Surprise! We Bought a House!
Yes, You read me right! We bought a house. This definitely wasn’t on our to-do list for the year, but just a couple weeks into it 2021, we found this gem and knew we had to do this! But before I tell you all about that…
Notice any other big changes around here?? The blog has had a tiny little major makeover! And while I’ve tried to keep it simple and recognizable, I hope you’ll find it fresh and updated and ready for new content! I am in love with my new brand logo up top which was designed by my own Abby. Find her fabulous design work over on her Instagram HERE! All my old posts are still here and I hope you’ll take a look around and find it easy to navigate everything!
SO, about the house!… as I said, we weren’t looking to buy a house, but I try to stay familiar with the real estate climate around our area and Dave and I had been recently advising Abby and Beau as they are beginning their search for a house and understanding what all of that entails. Like many places in the country, our housing market here in Knoxville is the hottest I’ve ever known it to be and everything is selling very quickly. We had toured a couple of older charmers with Abby and Beau, but none of them were just right. Then, I happened upon one for sale by owner in a familiar neighborhood and it immediately sparked something in me. I showed it to Abby and Beau, but they were not looking to take on the task and financial responsibility of updating it, but the price was right and I was totally interested. That next day, Dave and I made an appointment to see it, and after the tour, we made an offer because we both knew it was meant to be. Fast forward a few weeks, and here we are!
We’re calling it the Dogwood Cottage because there are no less than a dozen gorgeous dogwood trees in this yard, which are a true Tennessean’s dream! I’m ecstatic to show you around here today because this is going to be a fun journey and I’m excited to share it with all of you every step of the way!
Walking in the front door, the living room is to the right, and right away you can notice one of the best features of this entire house–lots of windows! Because of this unique and fabulous floorplan, many of the rooms have windows on both sides, providing tons of gorgeous natural light!
The living room has a fab fireplace for which we are already dreaming up possibilities, and it’s flanked by two great windows…
Down the long hall are the bedrooms, each waiting with great hardwood floors to be refinished and some great updates to be made-
There’s also a large bathroom, which we hope to expand and covert into two baths– one for the hallway, and one for the master! This will definitely be one of the best transformations!
Another big transformation will be in the dining and kitchen areas…
We’re planning to keep the built-ins in the dining room, and just update them a little. Also, we’ll probably add banquette seating at the window to provide a nice open walkway to the kitchen!
We also plan to widen this doorway a little to open up the kitchen.
We have big plans for the kitchen , including new cabinets and lots of reconfiguring to make the most of this space!
I had really hoped we could keep this little powder room and this original 1950’s green tile, but since we are planning to add the second bath down the hall, we’ve concluded it’s better use of the space to take this out and expand the kitchen… but how cute is this??
And in the back of the house, there’s a great laundry room and mudroom area just dying for a fresh update. What about all this wallpaper??!!!
And maybe my favorite part of the house– this courtyard which has windows on it from almost every room of the house! It’s a gardener’s dream with several varieties of mature plants and trees well kept by the previous owner who obviously loved her flowers and plants. (Yes, this did seal the deal for me!)
We are already envisioning a great outdoor living space here complete with string lights!
As you can see, there are plenty of updates to be done, but it’s also in livable condition already, so we’re not having to demo the entire place! This is kind of new territory for me as I am more familiar with designing new builds rather than renos, but I am getting a lot of advice from my brother whom you may remember I have shared many times with his various renovations and projects! We’ll be doing some of the work ourselves and contracting some of it out.
So the big question: what on earth are we going to do with this house?? Well, there’s no doubt in my mind we could update it in any range of the spectrum and still sell it at a profit. But, it so happens that we already have some very interested buyers whom I believe God for meant this house to go to. Abby and Beau have fallen in love with the vision we have for this and they also have some visions of their own to add, so if all goes as planned, they will buy it from us when the updates are done and start making it their own. And all of us are thrilled. Because of this arrangement, we’ll be taking their input for several design choices and they will even be dictating the budget somewhat as well, based on what they want to spend. And I will not only get to watch this little beauty bloom into what we envision, but I’ll get an inside look at how she will become a true home to some of my favorites! Isn’t that just the best??
So what about our other newlyweds, Grant and Miriam? Well, they’re not quite ready to buy a house as they are still deciding on their future plans at the moment, but if they’d like to go this route as well, we would love to do the same for them!
So, what do you think?? Are you surprised? I’ve already been sharing several peeks of the Dogwood Cottage on my Instagram HERE, so be sure to follow me there if you want to see more! So much fun coming soon!
Amy
February 26, 2021 @ 8:37 am
How exciting… I have to say when you shared this house I wondered if it was planned for one of your newlyweds. My parents did the exact same thing for my husband and myself when we first got married and when it was all done we purchased our “dream home” at the time. Lots of love and labor went in to our first home but it was perfect for us until baby number two came along and a bigger house was needed. Best of luck to you guys and I’m so excited to see it get transformed into a house they can call home!
Julie
February 26, 2021 @ 9:21 am
Aww! Great! We are thrilled that this arrangement came about. I’m excited that I won’t have to give up this house completely when it’s done! The best part is seeing it as a home!
Tyra
February 26, 2021 @ 3:40 pm
What a wonderful blessing for Abby and Beau. Such a fun project. It will be fun to follow along.
Love the new look of your website! Your hand with your nail color is sweet.
Julie
February 26, 2021 @ 4:53 pm
Thank you!! We are so excited about this. And I’m so glad you like the new look! I think it captures me well
Heather
February 26, 2021 @ 8:49 pm
Well this is the sweetest! Not only a perfect arrangement but they will also be so close to you. What a blessing that you are able to help “launch” a pair of your newlyweds!
Julie
March 2, 2021 @ 10:30 am
Yes! We are super excited to be able to do this for and with them! It’s a great opportunity 🙂
Pamela Jackson
March 2, 2021 @ 8:00 pm
Hi…found you via PINTEREST where someone posted your blog there. I am so excited to see what you do with this new buy. I love it and I see so much that can be done. Love the built ins in the dining room. Then I was even more excited to find that its in Tennessee. I live just outside of Nashville. I have marked your blog to follow so I can keep up with this house.
Julie
March 4, 2021 @ 2:55 pm
Aww! This is great! I’m so glad you found me here as well! I always especially love meeting my fellow Tennesseans!
Lisa Snow
March 4, 2021 @ 9:30 am
Can’t wait to see it all along the way!!! Very exciting!
Julie
March 4, 2021 @ 2:54 pm
Thanks!! We are very excited too!
Jennibell
March 17, 2021 @ 9:20 pm
Exciting!!!
So many changes in these last few years for you all. Can’t wait to follow this new adventure 🙂
Julie
March 19, 2021 @ 7:03 am
Yes! So true! So glad you’re here in this journey!