Mantel Makeover
I often get asked, "what house projects are you two working on these days?" I suppose it's a fair question to ask since we (I) have a never ending to-do list. I really enjoy home renovation and interior design, so I suppose there's always something on the docket around our house. Thank goodness Tyler doesn't seem to mind too much!
So what are we working on right now? The fireplace. Man, this has been a long-time coming. We converted our existing fireplace from wood burning to a gas insert shortly after moving into the house - thanks Mom and Dad! BEST. DECISION. EVER. We haven't even turned on our furnace this year because our gas fireplace keeps it plenty toasty! Unfortunately, we've been having some water troubles for quite some time. We thought it was just a fluke at first, but when we started to notice some yellowing on the ceiling, we knew we had a problem.
Fast forward to Monday, and the outside of our house looked like this...
Serious problem. We originally thought we had a minor leak around the chimney flashing, but after a leak assessment, it turns out water was seeping in through our mortar joints and the cap. Not good. aka - Expensive. On the up side, at least we didn't pay to have the flashing fixed and then STILL have a leaking fireplace. On the down side, fixing it was going to be expensive.
We spent Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday with quite the mess in our front yard. There was dust EVERYWHERE. Like crazy amounts of dust. I actually drove home on Monday and thought someone was having a bonfire because the air was permeated white. Nope, just our house. No big deal. Completely normal, people. I'm sure our neighbors are loving us right now... But! On a positive note, everything is fixed and leak free!
Next up? Mantel repair. Oh, and redecorating the mantle, of course. It stinks that we had to spend so much money on a chimney that we don't even use, but preserving the house was more important to us than the money. Plus, I always love an excuse to redecorate. :) (Cross your fingers nothing else breaks anytime soon!) Here's a bit of inspiration I've been using to decide what we'll do next.
Stay tuned for more progress to come!
Photo credit: Pinterest