My new house ....
Thu, 19 Aug 2010 39 Comments 
... if the building and pest inspection comes back OK and nothing nasty happens because it hasn't gone unconditional yet. Did I just write that? Am I jinxing myself by even revealing all this? No. I have a really good feeling about this one. The house was built in 1860 ... it says so in leadlight over the front door :) The front railings are not original, probably late Victorian so eventually we'll change them to something closer to the original and of course we'll have to paint some of it. Definitely not the brick. Brick is so rare in old homes in this part of the world.
The kitchen is in a separate brick wing. Common in those days because of the open fires used in cooking. The picture below is of part of the small attached stables. Hard to tell now but more obvious when you're inside. There's even a small fireplace where that the farrier used to shoe the horses. That's the chimney stack. Look at the huge Norfolk pines next door.
Looking down the cedar staircase from the second floor. Below is a shot of the wide cedar planks used for floor boards. You can just see the tip of my shoe. So many of my photos are slightly out of focus but I was just point and shooting as well as measuring, measuring, measuring. I was going to photoshop the pics but then I thought hang it. You get the idea :)
The main living room. It's actually a large room (by my standards) and this is just the fireplace end. Once again more cedar. Hate the terracotta tile floors but I can live with those for quite some time. Painting and a new bathroom (of the horrors of the original!) come first. Don't you just love the wallpaper and border trend of the 70s and 80s? NOT. The blurry photo below is of one of the colonial cedar shield door built in cabinets either side of the fireplace.
Look at those original cedar doors! The ones upstairs have been painted burgundy! Talk about "red" timber. What were they thinking? The ones on the bottom floor are all original thank god. The view is across the entry towards the dining room. Past the dining room is a breezeway and then the separate kitchen wing. Speaking of the kitchen ....
So much potential! I'll do minor changes to begin with. Maybe new timber counter tops and lots of painting, remove some things and throw in some open shelves but nothing too major. We'll live with this for a year and then refurb. Other things to do first!
That's the tour. I have lots more photos but they can wait till other posts. There is a lot of work to do but I am so excited. Just have to wait till it goes unconditional and hopefully in about 70 days it will be all ours!
Reader Comments (39)
Oh Jo, it's so, so lovely! That kitchen is just heaven. Is that an Aga?! I could live in that kitchen all day. Timber counter tops would be absolutely perfect.
The Norfolk Pines, the cedar, the fireplace, the brick....BLISS. It's lovely now, it's going to be stunning when you get at it!
My heart skipped a beat at that red door! Beautiful!
I'm a new follower, but will definitely be checking back!
Karin
Congrats on the house! I bought my 1880's house (in toronto) 2 years ago. I too have terra cotta tiles in the living room (what's with that?). Mine are much more hideous though -- they are patterned to look like wood parquet..... someday they'll change!
Wonderful. So much charm in all those details. Love esp. the kitchen. Cannot wait to see it all become your home!
Ditto all the above. Congratulations - it's a gorgeous blank canvas. Can't wait to see what magic you weave!
Oooh! There are a lot of fantastic architectural features in there! Love the doors and the transom windows. And the kitchen is great!!
Thanks again everyone. The building inspection won't be for about a week. They won't be rushed! What I love most about the house is that it is a blank slate. No one else's expensive renovations to fix. It's a very plain house, very simple, very honest. I'm really going to enjoy the fireplaces. I'm such a pyromaniac :) I think I love the kitchen, the staircase and the room I am going to use as my office the most.
I so hope this is your new home, it's lovely :) Best of luck to you :) love susanna ^..^
Hey...I know this house. My good friend looked at buying it but was too much effort to sell their house. I just left Switch to move back to Bris Vegas. So much potential!!.......nice on Denmark Hill....you can get a good walking workout on the hills and finish off climbing the tower.
Good Luck!
Lovely!
That's my dream: to buy a house where I can make it mine.
Congrats!
Nice house...and this I really want to follow:)
I have been renovating an old house in Norway but not finished yet;)
Congrats Jo! Such a beautiful house with SO much potential!
i'm late to the congrats party but jo the little place is soooo cute! and yes, loads of potential. i can't wait to see it all chic-ed up :) your huge lava vases are going to love living in this place!
oh my goodness what great space!!! You are going to make this wonderful, I'm sure.