Category Archives: Decisions

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The 4 Most Important things to Consider for Home Renovation

You may be thinking about some home renovations; you may have a growing family (2020 lockdown baby?) or maybe you need some breathing room. Perhaps this year has shown you just how little space you have to yourself and its time to turn the spare bedroom into a workout room or a crafting area.

If you really want to create the feel you want, without all of the worry and hassle, you can call a professional to do the work and take some of the following into consideration.

Here are 4 things to think about when designing your new space:

  1. Make a list of the things you like and don’t like about your current space

If you are thinking about a home renovation, it started with a pain point. Usually that happens when a new member of the family is introduced and you realize that they need a room, or you have a new focus in life and want the space to realize your dreams and potential. Whatever the reason, write it down so that you can visualize the changes you want to make. This is the first step to organizing the direction you want this renovation to take.

  1. Look for ideas online and in magazines

Many people think that the days of clipping ideas for projects out of magazine articles are gone, but that’s simply not the case. Pinterest is certainly the go-to for ideas for any creative project, but so are sites like Etsy as well as This Old House. When you’re in the grocery store, grab a magazine and pull out all of the pictures that make you think of what you want your new space to look like. The person you hire to do the work will be able to take your ideas and run with them.

  1. Get personal

One of the best things about building on or adding new space into your home is the freedom to choose any kind of material or style. You are free to make this project something that purely reflects your personality and personal style. Now is the time to integrate that custom feature that you’ve always wanted to have. The sky is the limit.

  1. While we’re talking about the sky, let’s also talk about budget

Make sure that whoever you hire is capable of looking at the different cost ranges of the options that you like and who is willing to be honest with you about what can and cannot be done. A good contractor will listen to what you want and not expect you to know or understand HOW it should be constructed (why would you hire someone, otherwise?) and will never make you feel foolish for suggesting things that you have been planning.

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Decisions, decisions

The Carpenter, while on a job recently, was solicited for advice by the Homeowner. This is such a common occurrence that we decided to start this blog.

Each homeowner has a pain point when it comes to their house, and at the root of that pain point is always the indecision of how a certain issue in their home should 1) Be Handled or 2) Be Designed.

Now – I am not going to give you design ideas. I am exceedingly poor in that department. The Carpenter is MUCH better at design and art than this poor IT lady.

Here is a story:

The Carpenter, at my request, removed a door from one of the rooms in our house. Its an older house, and there were two doors going from our living-room into an adjoining room. I required, only one, door. He did a beautiful job! The result was a living-room with a wall that was covered in spackle.

One year later, my mother was visiting and asked when we would paint the living-room.

The Carpenter: “When she picks a color.”

Oh lawd.

The second year was peppered by The Carpenter showing me paint chips from Home Depot (no, they’re not paying me to say this – we just live there and they’re nice enough to not kick us out). It started with an entire book of colors.

I couldn’t decide, thanked him, and set it to the side. Then a few months later I was presented with another selection of colors. A smaller selection this time. This went on as part of our monthly routine, until… The Carpenter came up holding 3 paint chips that were all the same color of varying shades and said: “You like purple.”

I said: “Yes! Yes, I DO like purple.” and I pointed to the color that is now covering the wall of my living-room.

So, The Carpenter is exceedingly good at giving people a nudge in the direction that they want to be going.

At this recent job, the Homeowner hired The Carpenter to do a number of jobs. During the course of one unrelated job, the Homeowner started talking to him about the carport cover. She was undecided as to what should be used to cover the ceiling rafters. The Carpenter suggested she leave it open, since she had expressed a fondness for older-styled string lights and the juxtaposition of wood and industrial.

Decision made.

Instead of spending the extra money to enclose the ceiling of the carport, she went with something that was less expensive and more pleasing to her eye than the original concept. The Carpenter and his trusty pressure-washer did quick work of the carport, and the Homeowner and her friend proceeded to white-wash the carport ceiling. The result was exactly what she wanted.

It just took a little nudge.