9 minute read
Modern farmhouse makeover
Mountain City couple takes DIY home journey
BY SAHAR CHMAIS
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Walking into the Painters’ home, revamped to resemble a modern farmhouse, a smell of warm spices, vanilla and pumpkin fills the air. It’s a scent paired perfectly with the rainy day, foggy windows and silver sky, a scent that whispers fall is around the corner. The cozy yet modern home tells the eyes a story about a house that is being remodeled; new floors, a new kitchen, a complete facelift on the outside with details in every corner. But looks are deceiving because the remodel is not being done by a contractor, instead, the owners had to do all the work by hand after a contractor took the couple’s money and skipped out.
“It’s been stressful,” said Monica Painter, the executive director of The Equality Alliance. “In the beginning there was arguing and we were sleep deprived because of the baby. We were supposed to be done in June, but the contractor left us in the end of May.”
When the Painters decided to buy a new place, they had to make a decision between an expensive house with a small property, or a cheaper house with a bigger property. They went with the latter in order to provide their child with lots of space to play. Their thought on AFTER
the matter was that they could hire a contractor to fix up the home and move in within two months.
It has taken two and a half years to get to the point where they have almost finished everything in their home. The recent coronavirus-infested months gave Jennifer Painter, softball head coach in Round Rock High School, a chance to a finish a big chunk of the remodeling project. BEFORE
Monica and Jennifer Painter, left, were faced with the challenge of renovating their Mountain City home after their contractor skipped out on them.
That may seem like a long time, but with work, a twohour commute and limited resources, it was difficult to catch up on the destruction left behind. The contractor gutted their home by ripping up the old floors, taking down a load bearing wall, leaving electric wires exposed, ruining their plumbing and more. After paying him his price, he never came back and left their lives in danger with all the exposed wire and a roof that could cave in any moment.
Mountain City residents showed their benevolence by coming to the Painters’ home, helping them with the wiring process and other things they did not know how to fix. One resident and contractor helped them place a beam to balance their ceiling; he also helped them place sheet rock in their home so they did not have holes open to the outside.
Soon after, Jennifer picked up the habit and Googled videos on remodeling. She redid all the floors in the living room and kitchen in medium brown wood grain tile. In the laundry room and bathrooms, Jennifer laid a black and white modern-vintage tile.
“It came to us learning how to tile floors,” Monica said. “Jennifer tiled almost our whole house, her hands were numb toward the end.”
But fixing the basics was not enough; they gutted the kitchen and rebuilt it, built mud lockers in the laundry
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“To us, every room tells a story,” Monica reflected on their journey. “We remember what we had to do to get there. We wanted shiplap, but it had gone through the roof because lots of people wanted it. So Jennifer figured a way to take plywood and made it look identical to shiplap. We look at each room and smile and say ‘remember that?’ I think we will be here a good long while.”
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room, built a coffee and tea bar which the couple continually uses, expanded their bedroom and bathroom, made a workshop and a covered patio.
The work became more detailed, and they focused their attention not only on what was necessary, but expanded into finessed details.
“I just get better with every project,” Jennifer said. “What I don’t know how to do, I watch videos and get better. I look back at some projects and think, ‘I probably should redo those.’”
Jennifer used that accumulated experience and, soon after, built unique bed frames by hand for her children. One bed frame is shaped like a red and white farmhouse, and the other is triangular and white, resembling scenery from the sky. As an added bonus, the bed frames have built-in bookshelves.
What began as a personal project soon expanded into other’s homes. Time is tight, but Jennifer found enough time to squeeze in some outside projects. She started a page where she sells custom beds. Although it is not sustainable as a business because of limited time and human power, Jennifer considers continuing this work when she retires from teaching.
Fixing up the home took team effort from the couple. While Jennifer does the building, Monica paints. She has also been the eyes of the design, a balance for Jennifer. Monica will find the color schemes best suited for the designs, or look up what new idea can be implemented, and Jennifer will make it.
Had the couple found an honest contractor that stuck with them and finished the home, there is a beacon of doubt that the contractor would have given their home such a personal touch – a touch that invites in guests and says ‘come in, this is a piece of Jennifer and Monica’s paradise, feel free to kick off your shoes, drink a hot coffee or tea and relax with our cats and dogs.’
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