My most recent job reminds me of this old song:
If you go exploring in the mountains around Asheville, you will discover many little churches tucked into the curves of the road or nestled in the little hollows. Many of these churches have been here for many generations, and the old-timers tell of times when the little churches were so crowded that the women and children sat indoors while the men stood outside the windows in order to hear the sermon.
Times have moved on, and most of the congregations have dwindled to a little handful of people, but the churches still stand. I was recently hired to do a little maintenance on one of these churches, Price's Chapel:
The church is just a few feet from the road; it was built before paved roads and fast cars. Back then the traffic past this church was mostly on hoof or foot. If you look at the roof line, you can see that the central part was added first, and then the wings on each side were added as the congregation grew.
One of the first things the congregation wanted me to do was get the door cleaned up. It had been painted at one time and then later stripped to reveal the old wood. The refinish job was probably really beautiful at one time, but this door is on the side that catches the wind and weather (not to mention the road salt). After consulting with the congregation, it was decided that a simple paint job would probably be easier to maintain.
I did a few small repairs indoors as well. The most important one was fixing the ceiling fans. The original fans were cheap and tended to clank and wobble. Apparently the clanking was so bad that some of the church members couldn't hear the Sunday school lesson.
I made a point to match the old fans. The new fans are very similar, but of much better quality, so they won't be as likely to squeak and hum as they age. Aesthetically not much has changed, but now everyone can hear the service.
All in all, this was an enjoyable job, and I'm glad I got the chance to help maintain this historic little building. I've been "too busy to blog" lately, but I thought I'd take a moment to show you a few repairs and improvements I recently made for my client Debbie. Debbie really loves her home, and she plans to stay in it for a long time, so she made a list of "little things" she wanted done to make her house just right. Everybody has those; even if you buy a great house, there's usually that one little thing that you want to change. In Debbie's case, I was able to make a few simple changes that updated the house and brought it out of the 20th century and into the 21st. In this post, I'm going to show how just a few small updates gave a fresh look to the porch. Here's a "before" shot: Her chief complaints about this porch were the railings (which were rotten and peeling) and the dated light fixtures and shutters. I replaced the railings with new Trex composite railings which will never need to be repainted: Then I updated the light fixtures: And last, but not least, I updated the windows. She wanted the windows to look taller, so I added white trim at the top and bottom of each window, and then I updated the shutters with something more stylish: Now she has a porch with solid railings that will last a lifetime, and trim and details that make it look fresh and contemporary. This is yet another example of how a modest budget can make a big difference.
If you read a lot of home decorating magazines, you will eventually notice that the "before" and "after" photos show a kitchen going from dingy to delightful in just one photo. This is fine for people with huge budgets (or more likely, huge debt), but what can people with modest budgets do? This kitchen is an example of how you can slowly improve your home by making a series of renovations as you can afford them. In the first picture, you can see that the kitchen was in a cramped "U" shape, with an intrusive breakfast bar that kept the cook from interacting with the rest of the family. In Phase One, we simply took out the intrusive wall and used an existing pantry to house the refrigerator. This made the kitchen "livable" until the client could afford to take the next step. In Phase Two, you can see that we have added simple cabinets below the left-hand counter and over the refrigerator. We also covered the old linoleum with nice "granite" flooring that is actually peel-and-stick tile. Last but not least, we built a simple custom kitchen island to extend the rustic feel of the kitchen. In the final phase, we replaced the laminate counter and cheesy white backsplash with nice, warm-colored tile. We also panelled over the dated "popcorn" ceiling and called in an electrician to install new lighting. Regardless of what home decorating magazines say, you don't have to do everything at once. Just make sure that you work with your handyman to make a good plan that fits your budget. Need a local handyman to help with your next home renovation? If you're in the Asheville area, give us a call!
|
About
Connect!
Archives
April 2022
This blog is for entertainment purposes only. See our Terms of Use for details.
|
What Our Clients Are Saying
"Arthur is that rare professional handyman who is totally reliable; fairly priced; pro-active in communications; honest; punctual; skilled -- and a really nice guy." "Arthur is a great resource to have here in our area. He's prompt, professional, does great work and is cost effective. I'll definitely use him again!" |
Follow Us:Email US AT:Service Area:
In-town Asheville
Mars Hill and Weaverville Arden and Fletcher Fairview Popular Services |