It makes us very happy when we are able to save and restore features that are original to our 1905 apartment building. So far, all the bathrooms in the building have original, refurbished sinks. This sink was badly damaged on the side, but Kevin managed to restore it to its original beauty. It now sits in the bathroom in Apartment 2, which is the last apartment we finished. That bathroom has an all-new, pinwheel-tile floor and a white subway-tile shower with dual, vintage-style showerheads. Mirror from Riverfront Antiques in Thomas, WV.
Our kitchen is almost done!
It’s still missing some door knobs, but our new kitchen is almost done! When we bought the building, the roof on this side of the building had caved in in places and the plaster walls were badly damaged. Rather than putting in a new ceiling after tearing out the old one, we kept the beams exposed and the rooms open all the way up to the roofline. We also opened up the attic windows, which had been boarded up, and built new window frames around new glass. Originally, this space was two small bedrooms. We opened up the wall between the two rooms, and that, combined with the new tall ceilings and the additional light from the attic windows, created a much airier space. We were able to keep the 100-year old floors and we sanded and stained them. We wanted a kitchen that complemented the look and feel of our historic building (built in 1905), but two years into this process (and after a lot of "surprises” along the way) we also wanted a kitchen that didn’t completely break the bank, so we opted for an all-IKEA kitchen. The second and third photos show what the rooms looked like before the renovation.
We're getting there!
Same room, two years apart. The first photo is from January, 2017, early on in the renovation process. The second photo is taken a few months later, and the third photo is from this past month. We're getting there!
Restoring the old tubs and sinks
When the was Milkint Building was built in 1905 the bathrooms all had hardwood floors. We wanted to keep the original look, and were very happy when we found tile that closely resembled the original hardwood floors. Some of the original bathtubs were too damaged to salvage, but in this apartment we were able to restore both the original tub and the sink (seen in the third and fourth photo). Shower tile work by the fabulous @kylealbeaner, and vintage mirrors from Cabin Fever in Oakland, MD and Ella & Company in Thomas, WV (@ellaandcompanywv).
Apartment 5 living room after
This photo shows what the living room in apartment number five looks like today.
Apartment 5 living room before
This is what the living room in apartment number five looked like when we bought the building two years ago.
Second apartment almost ready for tenants!
The second apartment at the Milkint Building is almost ready for tenants. This is the original kitchen wallpaper. I love the early 1900s charm of the wallpaper, but unfortunately it was too damaged to save.
One apartment done, five to go
One apartment done, five to go. We have tenants moving into the next apartment on November 1, and Kevin is working hard to get everything done in time. This apartment is on the top floor on the side of the building where the roof had collapsed, and very little of the original details could be salvaged. Instead, Kevin found floors that matched the original pine floors and trim with the same profile as the original trim. This photo shows the living room (and the original trim) as it looked when we bought the building.
Refurbished sink
We were able to save and refurbish the sink you can see in the previous photo. We're trying to save as many of the original details as possible, and all the bathrooms in the building feature vintage sinks that are original to the building.
How it looked before...
This photo shows what the bedroom in the previous blog post looked like before renovation.
