apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Those people must be nuts. They have no idea what they are getting into. I don't they will live thru it.

-The Critic

Nuts? Seems to me they are successfully pursuing the American dream. They don't look that old - my bet is that not only do they live through it, they learn a lot, eventually sell it, make a ton of money and move to Boca Raton before they are too old to enjoy their retirement!

Wow, I am totally impressed! Kami and Jim already seem to be pretty near expert status, at least compared to my and my husband's DIY skills. We bought a small condo a few months ago and have been working on projects, some small and some large (at least to us).

For us, the best thing we kept in mind while we did the work ourselves was that if it all came down to it, and we ended up in a pinch (or a major emergency), we could always call for backup from a "professional."

It was really rewarding doing 99% of our new bathroom demo and install on our own, and none of it was diminished by the 1% a plumber had to finish. If anything, it saved our sanity, and that was worth it alone. No shame.

Go easy on yourselves, take breaks, and have fun! Can't wait to see more as they progress!

congrats! your ambition is inspiring.

be thankful for that layer of newspaper. not only a neat historical marker but also much easier in terms of restoration. my place had vinyl glued to plywood (heavily) stapled to linoleum glued to original hardwood. a total mess.

you'll appreciate the documentation... the more before & after comparisons the better. keep it up & good luck!

Just did some similar work. If you knew what you were getting into, you probably wouldn't have done it. But you will be so happy when you're done and will gain so much in knowledge and confidence that you'll never be quite the same.

Expect to find all kinds of cool stuff analogous to the newspaper find. The walls of our turn-of-the-century two-flat yielded old liquor bottles, hand-made tools, and lots of printed material.

Oh and, um, the tool rental rule- if you're going to use it more than twice, and it costs more than about 20% of the purchase price to rent it, and you can store it, buy it. Otherwise, rent it.

don't forget to look on e-bay for some larger tools if you find they're necessary (there are some good deals for things in good condition). or pawn shops. you can buy them for the time you need them, but turn around and sell it when you're done and not spend quite as much as you would renting.

I noticed the drawers in the pantry in the background of the first picture. When we rehabbed our pantry the drawer pulls cleaned up really well and turned out to be beautiful.
They have taken on a major project, but it will be worth it when they get done.

I am soooo proud of my daughter and son-in-law. I know they will do a wonderful renovation since Kami is an architect (just bragging a bit) and Jim is about the handiest dude I know. Don't forget the in-laws' quarters like you promised !!!! Also, save those newspapers, they'll be worth some money one of these days. Congratulations !!! Love you both.

Reminds us of hte house in Rousset!

Keep up the great work...

Love
P&E

I once knew a Kami Kohi who worked at the Coffee Plantation in Tempe, Arizona. I believe she was goin to school for architecture. I haven't seen or talked to her in about 8 yrs. It's hard for me to say if this is the very one. Time changes all of us.