I have a running list in my moleskine of things I want to write about this year and at the top of the list are several posts about Woodlawn. When we were first moving in, I shared occasional progress updates of how we were using the laser level and which sections of the woodwork were complete but then the overwhelming task of settling in took over my life.
Don’t be fooled. Almost two years later and I swear I still feel like we’re settling in. And fixing things. Like utilizing a self propelled lawn mower to be able to give maintenance to the garden. And finding more broken things. And learning how to make do with things that we can’t fix right now. And there are days when I wouldn’t trade it for anything. And days when I’d trade it for a tidy little condo in the city.
Just when I thought we weren’t making much progress around here, finding these pictures makes me feel like we’ve come along way with this old girl. When Dan walked in tonight to see what I was working on, he said, “I don’t think it’s really changed all that much.” Boy, were we both wrong. So since my house is nowhere near tidy enough right now for “after” photos I’d be willing to share and still maintain my dignity, tonight you get to dig into the “before”.
We fell in love with this house long before we ever stepped inside, or drove down the long lane. And looking at these photos, I still see big glimpses of why. She’s got beautiful bones and it’s been a slow journey to help her come back to life, no matter how long that might be.
I hope you enjoy taking a peek inside this 1812 farmhouse officially called “Woodlawn” in the history books. These photos are from the very first time we walked through after the previous owner’s things had been removed. I’d be lying if I didn’t admit to getting a wee bit overwhelmed at the site of the work ahead of us, especially that kitchen. Can we please discuss that dishwasher?! I’m thinking it’s got to be the first dishwasher ever made, circa 1812. (kidding.) Then, we also were worried about the HVAC units since they were really old; thankfully to the good company similar to United Plumbing Heating Air & Electric which my friend recommended me for HVAC system check up and repair. Also, we did our research through https://www.airnowhvac.com/heating-and-air-conditioning-millbrook-al/ and they were able to guide us in the right direction. Now, we’re happy that we got it tuned up via a repair corona service. You can read more about it here.
So enjoy this peek inside Woodlawn. This is the downstairs tour, and if you enjoy it, let me know. I’ve got the upstairs, attic, basement and barn to share as well. You can click on the thumbnails below to view them in a larger view or slideshow.
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I love it! I lovelovelove old houses! I grew up in a 160 year old house in eastern Canada, and was a caretaker of a 240 year old house in Philadelphia. Please show the rest of it!
yay! I’m so glad you like seeing the inside. I’ll start working on a few more ‘tours’!
Oh yay! I’m so excited that you’ve decided to share more photos of Woodlawn. I’ve been longing to see it ever since you moved in but I wasn’t sure how much you planned to share online. I can see why you love it so much. It’s got the most beautiful bones and all that woodwork and the beautiful twisty stairs. I’m so glad that you could buy such a beautiful old house and breathe new life into it. And what a fantastic place to grow up!
Thank you! We feel so blessed to be here.
I love it also – such an amazing house, definitely do share more photos!
Really want to see the after – the glimpses you’ve shown look wonderful!
It will be a very real life ‘after’, but I’ll try to get my act together enough to share some photos! 🙂
i also loved seeing this!!! 🙂
Thank you! I’ll work on putting a few more together and then tidy up enough to do a very real life after. 😉
More more more pics! I can see why you fell in love with her. I would have too! Why are there always so many doors to the outside, right next to each other, in these old houses?
Man, that staircase…. *swoon!
more please!!
I’m so excited to see your home. I often click on the Woodlawn links hoping for an update I might have missed. When we were looking for our current home I fell in love with an old farmhouse, but the price and the work it needed exceeded our budget. I love the character of old homes…especially double front doors…and your staircase! I can’t wait to see more. Thanks for sharing!
Such lovely bones! I totally would have overlooked the oldest dishwasher known to man for the rest of that house.
Soo awesome!! I’ve been dying for a “tour” of the inside ever since you bought it (I know, how weird, right…I’m a total stranger lol). But really, I have a thing for farmhouses (bought one myself) so the tour was great! Bring on the upstairs, attic, basement, barns, outhouse..whatever you’ve got 😉
And p.s. we’ve been in ours almost 2 years also and it really is slooow going.
Thank you so much for sharing. What a beautiful home–it has great bones and I can see why you fell in love with it. I found myself wondering about the lives lived there before. Enjoy the process of making that beautiful space your own.