Another project down

The painters finally finished up the exterior of the house yesterday afternoon after a LONG week and a half. Even though it was easier than some other projects since the workers were (mostly) outside, poor Lucy still went nuts with all those strangers out there. The kennel had an outbreak of kennel cough, so we couldn't even send her there for the day to get her away from it.

But we are very pleased with the outcome. In addition to changing the colors we had a built-in dog door and built-in air conditioner removed, all the decorative shutters taken down, plus lots of rotten window sills and shingles replaced.


Here is what the house originally looked like (back in November, which explains the lack of plants in front).


Lucy inspects the space where the dog door used to be. We never let her use it - it was covered in all kinds of funk from the previous dogs that lived here. Plus I realized a dog door isn't that great an idea in the winter when rain and snow outside forces you to clean dog paws upon reentering the house.


The house in the process of getting sanded down and prepped for painting.


Naked house front.


Finished front of the house. We are going to replace the storm door with one that is total glass up and down so the red door can be more easily seen. The windows actually have the same red accent on the frames, but it's hard to see with the storm windows back up. We are also going to replace the ugly light currently hidden by the branch in this pic with something a little more architecturally appealing, possibly on either side of the door.


Painted house from another angle.


New paint from the back. Not as nice as the front part of the house simply because this is the more recent addition. The window frames aren't as big and the actual windows are newer without the panes in the top. But I like the expanse at the top without the god-awful ugly HUGE AC unit that used to be there. This screen/storm door will also be replaced by one that is not quite so countrified.

The exterior plants took a beating with the workers and tarps all around, so I'll have to watch those to see what can come back next year. But now we can start deciding on what type of shrub to plant in front to soften up the look a little and cover up that exposed foundation. Our next big project is going to be getting the garage rebuilt. We got spoiled in Dallas after building that one with actually having our cars protected from the elements, and it will be even more appreciated with the winters up here. We are going to have to get a couple trees taken down to have that done, so it should be an exciting time around here.