Good luck with your offer! The house looks like something out of a storybook! Would love to see pictures of the inside if you end up getting it.

I have mixed feelings about building additions onto old houses but then I realize that back in the day I suppose they did the very same thing to old houses THEY bought. That being said - I love it and love the property! The stone work makes me swoon. Yes please post pics of the interior if possible.

You did mention freedom. I see lots of work there in upkeep of the property and out buildings tho.

The second photo is of the garage? It almost looks as tho it could have been a gate house at one time. lovely.

Wow. Wow, wow, wow. What an amazing place. I think an addition is a great idea, but where the original home is concerned, restore rather than renovate!

Schoolhouse is right, of course. Not only do old houses often require a lot of upkeep and maintenance work, but so does 2 acres of land. (one tip: rather than picking them up, mulch your fallen leaves and let the winter decompose them. Food for your lawn! and a lot less work for you!).

However, a lot of people think that kind of work, aka "Labors of love" IS freedom. My father, for example, wasn't happy on vacation unless there was something to fix, rake, paint, sandâ¦.

And having the right equipment makes all the difference in the world.
Good luck. It's absolutely charming.

Yes, the stonework is admirable.

The roofing material on the main house and garage: are those metail tiles? Unusual in some areas of the US -- not so much in others. To my amazement, having recently done research on metal roofing tiles, there are still manufacturers out there.

What region is this in?

Beautiful house and property! I have a fondness for Victorians, and yours had wonderful porches and delightful fretwork! It looks as though it has been well maintained based on the general look of the property. Keep us posted, and if/when you get it, please add indoor photos as well.

Thank you for the encouraging comments. The home is in Ontario, Canada.

Restore is absolutely the idea, that is why I wanted to find a place with its originality intact. The second photo is of the garage.

Outdoor work is my 'thing'. I currently have extensive gardens that require a lot of maintenance and upkeep. I created them from scratch doing all of the work myself. Beside the garden along my driveway, I built a small fieldstone drystack wall, but to me the creating and maintaining is exercise and a labour of love, I don't consider it work.

If the weather is pleasant, then I have to be doing something, however; once the cold weather sets in then I begin to hibernate :)

The roof is steel and I would love to be able to find a manufacturer to match it for the addition so any ideas would be most welcome.

The house still has its original doors and floors

The original narrow stairway

Bdrm 1

Bdrm 2

Master bdrm

Upstairs landing area

My current home with photo of newly constructed rock wall in 2013.

A couple more pics

Front door detail, I wil have to do something about the lock.

Hall downstairs - thoughts on painting the ceiling?

Ceiling medallion. I researched the manufacturer and James Smart Manufacturing Co. Ltd. was based in Brockville, ON.

Closet door downstairs-we think this may have come from a church

How small is small? Maybe just what you need.

Wow. They really don't build houses like they used to, do they? Love the old sconce. The pine is wonderful (my house is all pine as wellâ¦floors, beams, ceilingsâ¦love it, love it, love it, but pine is very hard to work with, i.e.: Paint, hard for dogs to walk on, but it's worth it for its beauty).

I thnk I'd paint in the scrollwork on the door(s) with black or dark brown paint. Orig. doors. Makes me drool.

I did paint two of the pine ceilings and some trim that wasn't painted. It was kind of wood overload, so maybe something to think about. I was SO nervous to paint the crown trim in the LR, but it turned out to be exactly the right thing to do as it made the ceiling feel higher and actually makes the beautiful pine and beamed ceiling work better with the painted walls, i.e.: the contrast. On the other had, I just stripped the FP down to the original pine!

So may options like that in these old houses. You're going to have so much fun working on yours, I thinkâ¦and hope!

Thanks for sharing pics of the interior. That is so great the original doors and floors are still there. Love the tall baseboards too. I think you and this house were made for each other. Can't wait to hear if your offer is accepted and to see you put your touch to it.
Good luck!

Nice wall and gardens at your present place! Yes, I prefer to have a project too; every summer I tell myself I'm satisfied but find another wall to build or a path to pave.

Thanks for the comments!

Re: the sconce, there is a porcelain one in one of the bedrooms, it is lovely. The kitchen door has the matching detail to the front door and it is painted white - see below.

I feel as though this place has wood overload, too. I wouldn't touch the floors or doors, though.

The den has had some work done to it. There is a custom built cabinet which is really well done but I do not like its location as it throws the centre of the fireplace off. See below. I love the fireplace!


Kitchen Door which matches detail on the front door

Den Cabinet

Den south side

Den north side, you can see what I mean about the cabinet throwing the fireplace off centre.

I'm wondering about the light colored wood, i.e. the den and the door, other older parts of the house; do you think previous OPs stripped the old finish or paint from these areas? The more I see the more it looks like a hodge-podge of old and too modern wood trim and paneling. Perhaps it's just the photos, maybe looks better in real life.

Yes, the cabinet definitely encroaches on the fireplace wall. A nice old desk on the left would have looked better than new built-in.

Beautiful. Are you married? I don't mind the cold.

The panelling in the den is new and so is the cabinetry. I will be moving the cabinetry to the master bedroom when we build the addition.
The doors, floors and stairs are original but I think the wainscotting may be newer. I think I will paint the ceiling to brighten it up a bit in there. It is quite 'woody'.
I 'do' mind the cold!