little, it will mean so much.  

Please donate here:  https://www.gofundme.com/yr85gene

A Warm Welcome

There are many features in the old brick house that have not been used for years. With a little TLC and some upgrades, we are happily bringing them back to life.  The house has three original fireplaces, and I'm pleased to say that they are being enjoyed once again.  I'm not sure how long it's been since they were last used.  We were told that it has been over a half-century.

The fireplaces themselves could have sold us the house. Well, okay, that might be a stretch, but they are amazing!  With winters that last half the year, these beauties will definitely make the time inside more enjoyable.

 The original tiles were made locally at Coudersport Glass Company in Coudersport, PA. The tiles are very unique in color, namely the emerald green tile that surrounds the fireplace in the sitting room.  Considering the fact that they are 115 years old, they are in excellent condition.  If you've been following along, you know that some tiles were missing and we found them in the garage in a cigar box. Thankfully we found them before the garage was demolished.

The cast iron covers were made by Dawson Brothers in Chicago.  Again, each fireplace is unique and has a different cover.  The designs are all intricate and beautiful.  Upon cleaning one up, we discovered that they were originally copper plated.  Over the years they wore out and were eventually painted black.  We are going to try and clean one up to see if the original plating is still in decent condition.  Dawson Brothers also made mantels, and they may have constructed ours, but we aren't certain.  The mantels on our fireplaces are in impeccable condition. It's amazing to think that the years have been so kind to them in this century-old place.

The old inserts were gas, and we are assuming that they were original.  The original owners, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas O'Donnell, were from Irish Settlement.  Natural gas was discovered on their property, and shortly after, this house was built.  We wish we could find more information about them and the house, but unfortunately we have not found a lot of documentation.  Jack replaced the old inserts with new gas ones, and they have been working beautifully.  We have been enjoying their beauty and warmth, and hope to for many nights to come.

The Heart of the Home, part 2

Designing the layout of our kitchen was a bit tricky since we had limited square footage and cabinets to work with.  Since we knew we wanted an open layout, we went from there and made the best use of space that we could.  The kitchen itself is fairly simple, with limited storage and counter space.  Thankfully, just off the left side of the kitchen is a pantry area , and a utility room, where we can store appliances, is off the right side.  The design left ample space for a breakfast table, which we can also use as a preparation space.  There is also plenty of room for us to work together in the kitchen.  We are still waiting for a cabinet drawer, door, upper cabinets, and shelves to be built and installed, so the walls seem pretty bare right now.  Once they are in, we will have more storage options and the room will feel complete.

Because we wanted the arched ceiling  to be the focal point of the kitchen, we chose appliances and counter tops that would accent, but not take away from, the ceiling.  We are really pleased with how it turned out.

It's hard to imagine what this area of the house was like only a few months ago.  The plaster was cracked, there were holes in the walls, and it was hard to imagine it as a kitchen.  Now we can create memories together as we enjoy the beauty and functionality of the room.

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Pantry area.  I love that we can keep our appliances here and out of sight from the main area of the kitchen.

The Heart of the Home - Part 1

For those of you who have been following along, you may remember the original kitchen of the house.  It consisted of a stove, a sink, and a refrigerator, and room for little else.  Counter space was nil, and there wasn't room for kitchen cupboards.  Since we spend a lot of time in the kitchen, I wanted it to be inviting, open, and pretty.  It took us a bit of time to decide where to put the kitchen, but once we finally did, we went to work on planning for the best use of the space.  Even though the empty room seemed big, we knew once cabinets and appliances were in that the open space would quickly disappear.

Jack had an idea to put a curved ceiling in the room.  It was a new challenge for him, and it took a while to construct, but it was well worth it.  It really sets off the room and makes it look beautiful.  The mini chandelier we added  accents his work nicely.

We were given old cabinets from Jack's parents, who recently remodeled their kitchen.  Even though we wanted new cabinets, we knew this would save us a lot of money and we decided to make it work. Friends of ours had refinished old cabinets, and gave us tips on how to do it.  It was really much easier than I thought it would be, and we are very happy with the results. We added new cabinet knobs, and they really make the old 70's cabinets look sharp.

As we move closer and closer to moving in, I am having more feelings of anticipation.  Even though I will miss our current home with it's low utility bills, cozy wood heat, all of the work that we have into it, and the memories made there, I will also enjoy the feelings of adventure and accomplishment in this new chapter of our lives.

This is the kitchen before - counted as a bedroom by the realtor. The roof had leaked above this room and the original plaster ceiling was in really bad shape.

Lots of work had to be done to install the rough electrical and plumbing for the new kitchen.

The "skeleton" of the ceiling.

With the drywall complete, we cleaned up the old floor and slathered on a fresh coat of polyurethane. We think the wood is long-leaf pine. 

The flash is a little harsh in this picture; but this gives you an idea of what the refinished cabinets will look like.

We're very happy with the mini-chandelier and the arched ceiling. 

Color Reveal

Although the blog has been quiet lately, things are really happening at the brick house.  This project has really consumed our summer, but the progress has been steady and the house is really taking shape.

My brother, Brandon, has been working on our old windows, scraping off old glaze and putting on new, fitting them for the colder months ahead.  We went ahead and replaced the windows in the attic because they were not worth trying to save.  However, we will repair the rest of the windows throughout the home.  The cost of replacement windows for this house is way out of our league.   The old windows, once repaired, look and work great, and we don't lose any of the original character.  

Picking out the color for the window trim and the trim around the roof was extremely difficult for me. I have a really hard time making decisions, especially ones that seem permanent.  And even though paint is not permanent, we don't want to be redoing it any time soon.  We initially went with Dover White, which is a creamy white color.  It looked alright, but I didn't love it.  It was too much contrast with the old, worn brick, and it looked a little sterile to me.  So, after weeks of trial and trips back and forth to Sherwin Williams, we have finally settled on the colors for the exterior.  The trim color is called Colony Buff, and it looks like heavy cream.  It really accents the brick nicely and also looks great with the windows and roof.  We originally thought we'd use a grayish green or blue to paint the peak accent pieces, but after some thought we decided that would be too dark.  We mixed some Dover White with Colonial Buff and came up with our own color.  It really blends well with the heavy cream color and it looks pretty classy.  I can now say that I love it.

Jack had to do some repair work on one area where the roof leaked for years, but other than that it's in decent shape.  Cleaning, priming, and painting the trim and corbels have really given them new life.  

Painting in process.  Notice the contrast between the painted & unpainted trim.  The trim on the left has only been primed.

Window repair

Lookin' sharp!

Transformation in Progress

For the last several weeks, we have been finishing drywall, painting, tiling, cleaning, installing lights and alarms, scraping, oiling, and the list goes on.  We have been working right along one room at a time.  It seemed not so long ago that weeks of work produced little in visible results; now that is not so.  When the rooms first started to come together with drywall, it looked like it would be livable.  When we applied paint, it started to feel more like home.  Now, with the lighting in and trim back up, I'm amazed.  It's beautiful.  Aside from more cleaning, flooring, and oiling woodwork,  we are finished upstairs.  Finished.  It's a glorious feeling.

At the end of last week, we moved all of our supplies downstairs to start renovations.  Jack had a picture in mind when it came to our kitchen design and I can't wait to see what the end result will look like.   I have had plenty of input when it comes to where I want cabinets and appliances, but I trust his ability to make it elegant and functional.  We are re-purposing old cabinets, and it will be my job to sand and refinish them. I will get to that as soon as the Potter County Fair showing is done. I love working on the house, but I do have my priorities. :)

I'm having trouble deciding what to do with the old yellow pine flooring that is throughout the upstairs, and I could use your suggestions.  Should we carpet the bedrooms and paint the hall floor  to add more comfort, or should we paint all of the pine floors (which, btw, are already painted a mustard color and they are quite uneven, making them hard to sand) and have area rugs in bedrooms to keep the old house charm?  Either way, we plan on adding a carpet runner up the stairs and down the hall.

Landing

Library

Bathroom

New hallway.   

Laundry room

Cleaned woodwork with new walls

Inner Beauty

It's been a long time since I have written, but for good reason.  We have been working as much as we can, and real progress is being made.  For the past few weeks, we have hung and finished drywall, primed, painted (who knew picking paint colors would be so stressful!), installed a powder room, cleaned woodwork, and worked outside.  It is becoming more beautiful every day and we're more eager to move in all of the time.  However, it's good that we are able to work on it without living there, because the dust is near and far throughout the entire house.

We have had so many people come and help with various projects, and we are grateful for their help.  In fact, we're gearing up for a crew to come and help us tomorrow with some tasks, and I am excited to see what will be accomplished.  As I write this, we are almost finished with the upstairs and will be moving our tools downstairs next week.   In just over three weeks we have finished a laundry room, 2 bedrooms, a hallway, a stairway, a mudroom, and a powder room.  That's pretty amazing.  To everyone who has helped in any way: thank you.  You are a huge blessing to us.

One room down!

New drywall in the hallway. 

It's a family affair.

New balcony floor.  We will install the railing as soon as it's fixed.

 

Moving Right Along

The week of June 8 was not as busy as the week before, but productive nonetheless.  The main roof was finished on Wednesday evening with the help of a few great guys. By Friday, both porch roofs were stable and shingled, the scaffold was removed, and the balcony had new flooring.   Jack's former student, Dan, was able to assist Jack for the entire week and was a huge help.  My mom,dad, mother-in-law, and I worked outside cleaning up the mess that was once a garage.  We pulled nails out of salvaged boards and burned the rest.

This week, we were able to start some new projects. It was refreshing to have a quieter week and let down a little bit.  Jack replaced exterior trim while his mom, my mom, and I worked outside and in the attic.  The attic was full of debris from ripping off the old roof, and it took several days to get it completely clean.  Nancy, my mom-in-law, has been my attic companion since we bought the house.  We've cleaned it over and again after different projects. It should be immaculate by the time we're moved in!  The last couple of days we have been putting up insulation and drywall.  It's great to see the walls come up and the rooms come together.  It won't be long and we'll be painting.

 It is a relief to be completely done with all things roof related.  As a clean up girl, I can say it would be just fine if I never saw another shingle, shake, or piece of tar paper ever again in my life.  :)

Front porch roof, rebuilt

Former garage

Drywall delivery!

An Epic Week, part 2

By Thursday morning, the roof was half-finished. The most challenging part of the project was done, and it felt great to have it behind us. While running errands, I would drive by that side of the house just to see the finished work.  I'm the kind of gal who likes to see results, and it felt good to see one side of the house completed.  All week long, passersby would slow down or even stop on the side of the road to see what we were doing.  We  received shouts of approval, honking horns, and even a thumbs-up.  It felt like our community was cheering us along, and we were encouraged to press on. By the end of the day, the portion of the roof we were working on was stripped, sheathed, papered, and partially shingled.  We replaced the rafter tails on the front porch and a lot of the trim that was damaged.  The day ended with a quick rain shower that resulted in a double rainbow right above the house.

The excitement began to wear off by Friday. We were all tired, and it was hard to keep motivated even though the end was in sight.  However, we kept chugging along, and by the end of the day the part of the roof we started was shingled, and the columns were put back on the porch.  We had an abundance of workers and not enough to do around the house, which was a great problem to have.  Some of us started tearing down the garage, which was in terrible shape.  The roof on the building was in disrepair for years and it was caving in.  Just before supper time, the clouds crept in and it started to pour.  After dinner, we finished cleaning up and called it a day.

On Saturday, the front porch roof was rebuilt, and the side porch roof was stripped.  Some friends, my dad, and I continued working on the garage, salvaging what we could.  The more boards we took off, the more unstable the building became.  When we saw supporting beams swaying, we knew it was time.  My dad was able to use his backhoe to knock the rest of the structure down. Even though the garage wasn't officially condemned, it was definitely a safety hazard.

It turned out to be an epic week. Almost finishing the roof was a huge accomplishment, but we were also able to tackle other projects that were not on the agenda.  We are so thankful for everyone that came, whether they were able to work or just give words of encouragement.  Our community is the best.

Replacing the columns

Our yard looked like a parking lot.

Notice the rainbow over the house.

An Epic Week, part 1

June 1st marked the beginning of "Roof Week", a week we looked forward to and loathed at the same time.  We knew it was going to be a huge task, and having people up on that mountain of a roof was unnerving for me.  As the time grew closer, some people we thought we had lined up for work backed out, mostly for reasons beyond their control.  Needless to say we felt a bit stressed.  However, we still had some great workers that were planning on helping us.

Sunday morning came, and the blessings began.  Our church stepped in and offered to help out with planning meals for the group of workers for the entire week.  Lunch and dinner were provided from Monday to Friday.  This was amazing and unexpected.  I was prepared to feed them, and it probably would have taken up most of my week, planning and executing meals.  Not only did these ladies step in and help, but we were completely spoiled with wonderful food all week long.  Other people also helped and dropped off cookies, coffee, water, and other things.  Amazing.

The weather was calling for rain on Monday, but we started anyway.  It was a bit drizzly to start, but it cleared up in the afternoon.  We had several guys there to assist us, a few of whom were Jack's former students.  The roof had three layers of shingles: two layers of asphalt and the original cedar shakes.  The cedar shakes were especially messy and were harder to remove than the asphalt shingles.  A group was on the roof working and others were on the ground sending up supplies and cleaning up debris.  We also had people working around other parts of the house tearing down porch roofs, trimming bushes, and tearing out that ugly antenna (thanks Dad!).  What a crazy and wonderful day! After working 13 hours, we went home.  The first portion of the roof was stripped, sheathed, papered, and partially shingled.  Nobody fell off the roof, and I breathed a sigh of relief.  Day one was complete.

On Tuesday we had more people, and the amount of work that was completed was awesome.  Our friend and pastor, Mel, and his construction crew came to help out for the day.  Friends and family were there once again, many just volunteering to help, even when their schedules were busy.   It was humbling and wonderful.  Day two ended with the most complicated (and leaky) part of the roof stripped, sheathed, papered, and partially shingled.  

On Wednesday, we finished shingling the section of the roof that we started the day prior and continued to work on the porches.   It was not our intention to work on the porches so much, but in order to roof the small gable above the balcony, we had to make the balcony straight and support it.  In order to support the balcony, the roof below it had to be rebuilt, and so on.  It was kind of like the book, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.  It all had to be done eventually, so we went for it.  The porch roofs were in rough shape.  They were rotted out in many areas, and were very unstable.  Minus Jesse falling through the porch roof up to his waist, it went well. Wednesday ended up being very productive, even though we didn't work on the roof itself as much as we had planned.  We had new helpers come on Wednesday, as well as many others who had come the day prior.  We were full of gratitude.  

To be continued...

Assessing the porches

Shingles delivered, scaffold set 

Our Monday crew

Sheathing the roof 

Support system for the balcony gable.  The entire beam and some of the porch rafters needed to be replaced.

Our friend Trevor came to help out with one of the many dirty jobs.

Getting Ready to strip the old roof

Tuesday morning.  What a crew!

Tuesday afternoon

Every night (except Friday), we worked until we were out of daylight.