The old fireplace has a bright new tile area.

Carol paid a visit to Russet Valley over the weekend to check on the progress of that project. For the most part, things are moving along at a brisk pace, which makes the house look less and less like its former self.

Indoors

Here you see the newly painted mantel, as well as the new wall color.

Inside the house, Carol has had the tile replacesby the fireplace hearth, so it is now a modern marble. The formerly brown mantelpiece is now white as snow. I can’t wait to see what it looks like when it’s replaced on the wall.

Also on the inside, the rustic feature on the kitchen peninsula has progressed, so that the X feature repeats. It will look really warm and interesting when it’s conmplete.

Can’t wait to see this one done!

What a lovely entry the bricks make!

Outdoors

The main problem with the outdoors is that the front yard tree that got trimmed hasn’t come back from its trimming. It looks like a new tree is in the future, darn it. There’s more that could be done with landscaping, and that’s for Lee and Carol to work out.

The front porch, however, is a happy story. The recycled bricks look just wonderful on the expanded porch area, and the wood-covered accents will be great when stained. Just those few more inches of space will make the area easier to use for sitting and waving at the neighbors.

That is a nice, big patio area, ready for entertaining.

Then, wow, let’s go to the back! Check out that pergola! Since there really wasn’t much of a back patio at all before, this will add so much value and living space to the house, in addition to shading the back and lowering elecricity costs. Buyers will love it!

Carol says it’s finished now and ready to be inspected. The back yard, which already has a pond, will be a retreat for anyone.

Photos courtesy of Carol Mangum.