Young House Love

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The Duplex Has Drywall! And A Video Tour!

Last week we gave you all of the details on the outside of our duplex renovation, but today we’re turning our attention to a big development on the inside: DRYWALL! We’d nearly forgotten how big of a step this is in a renovation, but all of the feels quickly came flooding back (just like when we hit the drywall stage at the pink house last summer). Rooms suddenly feel like rooms again! Your floor plan starts to feel real. And the vision for its finished state comes much more into focus. Speaking of vision, Sherry shot a video tour that goes room by room to explain what goes where (everything from where we’re planning to

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The Duplex: Before & After Photos

This mirror-image two-family house in Cape Charles, Virginia was the most far gone home that we’ve ever rescued. Not only did it need things like new electrical & plumbing & structural reinforcement, we actually had to remove the entire roof and all of the walls (you can read all the posts about the renovation here and here’s the Airbnb listing for the left side & the right side if you’re looking for that). But we lovingly brought it back to life, and what was once the ugly duckling on this street is now all fixed up as a sweet vacation rental (just four blocks from the beach!) and the before & afters are our favorite part.

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Our Living Rooms & Dining Room Makeovers At The Duplex!

We’re THRILLED TO PIECES to be finished with the entire front half of the entire duplex – which means we’re revealing the open living room & dining room on each side at this very moment. Right now. It’s ON. This is what you see when you walk into the left side of the duplex and pivot towards the living area. With the exception of still having to steam and hem the curtains, we are ready to stick a fork in this baby! One of our favorite secondhand rugs that I bought ages ago from New England Loom on Instagram found a home in the living area with our favorite Crate & Barrel sofa to add

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Our Duplex Makeover Progress

Last month we shared how refinishing the floors at the duplex made us feel like we turned a major corner at a house we’ve been renovating for over a year (remember when it looked like this?!). And now we are firmly in “the fun part!” You know, where you get to start bringing in rugs and light fixtures and furniture and accessories so it goes from looking like a construction zone to an actual home. It’s THE. BEST. Especially after months and months of expensive improvements that you don’t even see when the drywall goes back up (like plumbing and electrical upgrades). So let’s just get right into it. Behold, this wall of the left

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Exciting Developments At The Duplex

GUYS. GET EXCITED. Lots of major stuff is happening at the duplex. Like extremely thrilling developments that we’ve thought about and planned over the last year and finally… FINALLY!… they’re happening. You last saw the duplex about a month ago when we shared that it was drywalled, and the latest progress has basically put me over the edge. I, Sherry Petersik, am feeling what people refer to as “messy” about these recent developments. It means I’m too excited and it’s not a good look. But you know I can’t contain myself so I’m just gonna share it all anyway. GET READY FOR A CAPS LOCK EXTRAVAGANZA AND LOTS OF PICTURES! That room above is the living

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Colorful Paint, Cabinet, & Tile Picks For The Duplex

I’m not gonna lie. Simultaneously choosing a bunch of finishes – like paint colors for walls and ceilings and trim and doors, cabinets for two kitchens, and tile for six bathrooms (plus two mudroom/laundry rooms along with two kitchen backsplashes) has felt overwhelming at times. Heck, planning just one room, like a bathroom renovation on its own, can feel overwhelming… and here we are planning six different bathrooms, two different kitchens, and 10 other rooms simultaneously! But we’ve managed to keep our heads on straight (so far) and even have some advice to offer through it all. So whether you’re working on a new construction and have to make a lot of decisions like this

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The Duplex Is Coming Back Together, And It’s Happening Quickly!

Last time our duplex renovation was on the blog, it was still looking like shell – er, skeleton – of its former self (see below). The stench of potential was thick in the air (how’s that for a mental picture?) and today, nearly a month later, we’re gonna blow a big whiff of progress in your general direction. We’re starting to see our new floor plan come to life, the second story additions on the back of the house (two more bathrooms!) are nearly complete, and the rain held off just long enough last week to get the front windows in – including Sherry’s precious diamond-grille windows in the top middle (if you follow us on

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#94: Just When The Duplex Was Going So Well…

Just when we thought the duplex renovation was finally rolling along smoothly, we found ourselves in the midst of an ordeal that required an emergency trip to Cape Charles, and another hot-seat meeting with the Historic Review Board. We’re sharing all the details, along with an update on our month-long shopping ban (oh the temptations!). Plus we’re talking about how to get large materials and furniture home when you don’t own a giant car or truck. Because as much as we DIY, we don’t actually own the ideal DIYers vehicle. So this week we’ll tell you why, and share how we get around it. Plus, maybe millennials are just efficiently experts…? You can download this

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The New Duplex Floor Plan

If you saw our before & after post about the beach duplex demo, then you know we’ve got some big plans for the duplex’s floor plan. We want to make the most of the given space – and we’re even adding on a smidge more – so it can sleep more people, offer more bathrooms, and generally improve the feeling of being in this cool old house. Before each side had only one full bath (!!!), so we’re hopeful that we have nowhere to go but up. So we’re back today with some floor plans to show you exactly what we intend to do. And the nerd inside of me is extremely excited about it.

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A Tour Of Our New Beach Duplex!

If you haven’t already heard the news: we’re doubling down in the beach house department. And I mean the “double” part quite literally because we lost our minds and bought a DUPLEX! If you caught our podcast yesterday, you already know the whys, hows, and wheres of this story. The price was right (we even got them down 30K), the location is awesome (close to the park, shops, and a few blocks from the beach), and we didn’t feel like we could ever afford this much house in such a great spot if we waited much longer. This small town only has so many affordable fixer-uppers available before everything gets renovated and we get priced

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How We Manage Renovation Stress: 5 Tips

Big renovations are exciting and fun, but it’s no secret that they can also be really stressful – especially when it’s one of those expensive, weeks-long, life-interrupting renovations like a kitchen or bathroom. Things go wrong, budgets get broken, timelines go haywire, and somehow there’s always dust everywhere. EVERYWHERE. So since we’ve renovated 7 houses over the past 17 years, we thought it might be helpful to share our best tips for preparing for & minimizing renovation stress.

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How To Remove Wallpaper: 4 Proven Methods

Wallpaper has made a big comeback as a trendy home design choice. But despite its resurgence, there are still plenty of us dealing with dingy, dated, or downright ugly old wallpaper we don’t want. In our old home, we had to remove wallpaper in so many rooms: the kitchen, the dining room, the foyer, and two different bathrooms! As we traveled from room to room removing wallpaper, we tested 4 different methods, and today we’ll share what we learned. Removing wallpaper doesn’t require special tools or lots of money. It’s a totally doable project for any homeowner. However, it can be a tedious process that can take elbow grease and patience, depending on the size

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