"Before", left, "After", right.
I've virtually gotten through my whole house! Today on Shoestring Makeover, I offer you my home's facade and porch. It's definitely shoestring. The biggest splurge in the transformation was the chemical spray job we paid $1,000 for, to clean the bricks. It made all the difference in the world, but I'm still saving my pennies in a jar for professional tuckpointing. Ever seen it done? It makes your bricks look like velvet.
Anyway, as you can see, when we bought the house (left), it was less than appealing. But it was square and had good bones, so we were happy as clams to get at it. We moved in late winter, and as soon as summer hit, that horrid enclosed porch had to go.
I'm lucky my husband is handy, or this endeavor would still be a dream on a list. Because it was a pain, let me tell you. While the refurbishing of the structure is beyond many's shoestring capabilities and reads better as a DIY, it's still an integral part of the makeover and so I will touch on a few key points of what was involved.
Here's what we did:
- Stripped off the aluminum enclosure
- Chemically washed the facade
- Built up the existing porch structure
- Painted the floor of the porch and the trim/ceiling
- Changed the light fixture
- Sourced vintage furniture
The whole thing cost us approximately $1,400, and most of that was spent on the chemical wash, as mentioned above. What we still need is railings, and I want to change the door. It doesn't look that bad in the photo, but it's old and warped, and I don't like the colour of the wood.
See all the sordid details in the gallery below;
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Comments -- as always -- are invited!
Previously on Shoestring Makeover: Elana's Guest Room
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