HOUSE PICTURES

A smattering of pictures of what the house currently looks like with a full slideshow online.  More detailed pictures are available via the links at the bottom right of the page.

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SMUDGING

With the help and instruction from our friend Jason, we underwent a sage ceremony on the new house.  Also called smudging and often involving complicated prayer rituals, we opted for what I am calling the modern ‘express smudge’. 

The ceremony involves lighting a dried bunch of sage and walking it through the house while blowing the smoke into corners, closets and around doors.  It’s believed that it can help drive out bad spirits, influences or feelings while protecting the house from anything bad entering.

The result?  Although we set the smoke alarm off once, ended up smelling like burned spaghetti sauce and got a little red-eyed from the smoke, we’re declaring all bad spirits officially gone.  Now if only the ceremony could get rid of the pineapple wallpaper.

AND THE WINNER IS…

After a month-long search, multiple interviews and lots of opinions of what we could do with the house, we decided on our architect.

 

We'll be working with Anna Mihkels from Group 3 Architects. Anna comes highly recommended from previous clients and her resume includes some impressive work with Coop 15, LEED accreditation and experience of remodeling her own 1950s home.

We've kicked off the remodel program, handed over our mood boards and presented Anna with a long list of wants and desires. After a couple weeks of noodling, modeling and scratching her head on possibilities, we'll get to see the first concepts.

THE HOUSE IS OURS

The mortgage paperwork is done.  The small forest of papers that we signed are filed.  The city, state, insurance companies, mortgage brokers, escrow filers and real estate agents have recognized the transaction.  We’ve handed over buckets of money to people we’ve never met in person.  We officially own a 1960 house that needs a complete interior overhaul.  It’s structurally in excellent condition.  You just can’t say the same about the flower wallpaper, the white carpeting, the pineapple wallpaper, the pineapple chandelier…