One of the mistakes of us buying this home (hey we were property virgins at the time - give us a break!), was that we bought a home that had lots of storage in the attic but no practical way of accessing it. So we decided what we really needed was a shed. Jason and his dad ordered plans from a company and set off last fall constructing what is to be a quite large & lovely shed that will store so much of what is NOW occupying our office. Excuse me, I mean Shoffice (shed + office = shoffice). The shoffice is almost at the point where it could qualify us for a spot on "Hoarders - Buried Alive".
BUT life happens and we started a new lawn care business and the half finished shed now sits under piles of tarps in the backyard serving as a lounge area for the pups. Gah. I feel like I'm forever in "waiting and being patient" mode as I anticipate the summer coming to a close and the business slowing down enough that my dear husband can finish up the shed with the help of a couple friends and I can finally see the end of power tools, ladders, boxes & camping gear occupying our tiny little office space.
(pic: notice Jeep is "lounging" on the shed foundation)
ANYWAY, the point of this post is to highlight the fact that change is happening and we have been blessed so much by this new lawncare business that we are able to get our windows restored! This is a HUGE blessing to me, one that makes me want to do a happy dance everytime I think of it!
WAAAY back before we bought our house, some lazy idiots decided that rather than properly fix the old windows, they would just paint them shut. I mean, why would anyone want to actually open them and let in a little fresh air now and then? That would be crazy talk! Painting them shut would be like adding an additional layer of home security! Duh!
So we invited a few different companies over to give us a bid on replacing the broken panes in the storm windows or even replacing the old windows all together. Surely, whoever owns the house after us would love to be able to open their windows and have peace of mind at night that in case there was ever a fire they wouldn't have to toss a coin to decide which piece of favorite furniture was going to get tossed through those windows! After receiving a couple different bids that were way beyond what we could afford, I thought I was going to have to deal with these eyesores for the rest of our duration in this home. But then I came across a recommendation on the E. Nashville listserv that saved us! Cindy Lantrip is a well known local contractor who came highly recommended for restoring old windows and came over the exact day I called her to give us a bid that we couldn't refuse!
She's removed those old nasty storm windows, scraping off all that old paint, putting in new ropes, pulleys, weights & sashes and making these babies as beautiful as the day they were built back in 1920!!!
And boy have they been holding up their end of the bargain! It's been one week and the change is undeniable! My windows glide open with a touch of a finger! The ropes are white & gleaming, the sills rebuilt & uncracked! The original cedar exposed & freed from 80 years of paint layers!
The old hardware thrown out and brushed silver pulls & latches bought & added. AND its been a completely painless process being as how Cindy & her crew mop, dust & vaccuum my entire house before I'm even back from work! You can't even tell they've been there and my house looks beautiful! Now how many contractors can you say that about?!! I see a light at the end of this tunnel folks!!! Change is possible! Hope restored!! Yesterday at church, we were reminded about faith - being sure of what is not yet seen. I've needed more faith - I had all but given up on many things in my life, including this old house.
I'm so excited to show you all our gorgeous windows once they're finished!
2 comments:
I can't wait to see them in person this fall :)
Did I miss the "after" pictures?
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