Upscale your home
There’s something about a well-built home. After all, unless you are in to “shanty” decor, the charm of properly designed and engineered walls and floors and windows and doors is sublime. And, after reading the House book by Tracy Kidder (twice) I have an idea about what I shouldn’t do. Top of the list: lowball the budget.
Give credit to This Old House on PBS; that’s not a crime they commit…
Last season, a makeover on a small home in Massachusetts caught my interest. From an educational point, at least. Their list of features had a number of common elements with my wishlist. Backup generator. Sufficient water. Geothermal heating. Tiled floors. Minimalist landscaping. On every level, the program (available on YouTube for review) met with what I would want for my home. Except.
The budget was never an issue. Everything was done, to order, on time. With the right crafts person for each part of the job. And at no point did the producers of the show offend sensibilities by mentioning the price. Never. You want a state-of the-art septic system in the basement? So be it. A zoned system for the radiant heating? Better it look like the pipework for an oil refinery than someone’s cellar maze. Custom tiles, shipped from England, on time and (wait, the budget wasn’t an issue); check that backsplash.
Yes, I’m rightfully jealous. I would have offered MY home for a makeover, and they could have enjoyed the anemic loonie while lazing on the beach between takes. Now I have to provide a project of equal allure to my family, with the dollar signs clearly printed on the bottom of each and every invoice.
