4. Our Prairie Style American Foursquare was built in 1921 and is located in Oakwood, Ohio just a few blocks from Orville
Wright’s homestead. Oakwood is a small walking-community of charming early twentieth century homes and mansions.
We bought our house in May, 2005 and have been working on it non-stop ever since…unless, of course, we were in the ER
for injuries sustained during the renovator-initiation process. Before we bought it, our house had been vacant for two years
and neglected for decades. The gas had been shut off and it had suffered through two unheated winters. It was hard to
believe someone had actually lived there even two years prior. Shortly before we bought the house, the city had begun
legal proceedings against the bank which owned it to have exterior repairs done to meet the city’s strict property code. The
city kindly requested we begin our renovation from the outside in. It is amusing to note that the bank which bought the
property in foreclosure had done so with the intent to renovate and resell it. However, after viewing the inside and taking
several bids for the entire job, they decided it was more than they cared to handle. The bank sold it to us for $13,100 less
than they paid! That should have been a giant, red, flashing billboard that read, “You have no idea what you’re getting in
to,”…but hindsight is always 20/20, isn’t it? Now would be an appropriate time to come clean and admit I honestly believed
we could do this project for about $50,000 and have it done in four months (yes, while doing most of the work ourselves). It
feels good to write it. I feel like I’m in front of a room full of recovering renovators saying, “Hi, my name is Matt and I really
believed I could renovate an entire house in four months.” Well, I was only off by a factor of twelve on the time and a factor
of two on the budget!
Portico Rear
5. Work that was Done and Who Done It:
We Did Ourselves: Friends & Family Helped with: We Paid to Have Done:
Demolition Some Demolition Exterior Paint
Permits, Plans, & Drawings Some Drywall Hanging Glass Block Basement Windows
Framing Some Interior Painting HVAC
Structural Repairs & Changes Some Tree & Stump Removal Rough Plumbing
Fabricating & Installing I-Beam to Replace Load Bearing Wall Most Drywall Finishing
Deleting 7 Windows & Weaving in New Siding Carpet Installation
Exterior Trim Repair & Replacement Concrete Driveway
Adding New Exterior Trim Details Privacy Fence
Finishing & Installing Tongue & Groove Porch Ceilings Bathtub Refinishing
Sizing & Installing Replacement Windows Service Entrance Gas Line Insert
Installing Skylights 200 Amp Electric Service Entrance
Installing New Side Door, Jamb, & Trim
Relocating & Installing New Back Door, Jamb, & Trim
Installing Siding Over Old Back Door Location
Concrete Repair
Relocating Floor Drain
Planning & Plumbing Interior Gas Lines Throughout House
Planning & Installing New Electric Throughout House (27 Circuits)
Installing Basement Fireplace
Insulation – Large Scale Spray Foam & Fiberglass
Removing Wallpaper
Repairing Original Plaster
Cleaning/Stripping/Repairing & Refinishing Original Trim
Cleaning/Stripping/Repairing & Refinishing Original Doors
Hanging Most of the New Drywall
Finishing Some of the New Drywall
Texturing Drywall to Match Old Plaster on Third Floor
Removing Oak Flooring from Various Places for Reuse
Weaving Original Oak Floors to Join Rooms
Repairing Original Oak Floors
Sanding & Refinishing Original Oak Floors & Stairs (~2000 SQFT)
Planning & Installing all Interior Trim & Built-Ins
Interior Painting
Planning & Installing Kitchen Cabinets
Fabricating, Finishing, & Installing Butcher-Block Counter Tops
Installing Plumbing Fixtures
Tiling Foyer, Bathrooms, & Fireplaces
Finishing & Installing Tongue & Groove Basement Ceiling
Installing Window Treatments
Installing Light Fixtures, Fans, & Appliances
Tree & Stump Removal
Building Stone Walls
Installing Pond
Landscaping
Gutters, Downspouts, & Underground Drain Lines
6. Front
Porch
The original plan was to repaint the porch
ceiling. The decision to tear it out and replace
with new ¾” tongue and groove bead-board
was a turning point in the renovation process. It
set the tone for future material choices and the
level of detail and quality for which we were
striving. The portico and rear porch ceilings
were replaced as well.
7. Foyer
Original oak flooring in the foyer was removed and used
elsewhere to patch and weave together joined rooms. New
marble and granite were installed in its place. The tattered and
torn checkerboard sheet flooring (left) provided the inspiration
for the marble and granite. Candice suggested laying it
diagonally.
8. Living
Room
Some of the original oak trim had been painted, but most just needed lots of
cleaning, some patching, and a fresh coat of shellac. The original never-
painted plaster walls were discovered under several layers of wall paper.
The fireplace hearth received marble and granite to match the foyer.
9. Dining
Room
The dining room received the same treatment as the living room; a barrel of elbow grease and two quarts of
shellac. A curious hole in the floor under the table had to be patched; a woman who grew up in the house in the
30’s and 40’s later told us there had been a button on the floor which her dad could step on to call the live-in
maid; times certainly have changed.
11. More Kitchen
A load-bearing wall between
the kitchen and den (before
picture, top left) was replaced
by a concealed I-beam to give
the kitchen its new breakfast
area. The back door was
relocated to gain more wall
space for cabinets. Five
windows in the breakfast area
provide lots of natural light to
the previously dark kitchen.
12. Half Bath
The original water closet was
just a toilet under the stairs.
There was no sink, but there
was a window which opened
onto the driveway. The window
was deleted and a small wall-
mount sink was added.
14. Master Bath
There was no master bath
originally, but this is the floor
(left) in what is now the master
bath. The door, jamb, and trim
in the picture were taken down
and repurposed to be the water
closet door for the master bath.
A skylight (not shown) above
the master tub brings in lots of
natural light and makes a great
sound when it rains. Regular
wall mirrors were mounted on
hinges to create custom
medicine cabinets (right).
15. On the first floor, a load-bearing wall was replaced by a concealed I-beam to allow the
kitchen and den to be joined. The back door was relocated to make more wall space for
cabinets. The original 1-1/2x3/4 oak floors in each room were weaved together using
boards removed from the foyer.
First Floor Before First Floor After
16. On the second floor, every room except one was reconfigured. A sleeping porch was
sacrificed to create a master suite. Two small closets were removed to enlarge the
master bedroom. In what was the original master bedroom, a fireplace was removed, and
a new closet added. Original 1-1/2x3/4 oak floor boards from the two closets and under
the master tub and shower were used to weave all the new spaces together seamlessly.
Original doors, jambs, and trim were repurposed for the new closets and rooms.
Second Floor Before Second Floor After
17. On the third floor, a previous owner had added a much needed, but poorly executed, closet. The
wall of the closet ran right up against a window. To bring the window back into the room without
losing the closet was a challenge. The solution was to cut back the wall of the closet and create a
landing which is accessible by a kid size door in the back of the closet. A railing was added for
safety, since the landing overlooks the stairs. The final touch was to texture the drywall on the
new walls to match the original sponged and troweled texture unique to the third floor.
Third Floor Before Third Floor After
18. In the basement,
the floor drain was
relocated to allow
one side of the
basement to be
finished space.
Basement Before Basement After
The tongue and
groove bead-
board ceiling
stained to match
the upstairs floor
and trim helps join
the new to the old.
The basement
and third floor are
the only two
rooms to get
carpet. The rest
of the house has
the original oak
floors.
