Ohhh my goosshhhhh….
I CAN’T BELIEVE I’M FINALLY AT THE POINT WHERE I GET TO TALK ABOUT THIS OUT LOUD!
We originally built this 1960 Thousand Oaks home back in July, started drawing up home plans in August, officially submitted to the city in September, and after a revision or two, got our final permits at the beginning of January. PHEW.
I’ve always been fascinated with how home renovations and construction has been done. I started watching HGTV regularly as a 14 year old with my parents and experienced first hand how putting the sweat, energy, & thought into your home can not only make it a true home where safety is found & memories are made but can also be a HUGE investment reward when my parents gutted & added onto our Belmont, CA home.
Well, now it’s my turn!
With this first post, I wanted to “introduce” the home to you (if you will) and show you what the plan is, footprint wise.
The OG:
Original home specs (per county records):
• Bedrooms: 3
• Bath: 1
• Square footage: 944 sqft.
…. you’ll see what it’s condition was like below. I’m warning you now. 🙃
For example, you’ll notice that it actually looks like there’s only 2 bedrooms in the original house (there was a wall that was removed inbetween 2 of the rooms). You’ll also see an *extra* toilet that was installed… directly next to the kitchen. Multi-tasking at its height?!
Original floorplan:
AND NOW….. I present to you… THE ORIGINAL HOME.
The front is changing too! Maybe not the landscaping right away, but aallll that tan & brown is going to be gone.
Living room.
And my parent’s furniture from their old home. It was stored here for a while when we were waiting for permits so that they didn’t have to pay for a storage unit anymore. Now it’s all in a giant container unit on the property that our contractor’s team moved in for us.
*Vintage* Galley Kitchen.
I can’t wait for this wall to go BYE BYE!
Goodbye galley kitchen, hello open concept!
It might be kind of hard to tell, but this is the one giant room that was supposed to be 2, according to the original county records. It’s going to become 2 rooms again.
“3rd” Bedroom.
Having flashbacks to my elementary school days with those stars on the ceiling 😂
The only full bath.
That corner that is blocking the sink is currently a linen cabinet that you access from the hallway. Since we will be building so much other storage space for linens and things (does anyone else remember that store?!), we’re going to eliminate this block and open up more space in this full bath.
OK, this is a WEIRD PICTURE. It probably looks like you’re looking at nothing. This photo was taken at the edge of the galley kitchen. In the bottom right corner, you can see the corner of a toilet. YES, a TOILET directly next to where you wash the dishes.
And straight ahead – past another sink & mini fridge – is a shower! Directly next to that is empty space that used to have a STOVE.
Past this area is the garage that was actually converted into a living space and then led to an addition. Both were unpermitted. We are converting the garage back into a garage.
That New New
New home specs, when it’s finished:
• Bedrooms: 4
• Baths: 2.5
• Square footage: Appx. 1,704 sqft. (We are adding appx. 760 sqft.)
And a few inspiration images to give you an idea of what’s stirring in my mind…
Love the dramatic marble with the clean minimalist lines & the warmth of the brass.
It’s my dream to make my master bathroom into my own personal spa. I’ve challenged my contractor to make a bathroom that is inspired by this picture – I’m told it won’t be easy, but we’re going to do our best!
I’m lucky enough to be realizing my dream of having a mudroom (we actually park our cars in the garage so we actually have real use for a transitional mudroom). Since I am intending for it to be a space where we’ll pile our things, take off/put on our shoes, do our laundry, etc., I want it to feel like it’s OK for it to get a little dirty. Stone flooring and Board & Batten detailing will feel like I brought a little bit of the outdoors in and will help with that.
Rob and I actually hate having a bed frame (we like the low profile mattress & don’t like knowing things are dusty and lost under the bed) so we’re hoping to build out a cool wall with extra detailing for aesthetics & shelving for practicality.
My hope is to share my journey through this huge project to shed some light about how the home renovation/building process can be like. I hope you follow along on this journey with me!
Xo
Melissa