Category Archives: The Renovatrix
The Secret Addiction of the Foreign Service Spouse
Well, maybe not all of us have this secret. But an awful lot of FS spouses that I know are hooked on porn. House Porn. In the dead of night—or, in the cold light of day, if we are underemployed—we scroll through hundreds of photos on real estate websites, Dreaming of the perfect house. Which […]
The Brown Bathroom of Doom
I should probably be sorting Tupperware or something, since the packers come in LESS THAN 72 HOURS but you know, a person can only sort so much junk before they start seeing double and babbling incoherently. So, it’s a good thing I have this outlet for my ramblings. (It sure does feel good to sit […]
Just Call Me The Renovatrix
Getting my photos organized here. Some more before-and-afters: First, the living room/dining room. It was red. Vampire red. Everywhere. Including the trim. And yes, that is carpet around the hearth. And the cheapest laminate flooring you can possibly imagine. There is one thing you can say about Pergo (you can’t call it hardwood and keep […]
Some Before and Afters
We are finally getting to the finishing touches on our new house. It’s been a lot of work, but nothing compared to the one we live in now. Of course, we know more about what we are doing now which helps a lot! I called this house my ugly duckling. It really was not in […]
I May Be Getting Too Old For This
Well, after three weeks of flat-out, knock-down, drag-out work on this new house, I am tired. Dog tired. Plumb worn out. Beat. Completely knackered. Apparently, there is a difference between renovating a house before age 40 and after age 40. DUH, you say. Well, now, give me a break here. It’s my first time. I […]
More Cluster Funning
So, after carefully assembling applications to Reston’s Committee for Public Safety Design Review Board we were approved for cutting down ugly bushes and trimming the giant silver maple looming over the house. Which is good, because I had already done it two days after closing. There was a note that I should “consider notifying my neighbors” […]
ADHD and the Foreign Service Part Five: And They All Lived Happily Ever After (Even With ADHD)
Wow, big week! On Monday, we closed on that little fixer-upper I’ve been on about. It was an intercultural experience. The sellers were an older Iranian couple who were apparently under the impression that there is no such thing as a done deal. Everything is negotiable, even at settlement–and even with your own agent! It […]
There’s a Term for This – And It Starts With “Cluster”
We live in Reston, the Mauve-Colored New Town on the Potomac. There are many good reasons to like the place. So many that we decided to buy another house here to move back to after Vienna. We’re really happy about that decision. But it can get a little weird. The whole town (of something like […]
Hurry Up and Wait…and Wait…and Wait…
I am not the most patient person in the universe (stop laughing honey!) and so the last few weeks have taken years off my life, I am sure of it. I am shocked that I have not suddenly gone gray. Yesterday, one of the things were waiting for came to pass. Our third offer on […]
Yet More House Like
Finishing up the house like story today. Here are a few more pictures, starting with the living room. That back wall was interesting. Someone had apparently tried to go for a stucco effect and wandered off about halfway through the project. It was pretty awful, not to mention flesh-colored. We paid a guy to drywall […]
More House Like: Bomb Shelter
So, we made an offer on another fixer-upper this week, which we withdrew because the sellers weren’t comfortable with our contingency (long Ponzi-esque story). Doesn’t mean we can’t resubmit our offer later, and I’m hoping we can. For one thing, this little place doesn’t have a basement. Why, you may ask, would I be happy […]
More House Like: Thrifty Bathroom Renovation
Here’s another thing that kind of sucks about 1960s ramblers. This was the first decade when people started to get creative with their bathrooms. With unfortunate consequences. Now, your 1940s and 1950s houses usually just have black and white tile. A person can work with that. In 1960s houses, you get every weird color you […]
More House Like: Kitchen
So, it was so much fun blogging about the outside of my house, I’ve to keep at it while exiled for the Dreaded Home Inspection (really hoping all my wiring is up to code…) First stop: the kitchen. The previous owners were under the impression that they had “done the kitchen.” Well, not to get […]
House Love? Not So Much
So, I was reading the Washington Post this morning, and there was an article about this DIY blog, Young House Love. I couldn’t help noticing an eerie similarity. See what I mean? Now, this irritatingly cute young couple (their dog has a blog, OK?) is just crazy about renovating a house that at 48 is […]
