Navigating the Storm of Construction

Written by Stacy Geier, Co-founder of Artisan Renovation Consultants in Pinellas County, Florida. They specialize in assisting people through the overwhelming task of home remodel and renovation.

 

The project is underway and as things progress a flood of questions enter your head. Is this moving forward at the proper rate of speed? Why is the job site so messy all of the time? I just wrote a huge check and why have I not seen anyone on the job for a week?  Is that wall straight? Is that bathtub level? Why are the shower outlets off-center from the soap dish inlays?  The heavy thoughts of doom push down on you and you’re suddenly queasy.  You realize you have made a mistake in your hiring and you are in trouble.

This can happen to anyone in the rough and tumble world of hiring contractors. Sadly the great ones are few and far between. Your chances of hiring a good one are greatly diminished based on your level of knowledge. The facts are that there are more bad contractors out there than good ones and telling them apart without seeing their actual work with your own eyes is very difficult. Even more frightening is that good-looking work can actually be bad underneath and cause major problems in the future.

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Thankfully in our situation the underneath work was done in a high quality fashion and with my husband’s experience he was able to verify that everything was done correctly. Where our project went sideways was in the finish and detail work. It became increasingly apparent that the proper sub-contractors would not be hired to finish the job correctly. The contractor was eventually removed from the job and we finished it as an owner-builder.

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Above are just a few pictures that display items we needed to correct. This is just a very small sample of a much larger list that grew until the contractor was removed. Most of the items were able to be remedied in full but some it was just too prohibitively expensive and not worth the cost.

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As you can see above the finished product turned out very good but it was not easy. The tremendous strain of dealing with removing a contractor and then regrouping to finish the job was very taxing. This was a rude awakening for us having to do deal with such poor quality work.

Artisan Renovation Consultants can help you avoid the pitfalls in working with a contractor on your project. Our professionals have been screened and used on multiple projects so that you do not have to hope and guess. The work will be done right the first time and at a fair price.

We can help you with planning and designing your addition, kitchen, or bath so that you can achieve your remodeling goals within your budget. We look forward to working with you soon. Call or Text @ 727-469-3070 or contact us at the link below:

ArtisanRenovating.com

Preparing for the Addition

Written by Stacy Geier, Co-founder of Artisan Renovation Consultants in Pinellas County, Florida. They specialize in assisting people through the overwhelming task of home remodel and renovation.

 

The dreaded addition… Adding new roof line and heated/cooled space is a huge undertaking but in our scenario it proved to be the only logical choice.  Our home was a good size to begin with at 2010 sq.ft. It was certainly large enough for a family of four if it was all usable space. Our home had about 400 ft added years ago by finishing the garage. This area makes a perfect home office for us but we still knew going in that we would need to expand the square footage in order to set up the floor plan properly. That converted garage sits in a corner of the house and does not connect well with the main living area.

Small living room

We had some very big issues to solve. First, our home had a tiny living room created by bedroom expansions over the years. The original and only other owners of this home had several children over the years. As they added children they added bedrooms but never increased the square footage. They robbed the living area and ended up with a very cramped 10×12 space. We could not even fit our furniture when we moved in.  This would not do.

Kitchen update in 90’s

Breakfast nook

We also purchased a very petite pink kitchen. The home was originally a 2 bedroom and so the kitchen was sized accordingly. We wanted a much larger kitchen as we both like to cook and use the space. The galley style kitchen was located in the narrowest section of the house and so the only option was to relocate the kitchen. (the kitchen is under construction and will be featured later)

Old Bedroom 1

Old bedroom 2

Blue Bathroom

Wall to Remove

We also needed to remove two original bedrooms, an original bath, and a bunch of walls.  This would make way for our new large kitchen and a greatly expanded living area.

Bath and Bedrooms removed. Opening to Laundry/Garage

New Kitchen Area Framed, Wired, Insulated

New Larger Window, New LED Lighting, Ceiling and Drywall

New Kitchen Area Open to Front Door and Future Living Area

The floor plan modifications above were required to create a new space for our larger kitchen and connect the newer 2 car garage with an opening into the house. As you can see preparing for an addition is a large task and requires excellent planning to make sure things come together properly. Coming soon we will display more of the addition construction and finished rooms.

We can help you with planning and designing your addition so that you can achieve your remodeling goals within your budget. We look forward to working with you soon. Call or Text @ 727-469-3070 or contact us at the link below:

ArtisanRenovating.com

Pool Bath in Florida? Yes Please!

Written by Stacy Geier, Co-founder of Artisan Renovation Consultants in Pinellas County, Florida. They specialize in assisting people through the overwhelming task of home remodel and renovation.

Our home, with all of its faults, did at least come with a screened in lanai and pool. Immediately upon moving in we realized the closest bathroom to the pool required people to come dripping through the house and risk slipping. We knew right away we would need a dedicated pool bath.  When we planned the addition we prioritized the pool bath and designed the other rooms around the placement of that bathroom.

Like many people, natural light is very important to me.  We put a beautiful craftsman door on the front entry that has a window with a design to match the style.  We added a frosted glass film to the window so there would still be privacy, but no light is lost.

As the design was coming together we found the vanity for a very reasonable cost.  It has a rustic look, but I loved it.  Don’t be afraid to use elements you love.  They don’t necessarily need to be the same style to work.  The mirror I found at a craft store and was able to use a coupon to save 40% off the cost.  Taking the time to shop around can bring some great design elements at an affordable cost.

When choosing tile for the shower, we were originally looking at a glass subway tile.  After purchasing the vanity we realized that the glass tile was simply not going to work with the overall design. At the tile store we found a white porcelain tile that had a wave pattern in it.  It was not anything I would’ve normally given a second look at however the light color and wave pattern really fit well with the pool theme and overall look we were going for. Due to the large size of the shower it has dual heads and lots of wall space. The larger format tile is a much better fit for big shower walls. The larger tile also meant less grout lines and much easier cleaning and maintenance. We selected a stone tile for the shower floor which helped to tie all the elements together. The seat and curb are made of  Summerhill Quartz by Cambria.

In this bathroom we used classic base elements like stone, tile, and wood that will stand the test of time. A few colorful beach style wall hangings, soft rugs, and some bright towels make it stylish and fun. A future update is as simple as new paint, rugs and wall art. The permanent fixtures are timeless in appeal and have been used in homes for centuries.

A pool bath is almost a must if you intend to entertain with your pool. If the thought of remodeling or creating a new bathroom seems daunting to you, Call or Text @ 727-469-3070 or contact us at the link below:

ArtisanRenovating.com

Respite From the Mess

Written by Stacy Geier, Co-founder of Artisan Renovation Consultants in Pinellas County, Florida. They specialize in assisting people through the overwhelming task of home remodel and renovation.

When we purchased this home we knew getting the desired results would take a little time.  Our goal was to not incur any debt.  In order to do this we have to stick to our budget as well as complete each project as we have the funds.  I will write about this part of our journey in a later post.  For now, I want to focus on the fact that since we knew we were going to be living in a construction zone for a while we needed to have at least one of our projects completed pretty early on.  We chose our master bedroom.  I’m so grateful that my husband suggested this as it truly has been our saving grace through some of the messier projects.

Listing picture of our bedroom

When we purchased the home, the master bedroom felt very much like a cave.  The carpeting was a funky grayish color.  One wall was covered with bamboo wallpaper.  The window treatments were dark brown heavy curtains.  It was definitely not what I would call a soothing master suite.

Master bedroom with bamboo wall paper

After the wallpaper was scraped off

The first thing we did upon moving in was to tear out all the carpeting in the whole house.  With the size of the yard and how much time we spend outside living in such a warm climate and having kids and pets we knew we didn’t want the maintenance that would come with carpeting.  We then focused completely on the master bedroom.  We took down the bamboo wallpaper that was on the one wall and then re-textured the walls and ceilings with a light knock down.  Then we painted the walls a tranquil blue color called Babbling Brook by Olympic.  Next we installed handscraped Manchurian Walnut engineered hardwood floors.  I am so picky about color.  It has to be just right.  I was looking for something on the darker side with just the slightest bit of red undertones to it.  I also love the look of a thicker baseboard. We chose a 5.25 inch colonial base painted in Dove White by Valspar.

The entire family was eager to get a room completed.

Our bedroom furniture no longer fit with the overall vision I had for the room.  We had purchased a high quality oak set from an Amish furniture store in Ohio back in 2003.  It took some effort to convince Daniel that it was time to paint our furniture. He finally reluctantly agreed to paint it black and when he finished he absolutely loved it as much as I did.  We replaced the wooden knobs with something a little more sparkly.

Cushioned storage bench in front of window over looking the yard.

New knobs for the painted Amish pieces.

Ceiling fan that add a little shine to the room.

The final debate was what lighting fixture to hang.  Daniel was not going to be denied his ceiling fan.  This became the design dilemma for several weeks at our house.  As much as we would both love to have vaulted ceilings it isn’t possible without replacing the whole roof.  We need to stick to flush mount ceiling fixtures so that nobody gets their head whacked.  We purchased a fan with a beautiful lighting element, however even though it said flush mount, it hung down so low I could bump my head on it.  After much searching Daniel showed me a picture of a ceiling fan that was even better than the first.  It matches the new knobs on the furniture and we’ve received so many compliments on it.

This room has become a comforting place of rest for both of us during this project.  It has been the one room where we can walk in, close the door, and escape the construction zone. It is the one room we can call finished (at least for now).

If the thought of a fixer upper seems daunting to you, Call or Text @ 727-469-3070 or contact us at the link below:

ArtisanRenovating.com

A Home of Our Own

Written by Stacy Geier, Co-founder of Artisan Renovation Consultants in Pinellas County, Florida.  They specialize in assisting people through the overwhelming task of home remodel and renovation.

Since I was very young I have wanted to live on a farm.  I have always loved the idea of being self supportive I think due to the fact that growing up in a single parent home we had to rely so much on others.  My husband who grew up basically in a farming town and is more aware of all that is involved in running a farm (cost and work) has no desire to take that on.  We moved to a county in Florida that is one of the most densely populated in the country.  While we gained the beach which I absolutely love, there is no chance for a full farm here.  When we were looking for a home to purchase everything had such small lots.  Our realtor brought us to a house on a cul de sac built in 1973.  To say the house was outdated was a bit of an understatement.  The house had only been owned by the couple who had originally built it.  What had started out as a 2 bedroom 1.5 bathroom home had been added on through the years and was now a 4 bedroom 3 bathroom home.

Kitchen update in 90’s

Breakfast nook

Small living room

As we toured the home and entered each room, we knew immediately what decade that room had been designed.   Daniel was sure this was going to be nothing but a headache and I agreed until we came to the backyard.  The house is sitting on a full acre of land with the majority of that land comprising the backyard.  I immediately knew this was the house we were going to make our home.  Poor Daniel knew it was going to take a lot of work to modernize it, but I didn’t care.  I was up for the challenge and convinced him he was too.

Beautiful large yard

Blue bathroom

Master bedroom with bamboo wall paper

While we’ve hit some bumps along the way and still have quite a bit to do, it’s been a blessing to our family to be in this home and neighborhood.  While I don’t have my large farm, I do have a traditional garden as well as an aquaponic garden.  Even through the chaos that is home renovation, it is still my sanctuary from the troubles of the world, thanks in big part to the approach we have taken to this project.  I leave you today with some of the before pictures and hope that you’ll check back to see our progress we’ve made already as well as completion of projects we are currently working on.

If the thought of a fixer upper seems daunting to you, Call or Text @ 727-469-3070 or contact us at the link below:

ArtisanRenovating.com