The High Cost of Home Restoration

For those of you that live on another planet and have never read my blogs and listened to me whine incessantly don’t know, Marc and I are the exhausted owners of a 1910 farmhouse. Yes. Well. It wasn’t actually a farmhouse until it was moved here..It was owned by a rich Dallas family. It was cut in 4 pieces in 1950 and moved 30 miles to where it sits now.

And before everyone is impressed let me tell you that this house was made into a commercial building in the 1970s (read this: had most of the cool stuff removed and sold) and then abandoned on and off. When we got it it had had five transient families living in it at the same time….at least this is what a neighbor told us….and after they were removed the raccoons and squirrels, rats, and mice moved in.

So, why am I writing this on a coffee blog? Because..I have figured out how much coffee it takes to power a restoration and I thought, for those of you that were considering a restoration, I would let you know what kind of cost you have to add to your estimate when you figure in the coffee you will be gulping down at 3 in the morning as you frantically try to patch the ceiling before the insurance inspector shows up at 8 a.m.

Cost (measured in 12 oz coffee mugs) of Various Home Improvement Activities

• Refinish Heart Pine Floors ………………………………………………1 mug per 100 sq ft
• Realize You Gashed the Floor with the Sander…………………. 6 mugs, and a possible Vodka Collins
• Faux Finish the Front Parlor Woodwork…………………………. 5 mugs
• Stencil the Walls………………………………………………………………. 2 mugs per wall and one mug to admire your work
• Removing Wood Rot Under the Door Frame……………………1/2 mug
• Replacing the Wood………………………………………………………….4 Mugs of coffee and a trip to the store to replace the mug you broke when you threw it in frustration as you were trying to level the floor
• Bathroom Remodel………………………………………………………….18 Mugs
• Replace a Missing Fireplace with a Gas Fireplace…………….. 3 Mugs
• Venetian Plaster a Large Victorian Bathroom……………………7 Mugs
• Put Up Arts& Crafts Style Border……………………………………..2 Mugs
• RealizeYou Hung It Upside Down………………………………………4 Mugs
• Refinish the Bannister………………………………………………………..2 Mugs

There are more, of course, but this should give you a general idea of the coffee cost involved. We have a long way to go, so I can;t yet say how many mugs it will take to rebuild the second story porch, or put the front archway back. If you know, leave me a comment so I can figure these important figures into the total cost. Thanks.

Oh, and if you would like to take a tour you can check it out here…we had it listed for awhile. Our House