Pink Lady Renovation: FAQ
A few weeks ago, we announced that Eliza’s family HAD BOUGHT AND IS RENOVATING AN 1873 VICTORIAN HOME IN OUR TOWN’S HISTORIC DISTRICT.
YOU CAN FIND THE MOST RECENT RENOVATION UPDATE BY CLICKING HERE, BUT WE’VE RECEIVED DOZENS OF QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PROCESS. WE’RE SHARING THOSE ANSWERS IN THIS POST!
Are you nervous? Are you crazy?
HA! Yes, to both. We are nervous. If you’re an enneagram person, Mike and I are both 6s— meaning that we love security and tend to be a little anxious. It’s not typical that we both are gung-ho about big projects and change (aka… this house.) But, we are both careful and analytical and feel that this is a good long-term decision for our family, even though the renovation process will be insane. Are we crazy? Yes! But you knew that already.
Are you familiar with renovations? What brought this on?
We are! My dad is the king of renovations— he spent the majority of his 20s restoring historic homes in Downtown Philadelphia. Every house I’ve lived in since birth (except for one) has been older and restored by my parents, and my sister and her husband restored one of the oldest homes in our town. Mike and his best friend renovated an older home in college. All that to say— it’s in our blood! You can learn more about what brought on such a crazy idea in this post.
How did you find this house?
Great question. Mike and I have always wanted to live in this historic district of our town, but it’s always been cost-prohibitive. Finding something that we could afford in the area that would also fit our family was close to impossible. There were two homes in particular I’d had my eye on, and one day, I saw the owner of this house sitting on his front porch. I parked the car, walked up to him, and asked if he’d be willing to sell. I was a bit nervous, and texted my friend to call the police if I turned up missing— walking into a stranger’s house might not have been my best idea. But, he turned out to be incredibly kind and lovely. He said he was interested in selling, gave me a quick tour, and I was thrilled. I texted pictures to Mike, fully expecting him to say, “Heck no! This is a mess!” but instead, he hopped in his car right away to come see it for himself. Here we are!
Are you doing it by yourself?
We’re not. Though we renovated our current home by ourselves, this project called for the big guns. We have a builder/contractor who specializes in historic homes, and he and his team will bring it back to glory. We used a local (amazing) architect, Sloan Flournoy, to draw up the plans and bring our vision to life. It’ll be a team effort, for sure!
Will it be a true restoration or a modern renovation?
A bit of both. We plan to restore as much as possible (like the exterior, including gingerbread work) and bring back several original walls inside that were previously removed, but the interior furnishing and design will be modern and functional for our family. Because of the home’s current condition, it will be torn to the studs in most places— giving us a blank canvas to work with. I love the character and charm that the detail and architecture hold, and we’ll absolutely let that shine through. We won’t, however, furnish it with Victorian pieces or color schemes— those will be modern and match our aesthetic.
What’s your budget?
I won’t go into financial specifics in this post, but let’s just say that we’re spending about 3x as much as we paid for the house in renovations. That sounds completely insane, I know, the total ended up being less than what we would’ve paid for a newer/updated home of this size, so we will come out on top in the end, I think!
How big is it?
When it’s done, it’ll be around 4000 square feet. Aka, plenty of room to house our kiddos and host out-of-town family and friends.
Are you keeping it pink?
This is, by far, the most frequently asked question! As of right now, I’m leaning towards no. My front runner is painting the house itself white with pale blue trim and accents, but feel free to leave your vote and suggestions in the comments below!
How long until it’s finished?
We’re thinking 9-12 months, but the crew is moving VERY quickly, so who knows! We’re going to say a year and be pleasantly surprised if it ends up happening sooner than that.
Are you living there through the renovation?
Definitely not. With 4 kids and a dog (plus lead paint, dangerous conditions, and an active construction zone)— we won’t move in until it’s done. We’ll stay in our current home until it sells and either rent or live with my sweet mother until it’s move-in ready (sorry, mom!)
Will you add central heat and air?
Definitely! We’ll add all new plumbing, electrical, and HVAC.
Will you leave the gingerbread work on the outside?
Yes! Absolutely. It has so much character and we’d hate to lose that.
Is the Porch original?
To our knowledge, yes. Though some of the gingerbread is in decent shape, the roof will need to be replaced (which is especially tricky given that it has an intentional slope)— but I can’t wait to add ceiling fans, rockers, and maybe a swinging porch bed once it’s done!
Are your new neighbors excited?
Ha! I think that “yes” would be an understatement. We’ve come to find that this home is one that, well, basically no one was willing to take on, so I think everyone’s excited to see it change into the butterfly it deserves to be!
Do you have to abide by any historic guidelines?
We do. Because the home was built in 1873, there are several agencies that will keep a close eye on the project until completion. We have local and state guidelines that we’ll abide by to maintain the integrity of the home. We’ll also save and re-use as many original fixtures as possible.
So, there you have it (for now!) If you have any other questions (or post suggestions/requests), leave them below! Thanks for following along, friends!
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