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Five years ago, I shared a post about Franklin, NC and the family ties that took us to this town over the years. If you read that post, you’ll see the family history of all of us going to NC during my growing up years. I took my mom with me then and we had a great visit with my cousin, Judy, who renovated her parents’ family cabin. Her dad is my dad’s nephew, even though they were only 4 years apart. We talked about the renovation 5 years ago (those years flew by!) and now that it was done, I went back for a visit this week and to see what all she accomplished. It looks like a different place now! Judy’s parents built the cabin in the 80’s around the same time my parents built their mountain house in Murphy, NC. Judy inherited the cabin from her parents when they both passed away and she had always wanted to do a renovation on it and it really paid off. They have moved here mostly full time at this point from their home in Virginia Beach, VA, but still own their home there too. They are adjusting to mountain living and enjoying it a lot. It’s so quiet and serene in their little holler of Franklin.
BEFORE:
AFTER:
You can see here how she improved the exterior, by rebuilding the old deck and railings, as well as added vertical planks to the bottom to make it look more finished. She changed the stain colors a bit too. She changed out the top windows as well to bigger ones. That upstairs area where you see the windows was a bedroom, but she decided to forego a bedroom for a vaulted ceiling and I do think it was the right choice. The A frame cabin was 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, now it’s 2 beds and baths, but she also has space in the basement to add another bedroom. There’s already a roughed in bathroom down there with a shower and it could easily be renovated for a 3rd bedroom, with stairs going down from the upper floors.
BEFORE:
AFTER:
The after shots are so much better and this 1980’s A frame got much needed updates. It has a wraparound porch, perfect for porch sitting.
I thought this evergreen tree trapped inside these hardwoods was interesting. Judy tells me this tree is protected and can’t be cut down.
She painted her door a bright yellow and it’s very welcoming.
INSIDE BEFORE:
Now we get to the inside. Judy’s mom loved to collect furniture and things and she had the cabin full of country artifacts, comfy chairs with an overall crowded feeling. That’s the same door that you just saw, which is the front door to the cabin coming off the driveway. She had it so blocked that you could barely get in this door and could hardly get up the stairs. The stairs are to the left behind that chair and it was a full wall where that piece of furniture was sitting. Judy decided to take out the wall and open up the stairs and what a difference that made.
She had a large dining room table crammed in the kitchen area and it made it very hard to get around.
Here’s a look at the sofa by the fireplace and how it blocked so much.
AFTER:
Here’s the AFTER shot of the stairs, all opened up now and what a difference it made to the feel of the room. The walls are all a soft green.
With that upper bedroom gone, it totally opened up the whole house to light and feels so much lighter and brighter. I love the beams and how airy it feels now. The fireplace brick was original and she left it the original color as it went from the bottom floor to the top bedroom that was there, which I think was a good choice. You can see the smallish table and 2 chairs she added behind the chairs off the kitchen, plus 2 barstools on the peninsula. What a difference, don’t you think?
Looking back towards the front door with the stairs to the left. I didn’t take pics of the bedrooms for now, but she’s redone the bathrooms too. This area was the dramatic change.
It really has a completely different feel now, with the old carpet gone and new flooring put in. She replaced the old sliders with new ones.
You can see her cat looking down from above. I love the modern staircase that’s also open. She wanted to give a nod to her heritage and these pieces on the wall above the kitchen, with old signs from her parent’s previous homes and windows from other old houses in the family.
KITCHEN BEFORE:
The old galley kitchen was long and narrow with no peninsula.
This wall stuck out further than it does now. She decided to open it up slightly so it would feel more of a part of the living room, but she left the footprint the same.
KITCHEN AFTER:
She did sleek gray cabinets with quartz countertops for a modern look. It all looks and feels so much more updated and I know they are enjoying the new and improved cabin. It’s so nice that she was able to personalize it to her own tastes, after her parents enjoyed it for so many years. I enjoyed seeing it and I thought you all would like it too. I always love a good before and after story!
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