Finally, a Hopman House renovation update! I know this blog has been pretty devoid of renovation content in recent months (years!) but I’m working hard to get us back to a place with regular updates. I currently have the following renovation projects that I need to start sharing: the Hopman House, Camp Rockne, Camp Gipper and an unnamed fella with an old florida vibe that is totally different from anything I’ve done so far.
I’ll try to keep this as short as possible, but here is where we are at currently. If you’re just here for the pretty photos, skip down below. For those of you who don’t know, this home has a wonky floorplan. The main living, dining room and kitchen are on the 2nd floor with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. The master bed and bath suite are small and wildly disappointing. The main floor has 3 more bedrooms, a giant game room, entry hall, 2 bathrooms, laundry, bonus room, living room, small dining and kitchen as well as a screened porch. While odd, this floorplan really allows us to remodel the main level and still maintain our living space (unscathed) upstairs.
We have demolished the main level kitchen, dining, living, bath and little bonus room. They were gutted but still maintain some studs. We’ve also removed all the ceiling drywall and exposed the trusses. Oh, and gutted the screened porch.
What’s New.
The porch was sinking in a few places so they have broken up the concrete and poured new supports and added posts. They assembled a 3600 pound LVL beam from 3 smaller beams and used hydraulic jacks to raise it up. They cut out the center of the ceiling joists (after adding supports on each side) and put the beam in place. It was quite an ordeal to get that monster of a beam raised up there. They also had to jack up 3 or 4 other spots where the home was sinking and just not properly supported. I’m guessing they’ll be able to start pulling the rest of the trusses and studs out of there this week. It’s going to look so big and different when that’s done.
The pretty stuff.
We ordered new windows, exterior doors and appliances. We went with black frame windows, and were able to enlarge the openings from one window to three in most places. Very excited about all the natural light about to pour into my home! I’m waiting to reveal the range and fridge but they’re a custom color that I’m both nervous and excited about. The lights for above the island have arrived, and they remind me of a coconut shell which is 100% the vibe.
Some tile samples arrived and while they’re gorgeous, I don’t think any of them are “the one” for our backsplash. My plan at the moment is to keep searching and wait until after the kitchen is done. With a custom color range and fridge I’d like to see it all come together before making a decision. We want our home to be colorful, with a very caribbean vibe. But we don’t want it to look like a funhouse or corny. I think lots of bold color has to be executed in a thoughtful manner for it to work well. So we wait on tile.
Aaaaaand… my new favorite photo. Wallpaper and fabric samples have been rolling in recently and I’m working to create a whole-house plan. I won’t reveal what’s in verses what’s been ousted yet, but I can tell you there are at least two wallpapers, five fabrics and two trim options that will move to round two. We plan to recover much of our current furniture, as well as have curtains made. So that’s what we are doing with all the fabrics.
Up Next.
I suspect by next week I’ll be able to reveal a room that has vaulted ceilings and an attached beam. I also plan to nail down a palette for the butlers pantry and laundry room, as well as a bedroom makeover I’m doing. I’m about 2 hours into drawing a layout for the back patio and outdoor kitchen as well. The babies are really starting to get into a great pattern and schedule so I’m ready to demo that bedroom and begin the makeover there. Finally! It’s going to be a busy week… off to invest in more espresso.
Ciao.
-Stacey
